TiVo Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

I was contacted by a recruiter about a role in Durham, NC. The first stage was an interview with the team manager, which focused on behavioral aspects. I passed this and proceeded to the second round, a phone screen where I answered core Java questions. This also went well, and I was told it was the final round. The third stage involved three interviewers, two new ones and the person from the phone screen. They asked about my projects, my reasons for seeking a new job, and a simple sorting problem. I wrote and explained the solution in Notepad. The phone screen interviewer seemed satisfied, but the other two were surprised by my choice of editor. The recruiter then arranged one more final round. In the fourth stage, three different interviewers asked about projects, coding, and my job search motivation. I felt the interviewers were looking for reasons to reject me from the start. One interviewer scolded me for writing the code in Notepad instead of an IDE, appearing frustrated. I then ran the code successfully in an IDE, which seemed to further frustrate them as they couldn't find a reason to reject me. The recruiter never informed me of the rejection. After a month, I inquired about the status, and the recruiter stated I wasn't selected, offering to provide a reason, which they never did.

The hiring process involves a phone call followed by an onsite interview. The onsite has multiple rounds checking both technical and behavioral aspects. It's a standard process, not too easy or hard. However, this was the worst hiring process I've experienced; after a verbal offer, they were unsure about the role, which suggests poor planning before opening the position. Communication from recruiters was also bad, with no response to emails or calls.

The interviewers were great and worked well with me. Things can change a bit depending on the team, but overall it was a good experience. The interviewers were great and worked well with me. Things can change a bit depending on the team, but overall it was a good experience. The interviewers were great and worked well with me. Things can change a bit depending on the team, but overall it was a good experience. The interviewers were great and worked well with me. Things can change a bit depending on the team, but overall it was a good experience.