> The challenge I have interviewing people for very senior engineering roles is how to tell the difference between somebody who was nearby when some interesting work got done
When I was a technical recruiter, I could probably have faked my way through some technical interviews without much understanding of how to code. Now as a senior level engineer, I could probably do a pretty good job of sounding like I was the one who did the work that I saw someone else do.
> When telling that story in an interview for a principal engineer role, make sure you clarify your role.
> Convince me you are a differentiating factor in successful projects and we’re going to be interested in hiring you.
> As an interviewer I try to dig towards these things but it is hard and honestly
I haven't tried to hire a principal engineer, and I don't consider myself to be one, but if I had to guess how to interview one, I'd probably try something like this...
- prior to the interview, prepare specific reasons why we need a principal engineer in the first place, including answers to questions like "what do we expect from a principal engineer that we don't expect from a merely senior engineer?"
- I'd budget enough to time candidly talk with the principal engineer about what we're trying to accomplish, especially getting into details about what sucks & where we're lacking principal level help
- I'd ask the principal engineer for their thoughts on how they might be able to help, including how they'd go about establishing themselves as someone who could be successful in the role, asking them to go into as much detail as possible
- After that, I'd ask them whether they'd even enjoy doing that kind of work, to share some examples about having done similar work previously, and ask what they'd need to be set up for success
- I'd ask them to think about the position I'm in, and whether or not they'd recommend I hire them, and why they feel that way
Basically, I wouldn't try act like I know how to spot a good principal engineer. I'd do the work to communicate my needs for one, and let the principal engineer candidates help me understand what I'm looking for. If I didn't find a principal engineer amongst the people I'd interviewed, I'd have to trust that I'd have a way to feel that.
I think this is a great comment. The most critical aspect is understanding the risks and mitigating them (which is your question about how to get set up for success).
When I was a technical recruiter, I could probably have faked my way through some technical interviews without much understanding of how to code. Now as a senior level engineer, I could probably do a pretty good job of sounding like I was the one who did the work that I saw someone else do.
> When telling that story in an interview for a principal engineer role, make sure you clarify your role. > Convince me you are a differentiating factor in successful projects and we’re going to be interested in hiring you. > As an interviewer I try to dig towards these things but it is hard and honestly
I haven't tried to hire a principal engineer, and I don't consider myself to be one, but if I had to guess how to interview one, I'd probably try something like this...
- prior to the interview, prepare specific reasons why we need a principal engineer in the first place, including answers to questions like "what do we expect from a principal engineer that we don't expect from a merely senior engineer?"
- I'd budget enough to time candidly talk with the principal engineer about what we're trying to accomplish, especially getting into details about what sucks & where we're lacking principal level help
- I'd ask the principal engineer for their thoughts on how they might be able to help, including how they'd go about establishing themselves as someone who could be successful in the role, asking them to go into as much detail as possible
- After that, I'd ask them whether they'd even enjoy doing that kind of work, to share some examples about having done similar work previously, and ask what they'd need to be set up for success
- I'd ask them to think about the position I'm in, and whether or not they'd recommend I hire them, and why they feel that way
Basically, I wouldn't try act like I know how to spot a good principal engineer. I'd do the work to communicate my needs for one, and let the principal engineer candidates help me understand what I'm looking for. If I didn't find a principal engineer amongst the people I'd interviewed, I'd have to trust that I'd have a way to feel that.