3 Interview Tips for Hiring Outstanding Developers

mashable.com

2 points·followmylee··2 comments

One of the ways we gauge an applicant’s ability to handle unknown situations is with a Lego test. ... Top-tier applicants will stand out during surprising interview situations, like the Lego test, based on their ability to handle adversity, the method they use to create the solution and the amount of time it takes to complete the task. Particularly outstanding candidates will also ask questions and genuinely have fun with the challenge.

Umm, yeah. I'd like to see some evidence that performance on such gamed-up "tests" have any more hard correlation with actual, real, in-the-trenches job performance... than with, say, a candidate's sun sign, or the palm readings from a psychic down at the mall...

Developers must be able to work in collaborative, team-based environments. To test this skill, team up applicants with current employees. For example, we have applicants join Lextech developers in an Xbox game. This part of the interview isn’t about the candidate’s gaming chops –- it’s about measuring the candidates’ ability to work with others in a pressure-filled environment.

Unless of course the candidate is over the age of 25 or so, or similarly possessed with enough sense of self yo recognize that they have no time for such childishness... and correspondingly, find an appropriate, tactful excuse to cut the interview short, and ask for directions to the next elevator.

Whenever I see amazing new interview techniques, I think of the fun that anti-discrimination lawyers could have with them. It would not be difficult to make the case that having candidates play Xbox games is heavily biased in favor of young males.

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