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Ask HN: What key question would you ask a software engineering hiring manager?

5 points by white_eskimo ↗ HN
I have a software development offer from a late-stage start up for what could be my first job out of college.

I'm trying to assess the engineering organization to see if I really am a good fit. I got to ask questions during the interview process, but want to follow up to better understand how they develop product.

I'm concerned that I may end up working to pay back technical debt and won't get a chance to work on new feature development. I see myself excelling at sales and business development in the long run, and want to build up the product-oriented skills needed to accomplish my long term goals. What questions will allow me to best gauge my potential for success at this company?

Questions asked thus far: 1. Code unit test/review/check in policy 2. Development methodologies & software shipping schedule 3. Ability for face time with customers

8 comments

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jpluscplusm
2 suggestions:

1) Why not ask the question you asked here? "How much of this role will be new feature development?"

2) Don't assume that the /manager/ really has the low-level information that will dictate how your time will be spent. Ask to meet the coders you'll be working with (not a bad idea in any interview process!) and pop the questions:

"What state do you feel the codebase is in? How does new feature development tend to get divvied out across the team? Which part of the product are you most proud of? ... and least proud of?"

HTH

jey
> 2) Don't assume that the /manager/ really has the low-level information

If the manager isn't a "real programmer", even if (s)he doesn't actively code anymore, I'd be nervous about working there.

jacquesm
That would make you nervous about 99% or so of all the IT jobs.
jey
Yes.
jacquesm
I haven't had a whole pile of bosses in my 'early career' but I do recall that the only boss that was a serious headache was one that had been a programmer earlier in life.
jpluscplusm
What's another name for a manager who meticulously checks all the code that his or her charges are producing because they're still in a position to understand it? A micromanager :-)
white_eskimo
@jpluscplusm thanks for the feedback and good questions. Regarding the "what state is the codebase in" question, I can't imagine them telling me its "poor". What questions do you think would help me to gauge the quality of the code base? Obviously there is no formula, but it would be interesting to see what factors impact a codebase's quality. I guess there are static analysis tools to help out though :)
jpluscplusm
I think you're underestimating the power of an engineer to royally screw things up with excessive and inappropriate honesty! I forget the relevant Dilbert cartoon ... :-)

In any case; if you ask, the worst they can do is lie and say "it's all good." Then use the metadata surrounding their replies to the "most/least proud" questions to figure out if this sounds reasonable. Are they proud of a sizeable chunk of functionality, or just the user avatar widget indexing? Do they seem reticent about either reply? Ask them "why's that?" to each reply. Do they seem to have difficulty choosing their most/least-proud part? Is that because there're too many options, or too few? :-)

Perhaps ask them (before the "codebase state" question) about something you /know/ isn't 100% in the company. People complain about stuff they shouldn't, online: use the googles to your advantage and find out what things might be a good litmus test for their co-workers' honesty.

My 2 €-cents