The Tech Interview Behind the Scenes: Vladimir Pechev

The Tech Interview Behind the Scenes is a new series by HRLabs. Let’s take a look behind the scenes of the technical interview process from the interviewers' perspective. The goal of the series is to provide candidates with valuable advice and recommendations directly from professionals conducting interviews for various technical roles.

"What matters most isn’t the task itself or the solution, but the approach the candidate takes to solve it.", shares Vladimir Pechev, the next guest in the series.

Tell us more about your career path.

My career journey began in early 2015, after I successfully completed the IT Talents academy. I found myself in a dynamic environment that offered various challenges and opportunities. I made sure to take advantage of every one of them, which helped me quickly climb the engineering career ladder. Eventually, I focused on leadership and managing teams and products.

I soon realized that this is the field I want to work and grow in. The standard 8-hour workday was merely a formality for me, as I always invested additional personal time, which I believe is my personal story of success.

As a candidate, have you had any strange interviews? What about interviews that impressed you?

Over the years, I’ve participated in many interviews—both as a candidate and as an interviewer. What always stood out to me were the “template” interviews, where the interviewer had a set of mandatory questions they had to get through during the session.

Another strange experience was during an initial HR session when the HR started asking me technical questions that hadn't been prepared by their technical colleagues. I quickly demonstrated how impractical that approach was. 😀

What skills and qualities do you look for in a candidate? How can a candidate stand out during the interview?

• A positive attitude.
• Dedication to their profession and current workplace.
• A desire to be part of the company and the team.
• Openness to feedback and adaptability.
• Being "active" during the session.

What questions do you typically ask in technical interviews? Do you have specific tasks or problems that you often use to assess candidates?

Not really. I try to base the technical sessions on the candidates' experience. Their answers determine my next questions.

From an interview format perspective, there is some consistency: the candidate needs to present the product they’re working on—from a business and architectural point of view. In recent years, I’ve realized it's important to also provide a technical problem to solve—though what matters most isn’t the task itself or the solution, but the approach the candidate takes to solve it.

How important are good communication skills for a candidate? How do they impact the overall interview?

They are everything!!! It’s essential to have an open dialogue with the candidate and avoid a question-answer mode.

How important is cultural fit when making a hiring decision? How do you assess whether a candidate will fit well into the team?

It’s extremely important. I try to assess how well each new team member would integrate into the team.

What are the most common mistakes candidates make during an interview? What advice would you give candidates on how to prepare for an interview?

Quite often, candidates aren’t prepared for the interview. By preparation, I don’t mean solving technical problems or brushing up on technologies, but rather presenting their previous experience and the product they’ve worked on.

Another small thing that leaves a bad impression is when a candidate is late for the session.

What advice would you give to candidates who want to improve their technical skills? Are there any resources you would recommend?

My advice would vary greatly depending on the candidate's experience. However, if I were to give general advice, it would be: "Be curious! Seek out resources, articles, and challenges!"

Share more about the best (or worst) interviews you've conducted.

The best interviews are always with candidates who have a spark in their eyes. Often, they’re the ones to whom you ask just one question, and they get so motivated by it that they could talk about the topic for hours.

I like candidates the most when I can't think of the next question to ask them. 😀

On the other hand, an interview goes poorly when:

• The candidate shows no motivation and is apathetic toward the process in some way.

Interesting stories from bad interviews include:

• I had a candidate who, throughout the entire process, kept explaining how his current company is the greatest and that he wouldn't work for any other company.

• When I asked another candidate about the product he was working on, I received the following response: "We work on very complex systems, there’s no point in explaining it to you—you won’t understand."

• Or the opposite extreme: "Well, it’s just two little services that communicate with each other. It’s a trivial story, no point in wasting your time on it."

How do you evaluate a candidate during an interview—based solely on their theoretical knowledge, or is their approach to solving a problem/task more important to you? What other factors do you consider when making a decision?

For me, the most important factors are always the candidate’s approach and motivation. If they demonstrate these, making a decision is much easier.

What would you like candidates to know about the interview process at your company? What could help them prepare?

• They should come well-rested and full of energy.
• Take some time to structure a summary of the projects you’ve worked on.
• Think of examples of ups and downs and challenges you’ve encountered.