My interview experience started positively with an initial 30-minute screen with the hiring manager. They were great, empathetic, and relational, which is often not the norm in engineering. I look for that, especially from managers. I'm fatigued by the countless engineers who lack social skills and empathy, even though they work at companies that list empathy as a core value. They essentially bypass those values and get hired because of their non-empathetic left brains. It's frustrating.

Next was a 1-hour technical interview with another Frontend Engineer. It was medium difficulty, with a range of questions about React, native browser features, and a 20-minute live coding session. We solved a simple algorithm and covered some basic HTML, CSS, and JS rendering. This was also a positive experience because the questions were relevant to the qualifications listed for the FE role.

Next was a 5.5-hour virtual on-site. This is where things started going downhill, with a variety of negative experiences regarding their recruitment process.

The schedule was packed and not considerate of the candidate's time or well-being. It felt like a stress test. The recruiter did not exemplify empathy or compassion; instead, they were passively dismissive of my concerns about the interview not feeling equitable. The recruiter also arrived late to our initial meeting by about 10 minutes and never acknowledged their tardiness or expressed consideration for my time. This was unusual.

The virtual on-site was split into 5 parts: CS fundamentals, system design, frontend, and behavioral, along with a virtual 30-minute coffee chat with two other current employees, one a PM and one an FE. The virtual chat was a total failure and a waste of time and energy. The two people arrived and stood there silently while I facilitated the entire conversation. It was awkward and exhausting. I could have used that time to rest instead.

Overall, some people on the panel were great and embodied Grammarly's EAGER values. The recruitment process did not. And why are CS fundamentals equally valued for an FE role? 🤔

Animate this element to the right over 1s.

How do you check if something is in the global namespace of the browser?

Explain how Redux works.

Describe the component rendering lifecycle for React.