[iMark]

I have walked out of technical interviews having spent 40 minutes struggling to write code on a whiteboard, sat down in front of a laptop, and coded a working solution in 5 minutes.

For my current job I was provided with the specifications for a simple app to display images from a flickr rss feed and asked to code however I felt was appropriate. It was interesting and fun, and vastly less stressful than any whiteboard test.

It was also a great indicator of what working at the company was actually going to be like.

[toomuchtodo]

> I have walked out of technical interviews having spent 40 minutes struggling to write code on a whiteboard, sat down in front of a laptop, and coded a working solution in 5 minutes.

This is how I bombed a DevOps role interview at Twilio, but was picked up as a VP of Engineering elsewhere. +1.

[fivedogit]

my twilio interview was the worst I've ever had in my life. Flew coast to coast, aced the tech, aced the preso, then was rejected on the basis of a perceived lack of motivation. In other words, the fact that I didn't already use twilio and sing its praises like a good koolaid guzzler was the only reason.

Agree with OP. Coding under pressure is a horrible way to measure good coders, because it's an artificial construct.

[danielweber]

Whoa. "The guy didn't seem motivated" was the standard empty excuse 10 years ago. They are supposed to say "you wouldn't be a good fit as this time" as the standard empty excuse these days. They need to get with the times.

[toomuchtodo]

Ouch. That's terrible to hear. Sorry about that.

[akanet]

Companies reading my parent comment should take note - abstruse technical questions on a whiteboard are fairly ineffective.

For people looking for alternatives to whiteboarding or phone screens where the candidate writes code in the blind, check out https://coderpad.io

It lets you write and execute code with your interviewee in real-time, and provides a much more native programming experience easily and over the browser. Some rather large companies have started using us exclusively in the in-person technical interview, even buying Chromebooks especially for the application.

Disclaimer: I am the guy who makes CoderPad and am obviously biased.

[OWaz]

I totally failed an interview because I was panicked when writing some simple code on a whiteboard. The interview started with three interviewers in the room but only one was talking to me. The other two remained silent the entire time. The talking interviewer asked me to solve a simple problem on a whiteboard, and I to my own surprise just couldn't do it. I'm already nervous just meeting new people who don't know me as a person, and I'm trying to perform my craft outside of my usual environment while being judged.

I use a whiteboard at work to pseudo code a solution, and the writing looks like chicken scratch but even my co-workers get what I'm expressing to them. Then I open up a console and start typing out my idea to see if I was right. That's how I normally solve some throw away piece of code. I don't go into a manager's office and call some other random people and in detail explain to them my idea to a solution.

I also got the feeling they never saw my resume because I was asked if I had a github profile, and it's on my resume.

[legohead]

You bring up an important point. If you liked the job & atmosphere, don't give up! If you feel you bombed on something, research it as soon as you get home and do what you can to impress them.. send an email back with working code (or better answers).

[Florin_Andrei]

If you ask me to "code" something on the whiteboard, that simple request is more an indication of your competence or cluefulness, or rather lack thereof, than the result would be an indication of my qualities.

The proper reaction to such a request would be: "So, you guys do all your work here on whiteboards? That's seems unusual, I used laptops or workstations at all my previous jobs."

[loumf]

What if I told you before you came in that we'd be coding on whiteboards. That my expectations were calibrated properly for that, and that the problems would be "white-board" sized.

I've done this -- had people talk to me about their anxiety or problems with it, and put them at ease. For some, I have recommended that they just go practice of an hour or so with a friend -- it's really not that hard to code "whiteboard" level code if you code every day and practice it a little. It's such a common tech interview style, that if you are looking for a job, it's worth working a little at it.

Frankly, in a code-editor, my expectations are much higher -- I don't even require you get any framework class or method name right (or even perfect syntax) -- but the compiler will. It gets in the way of the essence of the question -- which is more about collaboration.

[rimantas]

So instead of not doing a stupid thing you still do it but just warn people in advance and even tell them to practice doing that stupid thing, even if it will not be a part of their job?

[loumf]

I don't think it's stupid, but I do think you shouldn't be surprised by tech interviews.

This is for a screen to make sure you are a programmer. If you can't code up a four line function without an editor, there are going to be a lot of jobs you might like that you won't get. Ditto with calling strangers stupid.

[Florin_Andrei]

Advertising it beforehand does not make a stupid thing less stupid.

[ori_b]

Not all our work, but we definitely use code sketched out on whiteboards as a communication tool. Are you claiming that you can't reason about algorithms or communicate them effectively if you're not in front of a computer?

I don't give a flying fuck about minor syntax errors, forgotten API, or anything a compiler can catch. If you forget an API, I either give it to you or ask you to make up something reasonable. (Chances are, I can't remember it either). But if you can't describe an algorithm to me in front of a whiteboard, I don't want you on my team. And if you can't translate it to pseudocode that resembles the language you're going to be working in, I also don't want you on my team.

[iMark]

I asked for a laptop in an Amazon interview and was told I had to use the whiteboard. It was frustrating to say the least.