{"id":11093,"date":"2015-01-31T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-01-31T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.wework.com\/?p=11093"},"modified":"2020-03-30T18:43:17","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T22:43:17","slug":"5-non-tech-questions-ask-every-developer-hire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/professional-development\/5-non-tech-questions-ask-every-developer-hire","title":{"rendered":"The key to hiring a well-rounded developer"},"content":{"rendered":"

The key to a well-rounded tech hire is an in-depth interview.<\/p>\n

\n

We all know that finding a developer isn\u2019t easy. Here in New York, tech investment is\u00a0heating up<\/a>\u00a0and tech startups are around\u00a0every corner<\/a>. The big Silicon Valley firms like Facebook, Google and Twitter have already been here for years and are hiring too.<\/p>\n

Then, all of a sudden, you\u2019re interviewing a developer and she\u2019s got the technical chops you need: she\u2019s performed well on\u00a0coding challenges<\/a>, her\u00a0whiteboard exercises look great<\/a>\u00a0and she knows your stack. You have to bring her on board ASAP, right?<\/p>\n

Not so fast. The right engineer isn\u2019t just someone who knows their algorithms; it\u2019s someone who communicates effectively and knows what it means to be part of a team. So before you send out that offer letter, ask them some non-technical questions too.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, we have some great non-technical folks here at ImagineEasy that support our engineering interview process. Here are their suggestions:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. What\u2019s an example of a time you helped a non-technical person with a technical problem, and how did you explain it to them?\u00a0<\/strong>This one is a gem. You immediately understand if the technical person has worked with non-technical people in a meaningful way by the terms they use when describing non-technical people and the explanation itself.<\/li>\n
  2. Have you worked with QA (quality assurance) before? What were your feelings about it and how would you improve the process?\u00a0<\/strong>Sometimes, a developer can be at odds with their QA team. Understanding if the engineer values QA, and how they handle the process, is important. Ditto for similar questions regarding designers and project managers.<\/li>\n
  3. Have you ever worked in a customer support or client facing role?\u00a0<\/strong>At larger firms, it\u2019s easy for engineers to get siloed and tucked away from end users. Knowing someone has experience interacting with people in a service role can be helpful.<\/li>\n
  4. What are your hobbies?\u00a0<\/strong>This is a nice opener because it creates a bond with the engineer outside of simply tech. You can see how they talk about something they\u2019re passionate about.<\/li>\n
  5. What do you like about your current work environment, and what do you not like about it?\u00a0<\/strong>This is an opportunity for you to understand the energy of a candidate. I\u2019ve interviewed a number of candidates who, when given the chance, berate their current employer or make unproductive comments about them. While it\u2019s common for people to be unhappy with where they currently are \u2014 which is likely\u00a0why they\u2019re interviewing with you in the first place \u2014 the way they communicate about it\u00a0will give you a lot of insight into their personality.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Most importantly, empower the non-technical people on your team, whether it\u2019s customer support, marketing, QA\u00a0or anyone else,\u00a0to interview the candidate as well and provide their feedback. Hopefully, these questions can serve as a guideline on what to look for when you do.<\/p>\n

    Don\u2019t get me wrong \u2014 a talented engineer is a hard commodity to come by. So it\u2019s important to look at these questions not as an additional hurdle to building your team, but as an acknowledgement that you don\u2019t just value a person for their skills but also for their personality and their heart. We\u2019ve been able to find those brilliant, empathetic and passionate engineers that make our team wonderful \u2014 and I know you can too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The key to a well-rounded tech hire is an in-depth interview. We all know that finding a developer isn\u2019t easy. Here in New York, tech investment is\u00a0heating up\u00a0and tech startups are around\u00a0every corner. The big Silicon Valley firms like Facebook, Google and Twitter have already been here for years and are hiring too. Then, all […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1415,"featured_media":11097,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43902],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-professional-development"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe key to hiring a well-rounded developer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The key to a well-rounded tech hire is an in-depth interview. 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