Interview Process:
Initial Phone Screen (30 minutes - 1 hour):
Behavioral questions about past projects and experiences.
Discussion on last drawn salary and expected salary.
Virtual Onsite (4 rounds):
Round 1 (Technical – 1 hour): Project-based coding task.
Round 2 (Technical – 1 hour): Discussion on past projects and JavaScript concepts.
Round 3 (Technical – 1 hour): Problem-solving and experience-based questions.
Round 4 (Leadership – Duration not mentioned): Evaluating experience and overall fit for the role (Seniority check).
Round 5 (Behavioral – 45 minutes): Culture fit assessment.
Result:
Rejected (Eliminated in Round 1). Received the rejection email after one month.
Detailed Experience:
I was excited about this opportunity, particularly because the company specializes in AI-driven inspection of semiconductor chips—an area of personal interest. However, my interview experience, especially in the first technical round, turned out to be quite disappointing.
The interview was conducted via video call, with the interviewer also sharing their video feed. After a brief introduction, I was asked to share my screen and was given a coding task: to build a folder structure component similar to the one in VS Code, production-ready, within 45 minutes.
Unexpectedly, the online coding editor provided by the company was not functioning correctly. To work around this, the interviewer suggested using CodePen. However, sharing my screen while coding led to significant system lag on my Windows machine, making it nearly impossible to code efficiently. The situation worsened, forcing me to restart my system, which resulted in a 15-minute loss of valuable interview time.
Once reconnected, I explained my approach and began implementing the component using React.js. Throughout the session, I observed that the interviewer appeared disengaged, resting with their head down, showing little interest. By the end of the allotted 45 minutes, they abruptly asked me to stop coding and explain my implementation. As I started explaining, the interviewer seemed impatient and agitated, cutting me off by stating they could already see the code. The interview ended abruptly, with a brief acknowledgment that HR would provide feedback.
Final Thoughts:
This experience left me with concerns about the company’s interview culture and expectations. The task itself was manageable for me, as I had tackled similar challenges successfully in past interviews. However, the interviewer's attitude and lack of engagement were unexpected and discouraging.
Out of curiosity, I later reviewed the interviewer's profile and was surprised to find that they had only four years of experience as a frontend developer, with short tenures (4-7 months per role), and were currently serving their notice period at their current company.
As someone who has conducted interviews myself, I always strive to maintain professionalism and genuine interest in the candidates I assess. Unfortunately, this experience did not reflect the same level of courtesy and engagement.
