

Ask HN: How to do a non technical interview? - guiseppecalzone

We're hiring developers for HelloFax (YCw11) and I'm looking for ways to optimize the hiring process.<p>Here's how our hiring process works:<p>1. Technical screen (phone call)<p>2. Longer technical interview<p>3. Non-technical interview with the other cofounder.<p>4. We do a trial period or jump into full time employment (if we've known someone previously).<p>I think we do a solid job at #1 and #2 (thank you Joel Spolsky!), but I'm curious what people's techniques are for #3, or whether they even do a #3.<p>Normally, I try to get at the heart of people's motivations / interests and if they understand what being at a startup involves. I also try to see if there's a culture fit.<p>Are there any questions that you find really effective?
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michaelrlitt
We hire 1 intern every term, but just finalized 2 offers on full-time
employees (not previously known).

I'm all about the culture fit - my founders care about the technical
capabilities.

I ask the following two questions:

1a) You have 8 balls and a fulcrum scale. Each ball looks, tastes and smells
the same. One ball is slightly heavier then the rest. Find it using the scale
only twice.

If the candidate blows through this one I ask the following.

1b) If I gave you 3 uses of the scale and one heavy ball, what is the largest
number of balls you could weigh?

I find this question shows that they can problem solve. Most developers try a
4x4 split - which doesn't work. It's great to witness their problem solving
technique.

2a) How do you put an elephant in a fridge? 2b) How do you put a giraffe in
the fridge? 2c) If the king of the jungle has a meeting with all of the
animals, who is missing? 2d) How would you cross a river that is known to be
full of alligators?

This question helps bring out the candidates sense of humour due to it's sheer
ridiculousness. We tend to be very informal, it's very important we can shoot
the shit with our employees.

~~~
petervandijck
So I am a very bad developer, but I can answer 1a.

Weigh 3x3-> if they are the same, then just compare the 2 that are left. If
not, discard the 3 in the lightest heap, and weight 1x1. Done.

1b is harder. I would guess you can put 8 on the side (and do the first
solution if the others are the same), so 24 in total. Correct?

I guess these tests test for logical thinking, but not for development skills.

2a. Cut it up, put it through the blender, put the fridge on its back side and
pour it in. If it doesn't fit, let it dry in the sun (remove water), try to
pour again. 2b. Same.

2c. tarzan

2d. over a bridge?

~~~
allwein
Question 2, being on the more humorous side, isn't completely logically
consistent.

2a)You open the door and put the elephant in the fridge, and close the door.
It appears that you made some assumption about either the smallness of the
fridge or the largeness of the elephant. Also theoretically tests if you went
for a simple solution or try to overcomplicate things.

2b)You open the door, take out the elephant, put in the giraffe, and shut the
door. In theory, this tests you ability to track the state of a problem and
your previous actions. The part that pisses me off, is you usually lose points
for not taking the elephant out first. If I have a theoretical fridge that's
big enough to hold an elephant, why can't it be big enough to hold a giraffe
at the same time?

2c) This one is easy after you've been given the answer to number 2b.
Obviously the giraffe is missing, since he's still locked in the fridge.

2d)Just swim across, all the alligators are at the jungle meeting from 2c.

------
Peroni
If the purpose of #3 is to get a true reflection of what the _person_ is
actually like then don't sit in a board room and ask them obscure Fermi
questions.

Meet them in a local coffee shop, bar, tech meet-up, etc. To get the candidate
to step away from work-mode you need to step away from the place of work. It
really is as simple as that.

