Starburst Interview Questions
& Process

The first step is a chat with the recruiter to talk about who you are, what you've done, and why you're interested in Straburst. Then, you'll have a meeting with a Sales Manager to dive deeper into your background and answer some behavioural questions. After that, you'll chat with an Account Executive about the tech world and more behavioural stuff. Finally, there's a challenge to complete.

It started with a technical test to get familiar with Trino, the company's core open-source tech. They were upfront about pay and shifts. Then, a recruiter chat about my background and career goals. After that, two technical interviews: one focused on explaining complex topics simply, and another more in-depth technical discussion. The final two interviews were with the hiring manager and senior director, focusing on personality and cultural fit. Despite seeming like a lot (4-6 rounds), it felt like a thorough and well-balanced assessment. All interviews were conversational, and surprisingly enjoyable, with smart, non-toxic colleagues. No overlap in questions, and the recruiter was helpful with communication.

I was contacted by a recruiter on LinkedIn for a Sr. Software Engineer role. They kicked things off with an intro call where they covered the company, product, and the interview steps. Next up was an online coding challenge. It was pretty standard, but a silly typo I missed caused a bunch of test failures. Luckily, the recruiter was understanding, and it didn't stop me from moving forward. After that, I had a phone screen, an hour-long chat with a manager. We talked about my previous projects, and they threw in a system design question: 'how would you implement a system that does this and that?' We worked through it together, and it felt collaborative. The onsite interviews were spread over three days. The first day was a coding session focused on using an API and adding logic, with an emphasis on edge cases and correctness. The second day involved a code review; I first looked over some sample code, then wrote some code myself, modified it based on changing requirements, and discussed my approach. The third day was a system design problem about databases and APIs for query execution, focusing on high-level components and their interactions. After completing the onsite, I was offered the position.

So, first, there was the recruiter screening. Then, I had a 1-hour chat with the hiring manager. We did the usual intros, and then they really dug into my experience as an engineering manager. It was a good, respectful conversation, and the process seemed pretty relevant and sensible, which was a nice change! They gave me a good overview of the product line (Galaxy, their SaaS thing) and the company structure. The HM couldn't share specific details about the role, like team responsibilities or direct reports, probably because they're hiring for a bunch of roles and might cover that later. After that, I interviewed with some product and engineering management leads. I spoke with one PM and one EM who asked about execution and collaboration. Even though I thought those chats went well, they said I wasn't the right fit. I'm sure they had their reasons, even though I was a bit bummed. The whole thing was pretty pleasant and didn't feel like a waste of time, and I learned a few things and got some interview practice. The recruiter and coordinator were easy to work with.