I was referred by an employee.

The technical recruiter was very helpful and guided me through the process. He was very passionate about Uber and flexible, and he got a technical phone interview scheduled.

The phone interview didn't go well. The interviewer asked a hard question from LeetCode. The interviewer was focusing on the LeetCode solution. I approached the problem with an entirely different solution, as I don't memorize solutions. He gave hints that were irrelevant. Later, I tried to understand his hints and proposed an iterative solution. The solution didn't pass the LeetCode test cases.

I highly recommend Uber re-evaluating its rubrics for technical phone screens. They should consider the following:

• How the engineer describes their abstract solution.
• If their algorithmic approach can be followed for at least specific cases.
• If time permits, further exploration on multiple aspects.

It is great to evaluate a candidate on how they approach a problem they have not seen before, instead of looking for a textbook solution.

Uber missed a great engineer, and I am not sure how many other talented engineers had similar experiences.