[sokoloff]

Unless I’ve worked with you or someone that I deeply trust has and will vouch for you, I don’t have any stronger signal of your coding and teamwork abilities than a strong OSS contribution history can provide.

It’s rare for an interview process to provide more than 6 hours of content, some of which is non-evaluatable. Reference checks are all but useless compared to seeing actual work over time.

About 1 time in 6, you’ll interview a full standard deviation above or below your “true” ability. About 1 time in 50, you’ll turn in a +2σ (or -2σ) performance. That’s largely eliminated with personal experience, a trusted vouch, or a strong OSS portfolio.