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Sorry in advance for the long post. I've tried to organize it from most to least relevant. Had an on site for Sr. Software Engineer in Alexa group. The recruiter informed me that it was "very close" and they "really enjoyed talking to me" and they would contact me again in the future, but probably not for a year. I asked about what general area I came up short (mgmt principals, coding performance, etc.), but she just apologized and said she couldn't reveal that. I have 20 YOE that correspond to about half the interviewers, so I don't think that's the issue. Of the 5 interviewers, I thought I did well with, and neutral with 2. There were a few times when I struggled a bit to come up with a ready response, like "tell me a story about a time you received negative criticism" or "what is your strategy when it comes to developing new talent". Coding portions went fine, maybe? Hard to tell - I wasn't ever stumped, but the livecode interface was not my cup of tea (tiny window that could only show about 12 at a time, and none of the navigation keyboard shortcuts from my editor of choice, so there was a.fair amount of fumbling when I wanted to move things around). There was one question that sounded like a system design question, but after a couple of minutes getting info about the domain, it appeared all the interviewer wanted was a function coded. My main reason for job searching right now is that although my current job is providing great value to my employer, it's a dead end professionally, and I'm not able to accumulate the kinds of "wins" or anecdotes that cover all the mgmt principals (for example, I have almost no authority to initiate projects, so I have little opportunity to influence the company).
"The recruiter informed me that it was "very close" and they "really enjoyed talking to me" and they would contact me again in the future, but probably not for a year" This is standard recruiter lingo. If you really were that close, we would've downleveled you, recycle you in 6 months or even set another loop directly. 1 year is the standard cooldown, so you were not "that" close. It sounds like you didn't give them enough information in the LP portion. Someone with your YOE should be able to come up with relevant examples very easily. Probably a pattern that came up in all interviews and they considered a red flag. I don't understand what "neutral interviews" mean but those two probably failed you. You must be better than 50% of those already in the company at the level to be hired. That's the famous Amazon bar. Being just ok does not cut it, specially at L6 and above. Did you come up with a full fledge end-to-end systems design that scales and is highly available? Sounds like you coded a function instead. In the systems design interview (typically led by a Bar Raiser) it is rare to have to write any code but if you were really lost or going too off-track they won't stop you.
I disagree that somebody of OPs experience should be able to come up with a relevant example very quickly. That just isn't how them human brain works. Unless primed, it may take a bit to come up with an example for certain questions. This is one reason why interviewing is a crapshoot. People have extreme misconceptions of how humans work and read into the most insignificant things.
You can disagree all you want but that's what we expect. With 20 YOE you should have gone through these situations a TON. We ask for simple scenarios: disagreement with coworkers, going above and beyond, etc. If not, it's a red flag that you were not exposed to the experience we look for. Also, no excuse for being unprepared. Recruiters always recommend preparing 2 examples per LP beforehand so they are easier to remember.
I also interviewed for a position on the Alexa team. Technical portion went well, but I didn’t get it. The recruiter said I would still be a good fit elsewhere at Amazon. They don’t give feedback, however, my general sense is that the Alexa group is trying to select candidates that can demonstrate effectiveness in challenging status quo ideas in uncomfortable situations (i.e. be an ass sometimes to get your way). There is a specific Amazon leadership principle you need to clear about challenging authority, knowing you’re right and being an uncomfortable change agent (the principle is something like leaders are right most of the time). I think that’s the one I didn’t pass as I emphasized cooperation and consensus too much. You have to know you’re right and convince people you are.
Why do you want to leave Google?? One LP never fails your loop. There must've been other things. And the bar raiser is normally ok to ignore a mediocre behavioral if the technical part makes up for it.
I’m sure there were other things, but I don’t know because I got limited feedback, so I have to guess. I’m pretty sure I passed the technical portion as the hiring manager said I did well on that. I think there were some leadership principles I didn’t clear as I was interviewing for a senior role. I spoke to some other groups and they wanted to continue the hiring process, just not the Alexa group. I’ve been at Google 9 years, so looking for a change and pay bump. Fine with my job, but want to experience new things and grow more. Alexa seemed like a cool opportunity, but didn’t work out.