Hey folks. I’ve done hundreds of M1 and M2 interviews at Meta so I figured I might help demystify anything for ya’ll. Lemme know if u have any questions. #interview #engineeringmanager
Is Meta still on hiring freeze for M1?
Yes but there’s on-going M2 and IC7 hiring.
What are the questions/interviews where most people don’t perform well.
Great question! If you’re asked what is constructive feedback you’ve gotten and you enter into a long disclaimer before answering it’s a bad sign. I’ve seen a lot of struggle when explaining how to get teams or people to communicate better with one another. People tend to try and make themselves shine as a process champion rather than exposing that they’re an expert at sleuthing out or diagnosing the problem. A tricky one for a lot of people is answering about what their biggest mistake is supporting people. It’s rare to find some somebody confident enough to show that their actions might have hurt someone’s. Usually you get a rubbish answer about focusing too much on tech or trying to do too much themselves. Those that legit own their mistakes and show humility are more likely to relate to what matters to the company.
oh no my answer is focusing too much on tech and trying to do too much myself :((
TC? What do you look from managers technically?
A lot!! Senior ICs need to take you seriously. Even if you aren’t expect to do the coding - you should have the chops to do it. Rust is fine in the coding portion if you are out of practice but you need to be an expert problem solver technically.
What kind of signals do you look for? How does this expectation vary for M1 vs M2? Can you share some examples?
Team vs individual for m2 vs M1: w.g. How would you resolve a conflict bt two people vs bt two teams? You need mastery of both at M2. How do you measure the health of a team vs a person? How do you decide how to organize a team around an area of work to maximize impact vs how do you put a person in the right spot to make them successful? How do you recognize a teams work be an individual.
I’m an IC but mainly just curious how do you handle conflict between two people and two teams?
Do you regret hiring me?
I don’t. I did what I could to help you find success.
Maybe this is too broad, but what are the hallmarks of a successful M1 or M2?
Too broad
My wife just moved from running a 100 person org in banking tech to an M1 equivalent, hoping to get to M2 quickly. What do you look for in an M2 if they aren't from a tech firm?
Quickly? Like less than 2 years? You need to immediately show you can hire and make other managers successful.
Glad you finally made it!
Switch to IC eng and get to IC6 and switch after a year.
Have you ever hired someone who wasn’t already a manager at another company?
Meta hires directors at other companies as M1 …
Yes. Titles are less important than experience. If your job has overlap supporting people than there’s a case for hiring at m1.