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Facebook senior software engineer interview

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Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#351

Post by chris11 »

jbn wrote: post #126
meowzero wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I worked at a company, not a FANG, but had interviews like a FANG. We had a solid team. But some of us believed we wouldn't be able to pass our own interviews.

isn't this what's happening at FANG companies: the gatekeepers (i.e. people giving interviews) have an incentive to not let people in too easily? This limits the pool of employees, and since what's rare is expensive, makes insiders more valuable? Also at FANG companies, interviewing feels (to me) like hazing that is unrelated to what the day-to-day job will be like. Some interviewers I had obviously had a very high o…

Another issue is that hiring is expensive and FANG companies have a ton of applicants. Raising the bar on algorithmic interview performance is a straightforward way to filter applicants that is relevant to job performance. After the initial screen it's still hard to make the case to hire a smart engineer if one or two of the interviewers have concerns about their interview performance.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#352

Post by scottlamb »

janoc wrote: post #291
scottlamb wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It is like testing a surgeon's suturing skill during a job interview. Of course, it is an essential skill for them to have, but that's something for a school exam and not job interview for someone with verifiable credentials. Or do you think that surgeon didn't suture in their previous job and just "winged it through" for years? Yes, absolutely, I think that some surgeons can be less skilled at suturing after years…

And you want to say that such assessment is actually done during a job interview and not during, you know, actual surgeries? With a more senior doctor on the team evaluating (and likely mentoring) the new hire? Seriously?

I was going for brevity. You might be missing my point here, which is: relying on credentials isn't working out as well as people might think for surgeons. They have a much stronger credential requirement, so if it isn't working for them, it probably won't work for hiring software engineers either.

But to answer your question, of the two links I included:

* the first is an artificial test that can be taken any time. Yes, it could be actually done during a job interview, and maybe it should. Alternatively, maybe it should be done yearly, whether that's enforced by the medical licensing board, the hospital, or insurance (either the patients' insurance forces it or the doctor's malpractice insurance).

* the second mentions criteria for ranking performance from a video of an actual surgery. No, I'm not suggesting applicants perform unnecessary surgery on a live patient during the job interview. They can bring a video of their most recent surgery instead.

The details of the best method for surgeons might not be that relevant to hiring software engineers, but I do think for both it's better to evaluate current skill rather than rely on exams from school years ago. Software engineering does this better than most fields, even if it sometimes leads to really bad results like not hiring Dan Luu. [1]

[1] https://danluu.com/algorithms-interviews/

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#353

Post by xiphias2 »

cstrahan wrote: post #300
Kranar wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean you listed several database libraries, static analyzers, and a code optimizer. Is it your suggestion that those kinds of applications do not require solid knowledge of a variety of different data structures and algorithms?

> I mean you listed several database libraries, static analyzers, and a code optimizer. Correct. > Is it your suggestion that those kinds of applications do not require solid knowledge of a variety of different data structures and algorithms? No -- precisely opposite. Your response confused me quite a lot, but after some thought, I think I've realized how things have become mixed up. I took this for sarcasm: > Which…

I listed the most innovative things that happened. They were product innovations that could have killed Facebook as a company, not RocksDB or React. At the same time I'm a software engineer, and I could write a database much easier than create something that grows faster than Facebook.

I use instagram and WhatsApp, no Facebook anymore (except messenger), as young people went there (and I'm following).

TikTok is a bit too much for me though, I think creating videos for it takes too much time, while for Instagram it's easy to take nice photos while I'm travelling.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#354

Post by jorblumesea »

Mauricebranagh wrote: post #250
jorblumesea wrote: post #147

As someone who just went through the FB E5 interview process and got an offer, this is largely incorrect. Or, doesn't reflect how my E5 interviews goes and doesn't match up with what I've heard from friends. This is all anecdotal of course and based on personal experience. 1) DDIA is way too deep for E5, system design or product design. In general, the book is just too deep for any interview. It's a fantastic book bu…

Re 3 really seems over kill an unrealistic for an interview, and maybe some times you don't need optimal time complexity. And TBH with a background in real technical computing I would probably look at buying in any required algos in from people like NAG. Your not really testing for those that can think outside the box in this style of interview.

That's what I thought too, but I've heard from friends that didn't get offers that not getting the optimal solution is a reject. Even things like O(n) to O(log n). I don't agree with it at all, just communicating what my experience has been (and people I know that have gone through it).

Obviously this is completely anecdotal.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#355

Post by geodel »

burnthrow wrote: post #200
xR63cRyqrL wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Turns out you got to pay bills even if you are on a moral high horse. Besides if one has to have a clear conscience to match everyone's standard here, one should stop working at FAANG, stop using FAANG products, maybe stop using big oil products, stop using big pharma products, is it ok to pay taxes to a govt if you don't agree with something they did or should one pick up and move too? what else did I miss? HN is so…

Give me a break, a job with Facebook isn't the only one that pays the bills.

Well you list the company name and enough ethical failings can be found for that also

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#356

Post by sockgrant »

Uberphallus wrote: post #21
aphextron wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'd argue that points to a massive monoculture problem at Facebook, but I'm massively anti-Facebook so I'm biased. I'm pretty sure that's the point. Massive enterprises like Facebook have no need for creative "outside the box" thinking anymore. They need dependable, solid developers with a standardized skillset that they can plug into a position like lego blocks, easily replaced whenever they burnout or stop toeing…

I kind of agree with your cynicism, but I'm partial due to having been refused by Facebook, twice. The first time I made the mistake of using Python (because of its whiteboard value) while not being proficient in it. They really didn't like me Googling some basic stuff. The second time I still used Python, but had 5 years experience using it behind. Can't be objective but it was probably the best interview I've ever…

Can fail behavioral or design interviews while passing coding and not get hired. Can also have written what you thought was good code but have been given too many hints. Or, could have written good code to the question asked, but took so long that interviewer didn't get to a second question and you wouldn't ever know that.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#357

Post by gotosleep »

amazoniananon wrote: post #341
onion2k wrote: post #2

There are two interesting things in this post. The first is that a senior developer at Facebook believes every single senior developer looking for a role at Facebook can revise the same things. Clearly the author believes that Facebook are looking for programmers who fit a very specific mould, to the point that they're willing to go out in public and state exactly that. I'd argue that points to a massive monoculture…

These are very basic/generalist things, not a specific mould. Refreshing your skills here and making sure you're comfortable with everything on this list will help you be confident that you can pretty much do the kinds of work available to you as a senior engineer. And if you are lacking in any of these, it almost certainly will show up when you're trying to function in the role. I run into this every day with entry…

"if you did get hired for this role and managed to keep it, you'll be a master at this stuff within a couple of years." I wholeheartedly disagree. I have a total of 14 years of experience. I've been at Google for the past 6 years. I'm an L5 (Senior Engineer) and I get good performance reviews. I interview candidates on a fairly regular basis on behalf of Google. I am fully confident that if I had to re-interview for my job today, without extensive pre-prep like the author suggests, I would have a very slim chance of passing. The fact is, these algorithm quizzes have nothing at all to do with our job. On the off chance once ever 5 years you actually do need to apply an algorithm, you would do extensive study into the possible options and solutions, write a design doc, have it peer reviewed, and then go down that path - not pull something out of your ass in 15 minutes.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#358

Post by bcrosby95 »

driverdan wrote: post #223
mrits wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"But why?" Because most people can't. And they want to make sure you can.

Most people with 20 years of experience can't write basic code? Come on.

We hired one who couldn't. He turned out to be more of a mentor/big vision/best practices guy. Which is probably OK to have one or two of those if you're a large enough org.

But we had 3 devs. I think he gave some great advice (and looking back - still think so 12 years later), but it just wasn't what we needed at the time.

The funny thing is, when we let him go (he knew it was coming - he wasn't blind to the problems) he got hired at a company we worked regularly with. Things worked out much better for him there.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#359

Post by ativzzz »

MajorBee wrote: post #342
mylons wrote: post #167

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your points are basically true across $MANGA as well. (Microsoft, Apple, Netflix, Google, Amazon) I think it’s more a symptom of interviewing being broken than just being a monoculture. They’re probably very related, though. Bad interview practices produce bad results, etc. Why is interviewing so broken? Why isn’t there something like certifications? Do things like unions address this? They seem to in construction, p…

> $MANGA as well. (Microsoft, Apple, Netflix, Google, Amazon) I must say this is a new acronym (backronym?) for me. Why do people insist on shoe-horning in Netflix in there? Yes, I'm aware without the N these acronyms can collapse into a more distasteful and off-topic term, but is that the only reason? I'm sure Netflix is a "wealthy" company with a competent engineering org, but surely they are nowhere near the scale…

Mostly because Netflix has very high compensation for senior engineers.

Re: Facebook senior software engineer interview

#360

Post by burnthrow »

geodel wrote: post #355
burnthrow wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Give me a break, a job with Facebook isn't the only one that pays the bills.

Well you list the company name and enough ethical failings can be found for that also

I'm certain the small startup I work for hasn't failed too badly ethically. But I don't own a home in SF so... failure?
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