Principal Software Engineer Interview Experience - Sydney, Australia
April 1, 2024
Positive ExperienceGot Offer
Process
6+ hours of interviews over several weeks, consisting of:
- Four pairing sessions
- Interviews and alignment with internal recruitment staff.
Topics covered included value alignment, leadership, system design, and system scaling questions.
Value alignment was non-graded, accepted/not. Other topics were graded against your incoming position level.
Questions
Recruitment staff are really helpful with planning for these questions.
Values alignment - which of their values do you feel you align with most, and why. This needs preparation to think of actual experiences you can share that illustrate it.
Another question is: 'What has gone wrong in one of your past experiences, and why?' It is really helpful to discuss what you've learned from past experiences.
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Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 6 interview experiences for the Atlassian Principal Software Engineer role in Sydney, Australia.
Success Rate
33%
Pass Rate
Atlassian's interview process for their Principal Software Engineer roles in Sydney, Australia is fairly selective, failing a large portion of engineers who go through it.
Experience Rating
Positive33%
Neutral17%
Negative50%
Candidates reported having negative feelings for Atlassian's Principal Software Engineer interview process in Sydney, Australia.
Atlassian Work Experiences
3.0
Not the best time to join the company
Principal Software Engineer • Current Employee
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
June 17, 2023
Pros: I'm still around and have always been able to work on cool projects, but the company is changing, and change is hard. Read the cons.
Cons: I've been with the company for more than 5 years and have seen lots of changes. This last year had more changes than the last 5 together. Some of the changes are good in isolation, but together they are creating a toxic environment.
3 years ago, one of the founders said it was okay to have an "off year" and people wouldn't be judged for that. This year, they introduced stack ranking and are asking senior employees to rank their less senior colleagues.
3 years ago, they decided engineers had to focus on feature leading and managers on people leadership. This year, they are making non-technical managers redundant.
I always heard from the founders that shareholder pressure wouldn't drive the company. It looks like it does now. We are blindly following what other companies are doing due to pressure from the board. The stock price took a big dive, so maybe there's lots of upside if you only care about the money.
Do your own DD.
3.0
Was great, but lost its way
Principal Software Engineer • Former Employee
May 21, 2019
Pros: Passionate founders, widely used products, and some great people.
Cons: A lot of tech debt, not a great focus on quality, and dodgy middle management.
3.0
Was a great place to work, but no more
Principal Software Engineer • Former Employee
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
November 3, 2025
Pros: Great products, smart colleagues, good perks.
Cons: Was all about the team, but now seems "all about me." Lots of pressure to set and meet personal goals that distracts from getting stuff done. No job security when there are brutal and apparently arbitrary job cuts.
- 3.0Not the best time to join the companyPrincipal Software Engineer • Current EmployeeSydney, New South Wales, AustraliaJune 17, 2023Pros: I'm still around and have always been able to work on cool projects, but the company is changing, and change is hard. Read the cons.Cons: I've been with the company for more than 5 years and have seen lots of changes. This last year had more changes than the last 5 together. Some of the changes are good in isolation, but together they are creating a toxic environment. 3 years ago, one of the founders said it was okay to have an "off year" and people wouldn't be judged for that. This year, they introduced stack ranking and are asking senior employees to rank their less senior colleagues. 3 years ago, they decided engineers had to focus on feature leading and managers on people leadership. This year, they are making non-technical managers redundant. I always heard from the founders that shareholder pressure wouldn't drive the company. It looks like it does now. We are blindly following what other companies are doing due to pressure from the board. The stock price took a big dive, so maybe there's lots of upside if you only care about the money. Do your own DD.
- 3.0Was great, but lost its wayPrincipal Software Engineer • Former EmployeeMay 21, 2019Pros: Passionate founders, widely used products, and some great people.Cons: A lot of tech debt, not a great focus on quality, and dodgy middle management.
- 3.0Was a great place to work, but no morePrincipal Software Engineer • Former EmployeeSydney, New South Wales, AustraliaNovember 3, 2025Pros: Great products, smart colleagues, good perks.Cons: Was all about the team, but now seems "all about me." Lots of pressure to set and meet personal goals that distracts from getting stuff done. No job security when there are brutal and apparently arbitrary job cuts.
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