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The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

kranga.notion.site

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Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#41

Post by tcbawo »

sjducb wrote: post #17
riffraff wrote: post #10

I loved the article and would probably have hired this person. But as a suggestion to them: if an interviewer says "I don't think that will be a good idea" just take the hint that it won't be what the expect and change it. Also reminded me of my compiler class, we had some homework to write a pascal/C transpiler and a friend of mine somehow managed to implement it via bison errors(?). The teacher was not happy but ha…

At work, would you rather have a boss that makes you implement dumb ideas? Or would you prefer a boss who recognises that your idea is better, then rewards you for it? You are interviewing them too. I would also have hired the candidate.

The author’s answer was clever, but also unconventional. The company was probably looking for someone that would write code in a shared codebase that other developers will need to contribute to and maintain. Thinking outside the box and not following suggestions might have raised a red flag that this person might be a loose cannon. In a small company, hiring someone smart but unwilling to follow directions can be detrimental. Kudos to the author, though, for being quick thinking and creative.

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#42

Post by Gee101 »

sjducb wrote: post #17
riffraff wrote: post #10

I loved the article and would probably have hired this person. But as a suggestion to them: if an interviewer says "I don't think that will be a good idea" just take the hint that it won't be what the expect and change it. Also reminded me of my compiler class, we had some homework to write a pascal/C transpiler and a friend of mine somehow managed to implement it via bison errors(?). The teacher was not happy but ha…

At work, would you rather have a boss that makes you implement dumb ideas? Or would you prefer a boss who recognises that your idea is better, then rewards you for it? You are interviewing them too. I would also have hired the candidate.

No point in dying on every hill. Sometimes letting people get their way today (even if you don't agree) could be long term win for you.

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#43

Post by XorNot »

hahn-kev wrote: post #37
riffraff wrote: post #10

I loved the article and would probably have hired this person. But as a suggestion to them: if an interviewer says "I don't think that will be a good idea" just take the hint that it won't be what the expect and change it. Also reminded me of my compiler class, we had some homework to write a pascal/C transpiler and a friend of mine somehow managed to implement it via bison errors(?). The teacher was not happy but ha…

Yeah I agree. You should be demonstrating how you would write code in the job. Based on devs I've worked with, I don't think a pure type solution as presented is very maintainable.

On the job I don't have lines of code restrictions, and can use math functions.

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#45

Post by krior »

chvid wrote: post #29

Asking a trivial question is a simple way to test a person’s basic skill but also more importantly his ability to communicate and work with others who may not have the same level of expertise. If you use it as a chance to make a mockery of the interview process/interviewer then perhaps that is not a good idea if you actually want the job.

Maybe its a cultural difference, but I fail to see how this solution is "mockery".

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#46

Post by xnickb »

qsort wrote: post #26
riffraff wrote: post #10

I loved the article and would probably have hired this person. But as a suggestion to them: if an interviewer says "I don't think that will be a good idea" just take the hint that it won't be what the expect and change it. Also reminded me of my compiler class, we had some homework to write a pascal/C transpiler and a friend of mine somehow managed to implement it via bison errors(?). The teacher was not happy but ha…

> if an interviewer says "I don't think that will be a good idea" just take the hint that it won't be what the expect and change it. I'd like to underline this just in case the author reads the thread. He really does seem great and I wish all the best to him, but reading between the lines is a useful skill regardless of this specific situation. He says he doesn't speak English well, that might have played a role in t…

Smells like poor management to me.

"We'd like you to explore this path and show how you would deal with problems that occur there" is much easier to interpret than the passive aggressive tone of "I don't think .."

I would also go with my idea and see how the manager reacted: there is only so much micromanagement I'm willing to tolerate at work. Interviews go both ways.

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#47

Post by haspok »

kaoD wrote: post #36
haspok wrote: post #30

> ...the first time in life I spoke english. Well, there you go. Typescript can only get you so far. Unless you want to be a low-paid code monkey, time to learn natural languages. ps. I have many Spanish colleagues, and I have a hard time understanding them in general (when they speak English). Only one other nation is worse, the French...

> I have many Spanish colleagues, and I have a hard time understanding them in general. As a Spaniard I'm curious, why's this? I think I'm pretty well understood (worked remote for US and NL for years) but maybe just in case I can make life easier for my interlocutors.

It may not help that there are more of them, and of course, among themselves they speak Spanish. One of them then turns to me and asks something switching to English, he keeps his speech mostly unchanged (speed, enunciation, pronounciation), except he is putting supposedly English words one after the other...

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#48

Post by xnickb »

tcbawo wrote: post #41
sjducb wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At work, would you rather have a boss that makes you implement dumb ideas? Or would you prefer a boss who recognises that your idea is better, then rewards you for it? You are interviewing them too. I would also have hired the candidate.

The author’s answer was clever, but also unconventional. The company was probably looking for someone that would write code in a shared codebase that other developers will need to contribute to and maintain. Thinking outside the box and not following suggestions might have raised a red flag that this person might be a loose cannon. In a small company, hiring someone smart but unwilling to follow directions can be det…

Then that expectation should be communicated clearly, not via some obscure passive aggressive subtones, don't you find?

Re: The FizzBuzz that did not get me the job

#49

Post by bowsamic »

quectophoton wrote: post #34
bowsamic wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That isn’t much money, even for Europe

50k EUR/year for me would be like 2900 EUR/month after all taxes. Monthly expenses in the part of Spain I live in are ~800 EUR (rent + food + electricity + water + 1Gbps internet). 2900 - 800 = 2100 EUR to do whatever I want with. Even if I decide to put half of that into savings, that's still ~1000 EUR to spend freely, and any unspent money would go into savings too at the end of the month. Or in other words: With a…

Fair enough I’m just saying I live in Germany and just entered my first software position and get 73k, and I don’t live in Berlin or anything. I suppose in Spain living expenses are much cheaper. Your monthly expenses including food are less than my rent. Tho I still think I have more than 2100 left over after expenses
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