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Basically, I was given a whiteboard test to do a certain task during the interview, and I did everything right, covering edge cases, talking about worst and best case run times, etc and the interviewer said everything was completely wrong and wouldn't give me a reason why it was wrong. I asked him for feedback and he said that I completely missed the boat and that I probably wasn't a good technical fit for the job. I don't understand this. When I arrived home, I retyped the code I had written for the whiteboard test on my computer and compiled it and everything worked exactly how he wanted it to in the whiteboard test. What's the deal here?

Dac Asf
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    This could be a really ham-fisted attempt at a stress interview. Either way, it's a bad sign about the company. – Wesley Long Nov 04 '16 at 15:12
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    Maybe you heard the question wrong. This is not something SE can answer. Maybe post your code on CodeReview. – paparazzo Nov 04 '16 at 15:13
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    You were right, interviewer was wrong. What do you want to hear from us? – Masked Man Nov 04 '16 at 15:14
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    The code you wrote might have been well written, covered all the bases, compiled and ran properly - but that doesnt mean it answers the question asked. Without knowing the exact question asked and the exact response given, this is unanswerable. –  Nov 04 '16 at 15:16
  • It was indeed what he wanted, I clarified it with him the whole time to make sure I was writing the correct code. He even agreed with me on several things I wrote down, then at the end just says everything is wrong. – Dac Asf Nov 04 '16 at 15:16
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    Sounds like you dodged a bullet. – Erik Nov 04 '16 at 15:17
  • I had a peaceful discussion with him the whole time about what I was writing down and he seemed to like what I was writing. I said I was finished expecting him to say everything looks good, and then he just says "you failed" – Dac Asf Nov 04 '16 at 15:17
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    There are other possibilities as to why they're not hiring you (e.g. the boss' niece needs a job) and they're just using this as an excuse. – GreenMatt Nov 04 '16 at 15:21
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    Like Erik said: Would you really want to work in the same company as that person? – gnasher729 Nov 04 '16 at 15:21
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    Did you indent your code with TAB characters or spaces when you wrote the code on the whiteboard? Some of us are very sensitive about such details, even on a whiteboard. – Brandin Nov 04 '16 at 15:24
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    @Brandin Whiteboard coding standards require "hard tabs equal to three (3) spaces" (http://tinyurl.com/whiteboard-standards). If the OP didn't do that, I would have ended the interview right there. – jimm101 Nov 04 '16 at 15:41
  • Whatever they were looking for, you apparently weren't it. It happens. Try asking someone for a code review to see what they can suggest rather than assuming the right result is all they were looming for, or just move on to the next application. – keshlam Nov 05 '16 at 08:04
  • Small note: WIth languages like C++, just testing it at home doesn't prove that it is correct. – deviantfan Nov 05 '16 at 10:20

3 Answers3

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Sometimes the hiring manager doesn't understand the answer or solution given to them, even if it is technically correct.

You've asked for feedback (good) and reflected on your performance from the technical side (good), but have you reflected on how you presented?

For example:

  • Did you notice the hiring manager looking confused?
  • Did you change your approach based on these cues (if there were any)?
  • Did you build rapport whilst you were presenting? Did you ask if there were any questions as you went along?
Masked Man
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Either you were wrong, or they were wrong. In both cases, the non-recruitment is a good thing.

  1. He didn't get your answer : they are too self-confident. Better avoid that kind of firms.
  2. He did get your answer, but decided to play with you to see your reaction : this company is not a pleasant place to work in, you will be treated bad.
  3. He did get the answer, but didn't like your style. In which case he could have asked you to use his own guidelines, to see if you can conform.

Unless you were wrong(I cannot check), they are too arrogant to be nice to work with, whatever the reason(unless someone sees another possible reason). Too arrogant to accept a solution that is not theirs.

EDIT : his change of mind at the end is really suspicious. He probably saw something in you he didn't like. And he's not going to tell you.

gazzz0x2z
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Heads up: I am talking about the EU, the situation might be different in the US.

He probably wanted to test your interpersonal skills. He needs to see how you react if challenged rudely. Asking for more specific feedback is the right response in this situation.

Asking him "What specifically makes you think this code is inadequate? Maybe we can look together how to fix it" would be best. It's all about being a good team-player, open to criticism etc. So you need to stay calm and constructive.

I know multiple interviewers in IT who do this to every candidate. (If they had a few beers, they will tell you this is one of the best ways to detect aspergers.) IT is a field where the common impression is that interpersonal skills are lacking, but more and more necessary. So recruiters do a quick test.

The career services from my University even warned us that this test is waiting for us and told us how to react. Once you know what the test is about, the challenge changes. You are no longer at a risk of reacting defensively, but it becomes a challenge to keep a straight face through this piece of theater. (I'm not a fan of this test personally, but if you are warned, it is easy to pass.)

PS Another field where this happens a lot is international business. People in this field typically have good interpersonal skills, but they are also very much needed in cross-cultural settings. Every graduate trainee-ship position in a multi-national company that I know of (from doing interviews myself or through the other students in my batch) had a very similar test.

PPS You can not exclude that the interviewer just needed any excuse to refuse you or still that he was acting totally irrationally. Yet, even in those situations it would be best to answer in the same way as if it was the aforementioned test.

user7019377
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  • I did ask for feedback during the interview. He refused to give it after I was done, but was happy to give it while I was writing the code. He agreed with several things I brought up or wrote down. But then at the end, it's like he changed his mind and everything was wrong to him. – Dac Asf Nov 04 '16 at 15:19
  • How did you react on the spot right after he told you you failed. Did you ask for details at that very moment? Did you show him that you want to work together constructively? Did you keep your cool? – user7019377 Nov 04 '16 at 15:22
  • I was very calm and politely asked for him to point out what I did wrong and for feedback and for us to work through the solution. He refused and told me to leave the interview. – Dac Asf Nov 04 '16 at 15:23
  • Ok, if it was the interpersonal test that I described, he will soon call you and apologize. (Such a test is not uncommon). If not, know that you did everything right and don't be sad not to work there. – user7019377 Nov 04 '16 at 15:25
  • -1, because we really have no idea why this happened from the question. This is one possibility among many. Really I don't think a question this vague should be answered, but if it is answered, you need to admit there are many possibilities. Presenting one speculative possibility as "the reason" is unhelpful. –  Nov 04 '16 at 15:30
  • This is a very common way to filter out people who can't work in a team though. Note that if it is executed correctly, you are not supposed to see it coming. So per definition, you would not have hard evidence that this is the only interpretation of the situation. – user7019377 Nov 04 '16 at 15:33
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    30+ years. I've never seen someone tell a complete lie as a stress tactic. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but to call it "very common" is ridiculous. – Chris E Nov 04 '16 at 15:36
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    @user7019377 I've never heard of this happening either. If you have some particular experience of this being common in some context, I suggest you add it to the answer, and also make it clear this is only one possibility. –  Nov 04 '16 at 15:39
  • I know multiple interviewers in IT who do this to every candidate. (If they had a few beers, they will tell you this is one of the best ways to detect aspergers.) This is a field where the common impression is that interpersonal skills are lacking, but more and more necessary. So you do a quick test. Another field would be international business where you need very good diplomats. Every graduate trainee-ship position in a multi-national company that I know of (from doing interviews myself or through the other students in my batch) had a very similar test. – user7019377 Nov 04 '16 at 15:43