Kinetica DB Interview Questions
& Process

I submitted my CV through their website. An HR representative reached out, we talked about my CV and the job specifics, and since it seemed like a good match, they set up a series of remote interviews. There was one interview with the hiring manager, and the others were with members of the sales team and about 3-4 technical folks to assess my technical abilities. Overall, most interviews were conducted professionally, except for one. The final technical interviewer, supposedly a top expert from engineering, seemed unprepared and uninterested. This person then insisted on a final interview involving a simulated customer interaction. While this later interview appeared more professional, it felt like a charade, especially since the interviewer didn't even know what Netezza was, which is quite surprising given the market niche Kinetica operates in.

HR reached out to me first. The interview had four stages: first, an initial HR screen. Second, a technical round with two solutions architects. Third, an interview with management. Fourth, another interview with different management. The second and third rounds felt pretty similar, covering experience and some random topics. The whole process was clear but the structure was a bit loose. I wasn't quite sure what they were trying to gauge though, like skill sets or leadership principles? Since the intention wasn't very clear, I wasn't sure how to prepare. The overall interview was easy, the interviewers were friendly and the solutions architects had in-depth knowledge of the products.

I applied for a job and a recruiter from the Arlington, VA office called me a few days later. They set up a phone screen with two managers. The interview itself wasn't great, the interviewers were really condescending and kept cutting me off. They accused me of not answering questions and pushed me to answer them again in a way they wanted. Honestly, this was the worst interview I've ever had. While I've had interviews before where I didn't vibe with the interviewer, they were at least professional. These two were just plain rude.

So, I applied online and heard back from a recruiter quickly. First, there was a recruiter call, then a basic phone interview with some developers, all in the first few days. A couple of weeks later, I had an in-person interview where we discussed a coding project they gave me. They said they would have liked to offer me the job, but apparently, the hiring for developers got frozen due to business stuff.