Ho presentato la mia candidatura online. La procedura ha richiesto una settimana. Ho sostenuto un colloquio presso Curriculum Associates (Boston, MA) nel mese di dic 2019
Colloquio
Curriculum Confusion - Snobby Sneers & Red Flags abound.
I am embarrassed that the software industry has folks like this.
I was very excited to see the emphasis on people over process that was headlined on their website.
I applied for a quality engineer position in late 2019.
The initial response was a form letter with a link to hackerrank. This was the first red flag for me. Seemed like process OVER people. But I continued.
I completed the hackerrank exercises successfully.
I asked to have a quick conversation with the recruiter and my application was rejected. Red flag 2
I applied again and was given a technical interview.
The interview was fairly typical interrogation 'perform when confronted' style. Red flag 3
I seemed to be judged solely on my ability to perform in the interview.
All my experience was dismissed as not provable in the moment. Red flag 4
At every stage with 4 people it was made clear that my role was to strictly follow process. Red flag 5
Although I was offered, there was no time left for me to ask, any questions in the technical interview. Red flag 6
There was no discussion of agile processes. Red Flag 7
At the end I learned that there are 60 people in QA, few do automation. Red Flag 8
The feedback I was given was that I was too passionate about code topics. Given the hackerrank and exercise I was given this was confusing and ridiculous.
I was told there could be weeks of manual testing even though the interview process emphasized programming as the skills needed.
I was told formally that I was not a 'perfect fit'. Who is? Red Flag 9
I sensed a lot of ego, arrogance, superiority and confirmation bias present in all my interactions with 4 different people. They reminded me of the newer arrogant math nerds I have seen in other companies. Uncaring about people in the pursuit of truth and data.
The company advertises its glassdoor rating for current employees, many who have long tenure and seem quite happy. Interview ratings are considerably less glowing but were more accurate and useful for me and matched my experience.
l also observed a lot of recruiting as marketing when each glassdoor interview review has a quick and polite, but disproving, remark from their HR. Expect one to this review soon. Red Flag 10
I would recommend Curriculum Associates for a new grad that is a math nerd, likes process and needs direction. You'll feel at home.
I would not recommend Curriculum Associates for someone with experience in non-math areas such as programming or working well with other people.
Overall my experience was that it was process over people throughout. Sometimes really smart people who are genius at math show that they have little concept of the key skills needed for working together as programmers. In every interaction I felt confronted and challenged and that didn't work well for me. I suspect that soft skills would be discussed more later in the process - but the company only looks at folks who have got past round 1 and proved themselves to think the same way that they do. A's hire A's but what does A stand for? That is what you'll need to decide.
We’re sorry that your interview experience did not meet your expectations. The CA interview process is rigorous, with the goal of finding candidates who are the best possible fits for their prospective roles. We appreciate the time you spent in our process and for sharing your feedback with us. We wish you the best in your job search. - Shrina