Cisco Systems Interview Questions & Reviews

Interviewed Sep 2011 (took a day)

I only made it to stage 1 of the ASE interview process:

My interview experience was virtually identical to the other September interview, albeit in a much shorter timeframe. I applied to the ASE position online and scheduled a Webex interview within a week. The guy interviewing me started with a speech about how competitive the position was, how hard it is to get a job at Cisco, and that I should keep other options in mind. It felt like being rejected before he had spoken to me. I wish I had more context for that so I could tell you why I was rejected (I know I look fairly good on paper so I must have messed something up).

I had the same exact questions, he was obviously reading from the same script. Tell me about Cisco, describe something technical, what is a router, what is cloud computing, etc. Other than those, it is many, many, many behavioral questions. If you have ten examples of "A time you failed", "A time you led a team", and "A time you came across an ethical dilema", you aren't prepared. Have 15-20 little stories ready, seriously. By the end of the interview I ran out of all examples and my answer quality suffered.

It's probably worth mentioning that I was never asked a "Tell me about yourself" type question. Prepare to sprinkle your elevator speech stuff throughout the interview.

The guy mentioned multiple times how specifically not technical his job was. I was asked no real technical questions beyond the easy general ones. I realize the sales position isn't a very technical one, but if you're hoping to impress the interviewer with your certs, lab work, or product knowledge, I don't think that's too helpful here. My prepared answers often emphasized technical skill and leadership while answering the question, which felt like the wrong approach. None of my responses felt particularly well received.

I had prepared answers to many questions in advance and have very good technical qualifications. I got a rejection email within a week. Be good at presenting yourself is the only advice I can give. Again, that other September interview experience was tremendously helpful in preparing; it is a mirror image of my interview. The position seems ideal for someone with light technical knowledge who carries themselves very confidently. Be that person, not me.