Windows 7 Pro blog problemsolvingquestions

Greetings from New Jersey! The Recruiting Road Indicate has started its second week. If you are curious last week,Windows 7 Pro, I interviewed 42 candidates for 30 minutes each, led 3 meet-the-company presentations, and hosted 2 candidate dinners for Microsoft employees and alumni. WOW. I’m tired just writing all of that.

So it’s week 2 of the street trip, and I thought that I would continue my interview tips series—as I could write these for weeks! Last time, I talked about the top traits we look for in an interview. Today, I wanted to talk about problem solving questions. Why do we ask them - and how should a top candidate answer?

I myself do not ask any technical coding questions in an interview. I keep things a bit more vague (that’s my tricky way of saying I’m not super technical), but that doesn’t mean I don’t want technical answers. For instance, I like to ask many open ended questions. I like to see how people think, and open ended problem solving and design questions are the way to go.

Some good questions are “design a product for a certain type of user” or “test a product” or “come up with some features that would be key in creating a product.” Think of things like “Design a cell phone for a child” and “test a soda vending machine.” Here are some hints as to why we ask those questions, and hopefully some tricks that will help you answer those questions:

1. Get Really Specific: When asked a question such as “test a vending machine,” think of as many possibilities as you can. This isn’t a one sentence answer. Talk until the interviewer says to stop. We want your thought process. Come up with as many ideas as possible … this way you can build off other ideas and exhibit that you are really detail oriented.

2. Ask Clarifying Questions: If you are asked to “design a remote control for a television for a grandmother,” ask a lot of follow up questions; the interviewer will answer. Questions to ask include: who is the target age group?, how many staff do I have?, what is the price point?, how much time do we have?, etc. This shows you are thinking and not just jumping into creating a product without any background info. There is no right answer; the interviewer will make up answers (i.e. the age of the user is 12) as they go along.

3. Use the Product Lifecycle as a Guide: A great interviewer at Microsoft that I know used to ask a fun question. He would ask, “What flavor cheesecake would you make for the Queen of England?” Now, he doesn’t want to have you say “Strawberry”… The point of this question is to see if you are familiar with the software development lifecycle. You would first do research on what the queen likes and understand how much time you have until she eats the cake. Then you would make a test cake, have people try it out, make any adjustments to it, do some more research, and make the final product. The flavor doesn’t matter. It’s just your thought process getting there.

4. Talk Out Loud: Don’t just think of an answer or write through a problem and then 20 minutes later say, “The answer is 43”. Talk it out; a lot of times that’s when the good solutions come. Share with us what you are thinking …. Maybe we can help you out if you are stumped, but we won’t know that unless you tell us.

5. What’s at the Core of the Problem?: Most interviewers really don’t need to know how you would build a refrigerator for someone in their teens, so think about the question and determine what they really want to know. More likely than not, we want to hear how you think, what assumptions you made, if you ask questions, if you bring a creative approach, etc. It’s not the answer that matters; it’s how you get there. So take your time, and determine what they are looking for. It’s not a race.

Well, my lunch break is over--- 6 more interviews to go today. Maybe some of my candidates will see these tips prior to their interview. I hope so.

-Janelle

1 25 January, the cold wind whistling. Pre Fengxin County dry 洲镇 a village before the village road, a faltering old man is waving the shovel of repair. Old man called Huang Yuyou, 83 years old this year. 20 years, Huangyu You old man filled with enthusiasm for the obligation to repair the village a village 2 km-long road, cement road which has nearly 500 meters.
old story in the local as his brother's wife. Yes ah, a good thing people do is not easy, the difficulty is with the 20 years he persistently doing a good thing for the villagers with a paved road to get rich.
Road, the idea of ​​hard-line road germination

easily changed, others nothing more to say.
Huangyu You retired elderly Fengxin County has been the first construction company, served as the director, deputy secretary, from 1963 to 1965 for 3 consecutive years was named Town life and did not let Huangyu You forget home mountain and water, his heart has always been a read to, it is to fix the road before the village. Piece of the rugged path has been a nightmare for the villagers, especially when it rains, muddy, simply can not pass. Busy with work reasons,tory burch flip flop, although temporarily unable to implement this idea,tory burch uk, but it has been lingering in his mind.
1982, the Huangyu You retired, he thought he could go home, and the company was forcibly him to stay. No way, Huangyu You then worked 6 years in the company. In 1988,tory burch flip flops, Huangyu You finally returned home.
retired and returned home to road

a return home,tory burch flip-flops, Huangyu You begin to start building roads. When he said the idea came out, it was the family's opposition.
son Huangcai Ming is one of the most intense opposition, he thought his father was 60 years old, is enjoying their later years, when you get older and what road repair, if out of any accident, it may regret Mo and the. Other children also said that road is a government thing, and he ware, enjoy a good father should do nothing.
accompany him to his wife after a few years on the British Min know him best, know the old man is a
addition to the extremely difficult one thousand is 20 years

a bamboo pole, a shovel, two scoops,tory burch handbags, all that is Huangyu You Every morning, he took the 3-like The dry is 20 years.
road is difficult, requires a lot of cement, sand and other materials, he used his retirement pay little by little to buy the material back. His retirement pay was only 900 yuan to buy most of his materials come from.
But, who knows the repair to repair for 20 years.
villagers did not start the old road just as the same thing, thought this is just a joke, but the front of the village to see the road in 20 years by a muddy dirt road changes become a
emotional well-being at the old man shed tears

Today, 83-year-old Huangyu You body is still very good, every day on the road to , clear garbage, dig ditches became his obligation to work every day.
elderly and highways have very deep feelings,tory burch wedge, usually with the villagers in the village often promote the benefits of protecting the road: the road a good get rich quick, smooth way a good environment ... ...

Road repair is not easy, it is like my child, protect it is my responsibility and obligation, and if I ever go, my son will come to inherit my career. tears.
gold deposit intern reporter Du Fu Wenfeng