I applied online. The process took 5 months. I interviewed at Booking.com (Hyderābād) in Sept 2022
Interview
Interview process was smooth. I enjoyed getting to know the role in detail. It was very technical in nature and the interviewers were patient and quite helpful. I declined the offer as the salary was very low and the RSUs were not matched to what I currently have. The HR was very rude and arrogant and kept undermining my skill sets even after feedback discussion (strong hire) in order to justify the low ball offer. Due to inconsistencies in the offer during discussion and what was on paper , I had to decline the offer.
I applied online. I interviewed at Booking.com (Amsterdam)
Interview
It was okay. The interviewer looks nice and very friendly. The interview lasted for 1,5 hours with 5-minute break, it was really exhausting, to be honest. But overall experiences is good
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Q: Explain the whole system that you are most familiar
I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Booking.com (Amsterdam) in Jun 2022
Interview
The process started with a very good screening session made by the talent acquisition specialist. He was very kind, he gave me a lot of information about the company and the role and he truly made a good picture of my profile.
The next step was a system design interview. The engineers were more focused on my way of thinking than on the actual outcome. They were challenging me without making me feel uncomfortable.
After that, I had a coding challenge. As this position doesn't require coding, they didn't go very deep into technical questions. They wanted to check that I had a solid understanding of software programming principles.
Then, the director of the department interviewed me. It was a very nice chat where he found out about my managerial experience and style, while I was invited to ask questions about the position.
Last but not least, I met my future line manager. Again, a very nice conversation to get to know each other.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
System Design: SQL vs. No-SQL databases, how to scale a database, UUID's, interaction between backend components, database sharding, etc.
Coding: recursion, data structures, complexity, basic code optimization, etc.
Cultural fit and managerial: dealing with low performers, managing style, description of my background, reasons to be a manager, etc.