Scale Engineer

Software Engineering Manager

Software Engineering ManagerHead of EngineeringHigh

This interview process is designed to assess candidates for the Head of Engineering role at Avito, focusing on leadership, technical strategy, team management, and execution capabilities. The process aims to identify individuals who can effectively lead and scale engineering teams, drive technical innovation, and contribute to Avito's overall business objectives.

Rounds·5

Timeline·~14d

Experience·8 - 15 yrs

Comp band·US$180000 - US$250000

Interview time·285 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Leadership vision and strategic thinking.
  • Ability to build, mentor, and grow high-performing engineering teams.
  • Technical depth and understanding of modern software development practices.
  • Product sense and ability to align engineering efforts with business goals.
  • Communication and interpersonal skills.
  • Problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
  • Experience with managing budgets and resources effectively.

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Deeply understand Avito's mission, values, and current business challenges.
  2. Review your past experiences and prepare specific examples using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for behavioral questions.
  3. Familiarize yourself with common software engineering management frameworks and best practices.
  4. Think about your leadership philosophy and how you build and motivate teams.
  5. Prepare questions to ask the interviewers about the role, the team, and Avito's engineering culture.
  6. Brush up on system design concepts relevant to large-scale applications.
  7. Understand Avito's product and the market it operates in.

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

01 / 04
01

Phase 01 of 04

Company & Self-Assessment

Weeks 1-2: Avito research, career review, STAR stories.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on understanding Avito's business, product, and engineering organization. Research their tech stack, recent news, and any public statements about their engineering culture. Review your own career history, identifying key leadership achievements and challenges. Prepare STAR stories for common leadership and management scenarios.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Describe your leadership philosophy and how you build and motivate engineering teams.
  • How do you balance the need for innovation with the need for stability and reliability in a production environment?
  • Tell me about a time you had to make a significant technical decision that had a major impact on your team or product. What was the situation, your decision, and the outcome?
  • How do you approach performance management and career development for your engineers?
  • Describe your experience in hiring and retaining top engineering talent.
  • How do you foster a culture of collaboration and knowledge sharing within your team and across different teams?
  • What are your strategies for managing technical debt and ensuring code quality?
  • How do you stay updated with the latest technology trends and ensure your team is leveraging them effectively?
  • Tell me about a time you failed. What did you learn from it?
  • How do you handle conflicts within your team or with other departments?
  • What is your experience with budgeting and resource allocation for engineering projects?
  • How would you scale an engineering team from 10 to 50 engineers?
  • Describe your approach to setting technical direction and roadmap for a product.
  • How do you ensure effective communication between engineering and other business units (e.g., Product, Marketing, Sales)?
  • What are the key metrics you use to measure the success of your engineering team and its output?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

Moscow

Interview focus

Understanding of the local tech talent market and competitive landscape.Adaptability to local business practices and cultural nuances.Experience with scaling teams in a specific regional context.

Common questions

  • How do you handle a conflict between two senior engineers on your team?
  • Describe a time you had to make a difficult decision that impacted your team negatively. How did you handle it?
  • What are your strategies for attracting and retaining top engineering talent in [specific city/region]?
  • How do you balance the need for rapid feature development with maintaining code quality and technical debt reduction in a fast-paced market like [specific city/region]?

Tips

  • Research Avito's presence and engineering culture in [specific city/region].
  • Be prepared to discuss your experience managing remote or hybrid teams if applicable to the location.
  • Highlight any experience you have with local tech communities or meetups.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

Expand a step for evaluation criteria, sample questions, and prep notes.

High

Strategic Leadership Interview · 60 min · Senior Leadership / VP of Engineering

This round focuses on your high-level strategic thinking and leadership capabilities. The interviewer will assess your ability to define a vision for the engineering organization, align it with Avito's business objectives, and articulate how you would drive innovation and growth. Expect questions about market trends, competitive analysis, and your approach to building a scalable and effective engineering function.

What they look for

A clear and compelling vision for the engineering organization.An understanding of how technology drives business value.The ability to think long-term and anticipate future challenges.A strategic approach to resource allocation and roadmap planning.

Evaluation

  • Strategic thinking and vision.
  • Business acumen.
  • Understanding of market dynamics.
  • Ability to align technology with business goals.

Sample questions

  • What is your vision for the engineering department at Avito in the next 3-5 years?

    LeadershipStrategyVision

  • How would you prioritize technical initiatives to maximize business impact?

    StrategyPrioritizationBusiness Acumen

  • Describe a time you successfully drove a significant technological transformation within an organization.

    LeadershipChange ManagementTechnical Strategy

Prep for this round

  1. 01Understand Avito's business strategy and market position.
  2. 02Develop a clear vision for an engineering organization at Avito's scale.
  3. 03Be prepared to discuss your approach to technical strategy and innovation.
  4. 04Think about how you would measure success at a strategic level.

Common rejection reasons

  • ×Lack of clear leadership vision.
  • ×Inability to articulate a compelling strategy.
  • ×Poor understanding of business objectives.
  • ×Failure to demonstrate strategic thinking.

DSA

Coding questions at Avito.

Frequently reported on Avito loops

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Other guides

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