Opower Interview Questions
& Process

I applied through LinkedIn and then was contacted by HR. After that, I had a technical screening via phone with the hiring manager. They then sent me a homework assignment with SQL and Linux questions. Finally, I was invited for an all-day face-to-face interview with six people. I never heard back after, even though all interviews went over time and the interviewers seemed interested. The pros were they are very hospitable, have a very nice office, pets are allowed, and there are various perks. The cons are no diversity (you will see that during the tour) and they don't bother to give you interview feedback after you spend your time and energy. Note: Honestly, I wasn't that interested in the position after learning more about it.

The whole thing took about 2 months. It was the typical Opower setup: first, an HR call, then a chat with the hiring manager, followed by a homework assignment, and finally, an in-office interview. The initial phone calls were pretty straightforward. The take-home writing task was quite demanding, actually taking me over 8 hours, even though they suggested 4-6. The in-office part lasted about 6 hours, featuring 5 distinct interviews, including a topgrading one. The workplace felt quite chill, with free lunches on Fridays, a ping pong table, and people scooting around. The recruiters were definitely the best part; they kept me in the loop for about three weeks after my in-office interview and were happy to answer my questions. Even though they thought I was a good fit, the role ended up being absorbed elsewhere in the company. My recruiter was cool though, telling me to keep in touch for other openings and offering a referral.

It started with a HR phone interview, which was a pretty standard screening call. The HR person you talk to stays with you the whole time and can answer any questions you have, and mine was super helpful. After that, there was a take-home technical skills assessment. It was fairly tricky and covered a good range of practical stuff, not really something you can study for since it's untimed, but it shows if you have the right knowledge. Then, I had a phone interview with the hiring manager. It was a formal intro, some questions about company culture, and a few technical questions. The technical questions were reasonable for a phone call, you don't need perfect code. Finally, there were in-person interviews with about 4-5 engineers and managers. These were mostly technical, focusing on database skills, Unix commands, and data input handling. They were casual and friendly, not intense like an interrogation. They felt more like working through realistic practical problems. Internet was allowed for some questions, focusing on skills rather than just memorization.

I got an email from the recruiter 3 days after applying on Opower's job board and we scheduled a phone interview. The first interview was a 30 minute call with the recruiter where we discussed my background and skills. After that, I was given a take-home assignment that I had 48 hours to complete. Following the homework, the recruiter set up a phone interview with the hiring supervisor. This was a 1-hour call where we went over my qualifications and the homework I submitted. The final stage was a 4-hour on-site interview with five people: the hiring manager, two future colleagues, a person who handles unresolved issues in our department, and a manager from another city via Skype.