Extend, Inc. Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

The interview focused on problem-solving skills using code and system design, as well as assessing cultural fit. It wasn't about obscure algorithms that don't show much about a candidate. Overall, it was a good experience.

I was first reached out to by an internal recruiter. Then, I had an interview with the platform director. After that, I completed a practical take-home exercise. This was followed by a half-day of interviews, which included a technical overview, an architecture-level discussion, a review of my take-home exercise, and a behavioral interview. It was a refreshing experience overall, as the team seemed genuinely interested in my past projects, areas of interest, and practical skills, rather than focusing on algorithmic puzzles. It was a surprisingly kind and personable interview process.

It kicked off with a chat from the Lead Recruiter, then a call with the hiring manager. They then asked if I'd consider a senior role instead of a lead, which I saw as a red flag but went ahead. I got a coding challenge, which was an easy, realistic task for a backend dev. After that, it was 4 hours of wasted time with 5 interviews with clueless 'Lead developers' who focused on theory over practical experience. The interviewers were nice but lacked experience, and I think their team structuring and seniority evaluation are flawed. They seem to promote based on who knows more about a topic, not actual experience. The feedback that I wasn't a senior developer, despite over a decade in the field, was ridiculous given the experience level of their 'Lead developers' and 'Directors of engineering'. The biggest letdown was their intention to lowball an offer based on interviewer opinions.