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Experienced Devs @programming.dev buxton @programming.dev

Questions to ask during an interview

I was wondering if anyone else had any questions they always asked the interviewer in the "we'll give you five minutes at the end to ask us questions" bit in interviews.

Personally I always ask what the staff turnover rate is. Mainly because in my first dev job I was one of four people who started on the same day. One of the other guys left after two days, I left after six weeks, and another guy left after two months.

Another I'll be asking after my current job is if they have a mainframe. I've now worked at three companies with mainframes and they all were old corporations where they were outsourcing loads of stuff to unhelpful companies (often IBM) which generally meant lots of headaches.

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  • I'd ask why I'm only getting 5 minutes at the end to ask my questions.

  • Here’s a few from me:

    • How many separate projects are developers working on at any given time? (Because I want to know if they expect developers to be context switching all the time.)

    • Is anyone sitting there with a stop watching checking what time I get into work in the morning? (Because I’m not hourly and don’t expect to be treated as such.)

    • Describe the work-life balance.

    • Are you agile? Not agile? Scrum teams?

    • What might an average day look like for me? Walk me through from when I sign in and log off for the day.

    • How do you perform automated testing here? (if they don’t, I’m concerned)

    • Do you enforce code formatting?

    • How do you deploy your code? (if it’s not a CICD pipeline, I’m concerned)

    • How involved in DevOps are developers? (Will o be expected to work on CICD code? Infrastructure as Code?)

    • What version control system do you use? (Of the answer is nothing, the interview is over. I will not work there. If it’s something other than Git, I’m not excited about it.)

    • Is Docker used here? (Docker makes me very productive, I’m concerned if Docker is a tool I’m not allowed to use.)

    • Are there any other programming languages I’ll be using other than <advertised language for the position here>?

    • Are SOLID principles common practice here? Or rejected as unnecessary? (I love SOLID and think it’s useful much more than not. If SOLID is frowned upon, I probably won’t be happy there.)

    • Can I choose what sort of machine I get to work on? (If I can’t work on MacOS, it could be a deal breaker… I love MacOS for development, sue me! 🤷‍♂️)

  • Here are some from a text file I keep around for these purposes:

    • What has your team been working on recently? What new changes have you shipped in the last six months?
    • What is the biggest difficulty your team is facing right now?
    • How long has the team existed and how long have you been managing it?
    • Is the team all remote? Are you?
    • How long does it take for code to be deployed after being committed?
    • How often do team members move teams?
    • What kinds of (soft or hard) skills do you need most on the team right now?
    • Do you have a defined onboarding process?
    • How long does it take for people to get up to speed as new hires? How much would a new hire be doing in six months?
    • Does the team maintain deployment infrastructure? Production infrastructure? Is there an on-call rotation?
    • What does your planning cycle look like? Scrum? Kanban? Meetings?
    • What's one thing you would change or improve on the team if you could snap your fingers?
    • What would you like to be doing less and more of on your team?
    • How does the product representative interact with the eng team?
    • Do you have a career ladder, with levels, and expectations at each of the level defined?
    • What is your performance review cycle like? 1:1s?

  • Exploring Go High Level:

    1. What’s the Enthusiasm About?
      Hello there! Are you familiar with Go High Level? If not, let's break it down. Imagine managing multiple apps for marketing. Sounds busy. That's where Go High Level comes in. It's like that friend who has a solution for everything. Whether you are working on creating an outstanding sales funnel or sending out an email campaign, this platform has your back. The best part? They let you test drive everything with a 14-day free trial. It's like trying out a new car but for your business. And if you ever need assistance, their support team is just a click away. Pretty exciting, huh?

    2. So, How Much Does It Cost?
      Alright, let's talk about the financial side. Go High Level offers 3 main plans. The Agency Starter Plan is perfect if you're just starting or have a small business. It's loaded with all the essential tools, and it's quite cost-effective. But if you're looking to scale up, the Agency Unlimited Plan is your best choice. It's like the VIP pass at a concert, giving you access to everything without any limitations. Not sure about committing? Remember that 14-day free trial I mentioned? It's a great way to give it a try without any obligations. Lastly, they offer a Pro plan that includes "SaaS mode," where you can white label the product under your brand. Fantastic!

    3. Why Everyone's Raving About It:
      In a world full of sophisticated digital tools, Go High Level is like that all-in-one Swiss Army knife. There's no need to switch between apps because it has everything under one roof. Whether you're a newcomer or an experienced marketer, it's super user-friendly. It's not just about launching impressive campaigns; they ensure you understand their performance with top-notch analytics. There's even a white-label feature for marketing agencies, so you can add your brand and impress your clients.

    Here is a link to their 14-day free trial:
    https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=get-started-now.

  • Exploring Go High Level:

    What’s the Enthusiasm About?
    Hello there! Are you familiar with Go High Level? If not, let's break it down. Imagine managing multiple apps for marketing. Sounds busy. That's where Go High Level comes in. It's like that friend who has a solution for everything. Whether you are working on creating an outstanding sales funnel or sending out an email campaign, this platform has your back. The best part? They let you test drive everything with a 14-day free trial. It's like trying out a new car but for your business. And if you ever need assistance, their support team is just a click away. Pretty exciting, huh?

    So, How Much Does It Cost?
    Alright, let's talk about the financial side. Go High Level offers 3 main plans. The Agency Starter Plan is perfect if you're just starting or have a small business. It's loaded with all the essential tools, and it's quite cost-effective. But if you're looking to scale up, the Agency Unlimited Plan is your best choice. It's like the VIP pass at a concert, giving you access to everything without any limitations. Not sure about committing? Remember that 14-day free trial I mentioned? It's a great way to give it a try without any obligations. Lastly, they offer a Pro plan that includes "SaaS mode," where you can white label the product under your brand. Fantastic!

    Why Everyone's Raving About It:
    In a world full of sophisticated digital tools, Go High Level is like that all-in-one Swiss Army knife. There's no need to switch between apps because it has everything under one roof. Whether you're a newcomer or an experienced marketer, it's super user-friendly. It's not just about launching impressive campaigns; they ensure you understand their performance with top-notch analytics. There's even a white-label feature for marketing agencies, so you can add your brand and impress your clients.

    Here is a link to their 14-day free trial:
    https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=get-started-now.

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