Files.com Interview Questions
& Process

First, you'll do some sort of IQ test, which seems like a waste of time since my resume, education, and background already show my intelligence, and we'll have a conversation anyway. After passing that, I had to do a role-playing exercise simulating a customer support scenario, which I aced because I'm not socially awkward and have plenty of experience with that kind of thing at work. Then, I finally got to talk to a real engineering hiring manager, but unfortunately, they were focused on obscure topics that are more about personal preference and coding style than core concepts. They didn't move forward with me, possibly because I'm not 'weird' enough, but good luck to the 'weirdos' out there, these are your people.

I applied for a Support Engineering role and did some aptitude and cognitive tests. Erin, the recruiter, set up an interview with Adam, Director of Support. Adam conducted a role-play interview. Although I wasn't the right technical fit, he gave me encouraging feedback. A week later, Erin let me know I didn't get the role, which was appreciated. About a month later, Erin contacted me again, saying the company had been discussing me and wanted to know if I was still looking. They had a different role in mind, not strictly technical but with the same salary as the Support role. This new role involved working directly with the CEO on company growth, with details still being worked out. Erin kept in touch weekly for two months, being transparent and professional. I was excited about the potential opportunity. Then, Erin scheduled an interview with the CEO. The CEO interview was a red flag. He lacked professional courtesy, didn't provide clear context for the role, and became frustrated when I asked for clarification. He seemed to want someone who fit his narrow definition of 'creative' and wasn't interested in relevant questions. He asked about fixing communication problems, implying he wanted someone to manage teams or even install a sound system. He insulted my previous employer because they weren't a billion-dollar company, despite their excellent team communication. He called me uncreative and unable to solve problems unless they were explicitly laid out, which I found to be a misunderstanding of problem-solving. When it became clear we weren't a match, he seemed surprised I wasn't desperate for the job. I suspect the interview may have been recorded without explicit consent. While Erin and Adam are great, the CEO's interview style actively harms the company's recruiting efforts. My experience suggests that if you value mutual respect and clear communication, be cautious about the leadership.

First, I took a CCAT assessment and answered some questions about their tech stack, mostly covering SSL, TLS, storage, and HTTP. Then, I had an interview with a really nice non-technical person. It was set up like a sales engineering meeting where you're supposed to ask lots of detailed questions to figure out the customer's issues. I'm not a sales engineer though, and while they said it's about problem-solving, it felt like the goal was just to ask about every single thing the 'customer' said until I had an answer for everything. I'm not sure how this helps with the actual job.

The interview journey was quite extensive, but I actually enjoyed it due to the diverse range of questions and the opportunity to gain insights from various team members. My only suggestion for improvement would be to include an interaction with a peer in the role I applied for, as this could offer a more candid view of the company culture compared to only speaking with Directors. All my interactions during the process were with amazing people I'd be thrilled to work with, making the experience both professional and natural. The process unfolded as follows: 1) A chat with the Recruiter. 2) A CCAT Test and a Technical Question Test (results are kept confidential, though I'm curious!). 3) A meeting with the Hiring Manager, focusing on customer success aspects. 4) A discussion with the Director of Support, centered on technical topics. 5) A Written Challenge. 6) A final meeting with the COO. Overall, it was a deep and engaging process that gave me a solid understanding of the company and its team, which I found to be uncommon.