Interview Red Flags

Cisco
Trvth

Go to company page Cisco

Trvth
May 14, 2021 8 Comments

What do you ask to check for red flags during an interview?

Or what are some statements that are a red flag?

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TOP 8 Comments
  • New
    eo4u🤪💪🏻

    New

    eo4u🤪💪🏻
    Following— this has been on my mind lately. Top of my mind is:

    1) Interviewers are late to the interview. 5 minutes is understandable, but anything longer than 10-15 minutes is just disrespectful. I recently had one where the interviewer was literally 45 minutes late. They apologized profusely, saying that they were stuck in a meeting, but it left a really bad taste in my mouth. It also demonstrated that the company doesn’t value employees’ time. Imagine having to be stuck in a 30 minute meeting that drags on for over an hour. It’s also a huge red flag if the interviewers are a no show during an on-site (has happened to me before).

    2) Rude and arrogant interviewers who actively try to bring you down. You know the ones— they’re usually junior/super fresh in the field and eager to prove that they are smart. So they’ll test you on multiple obscure LC Hard problems in a 30 minute interview and question your code constantly while you are whiteboarding. Then they nitpicks the smallest shit in your code w a smug on their face. Makes me want to punch their face.

    3) Interviewers who have no idea what they’re interviewing the candidate for. It becomes awkward real quick then.

    4) Overly aggressive interviewers who attack and debate any answer you give, and not in a friendly trying to get each other way, but in a way where everything you say is wrong. The interview is not a place for aggressive debates or to try to one-up another person. Truly so unprofessional and bizarre.

    5) Contradicting understanding from different team members on the same team regarding what their team is doing. Shows that there is lots of confusion and uncertainty and chaos on the team.

    6) “We are like a family here.” Nope, hard pass. Companies that say these have always been extremely dysfunctional — extreme lack of boundaries, slave labor, exploitative. Also tend to be extremely cultish and koolaid.

    7) Sad, stressed-out, downtrodden-looking interviewers who seem checked out or burned out. Not a good sign of WLB.

    8) Company downleveling you despite a stellar interview performance feedback. They say you’ll grow up quickly in the org and be paid more then. Never trust this. Never accept a down level.

    9) When asked about WLB, there’s a pause. We work here a lot, all day and all night, but it’s because i love what i do here! yeah no.....
    May 15, 2021 1
    • Google
      VitalikETH

      Go to company page Google

      VitalikETH
      Sounds like you had some "nice" experiences. Definitely encountered some of the stereotypes myself. The downleveling hit too close to home.
      May 15, 2021
  • Workday
    my dude

    Go to company page Workday

    my dude
    I got this question from another blind post. It’s worked well for me to find the micro managers.

    “Can you tell me about one of your best developers you’ve ever managed?”

    It’s very general on purpose. It forces the manager to really spell out what they value in their team members. I.e. if all they say is you must meet all deadlines and tasks, depending on wording could be a red flag. If they say they value the amount of impact you have on not just the org but the productivity of the team, could be better. And you can ask follow up questions if they give too much of a general bs answer.

    For ICs I like to ask what they would change about the company
    May 15, 2021 0
  • Indeed
    exgooglerl

    Go to company page Indeed

    exgooglerl
    A yellow 🍌
    May 15, 2021 0
  • Cadence
    Rando911

    Go to company page Cadence

    Rando911
    Any company that asks LC question is a bad company.
    May 16, 2021 0
  • Samsung
    Hyper 🔁

    Go to company page Samsung

    Hyper 🔁
    1. If a red 🚩 is spotted nearby. 2. If there is a 🦬 fuming at you 3. You are color blind and you see a lot of blue flags
    May 15, 2021 0