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Software engineers tend to be practical people. They usually are focused on solving problems, both technical and business ones. Of course, this is a great thing, but not if it means neglecting the people aspects of your job. One of these often-neglected people skills can be thought of as “cultivating your references.” Anyone who’s changed…

Most interviews for software engineers these days include a technical evaluation. Companies often used to hire developers based on the resume and some questions about their tech background, but no more. It’s very common to have whiteboard coding exercises, take-home programming problems, and the like. Some programmers sail right through these tests, while others fail….

If you are responsible for recruiting, interviewing, and hiring software engineers and similar folks, this post is for you. Everyone laments how difficult it is at the present time to recruit and attract good software engineers. Once you’ve managed to source a candidate into the interview process, the hiring bar at most software companies is high…

I’ll bet you didn’t know that Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936; author of The Jungle Book) had some really good advice for software interviewing. Well, OK, maybe that’s a stretch. Admittedly it was a little early for the world of software. But one of the couplets in his immortal poem, “If”, is just as relevant for today’s…

​Congratulations, you’ve got an interview as a software engineer! Now it’s up to you to make the most of the opportunity. Many years of recruiting experience have convinced me that often, a modest of amount of interview preparation can make a big difference in whether or not you get an offer. Sometimes you’re just not…

Recruiting good software candidates is hard, and especially so if you’re in a hotspot such as Boston, New York, or San Francisco. The demand far outstrips the supply. There just aren’t enough engineers available to fill all the hiring needs of startups and larger companies. I think that one of our top national priorities ought…

One of my first mentors in the recruiting profession, Jerry Marstall, drummed into my head that if I did a good job in preparing my candidates for their interviews, I’d make more placements, all things being equal, than those recruiters who just winged it and let their candidates go to the interviews blindly. Jerry had even…

What’s the best interview question to get behind the mask? Gaining insight into a candidate by means of an interview is a fairly artificial activity, when you think about it. As a recruiter who’s been active for a long time, I’ve read lots of articles and books with titles like, “The 37 Must-Ask Interview Question,”…

A few months ago, I submitted a candidate’s resume to a good client, and after she had reviewed it, she asked me, “what’s been his most significant accomplishment?” Her comment reminded me how important it is to think in these terms when preparing a resume or taking an interview. When you read as many resumes…