Scale Engineer

L5B

Software Engineering ManagerEM 2Hard

The Software Engineering Manager (EM) L5B interview at Uber is designed to assess a candidate's leadership, technical expertise, people management skills, and strategic thinking. This role typically requires a strong background in software development and proven experience in leading and mentoring engineering teams. The interview process is rigorous and aims to identify individuals who can drive technical excellence, foster a positive team culture, and contribute to Uber's long-term success.

Rounds·4

Timeline·~4d

Experience·8 - 15 yrs

Comp band·US$180000 - US$250000

Interview time·225 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Leadership and people management skills
  • Technical depth and breadth
  • Strategic thinking and business acumen
  • Communication and interpersonal skills
  • Problem-solving and decision-making abilities
  • Ability to drive execution and deliver results
  • Cultural fit and alignment with Uber's values

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Deeply understand Uber's mission, values, and engineering culture.
  2. Review common software engineering management interview questions and practice your answers using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
  3. Brush up on system design principles, scalability, and distributed systems.
  4. Prepare examples that showcase your leadership, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
  5. Understand Uber's product suite and the technical challenges they face.
  6. Practice articulating your vision for an engineering team and how you would contribute to Uber's goals.
  7. Network with current Uber engineering managers to gain insights into the interview process and expectations.
  8. Be prepared to discuss your experience with managing budgets, hiring, performance reviews, and career development.
  9. Familiarize yourself with Uber's engineering blog and recent technical publications.
  10. Practice explaining complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

01 / 04
01

Phase 01 of 04

Leadership & People Management

Weeks 1-2: Leadership & People Management Fundamentals. Practice STAR method for behavioral questions.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on foundational leadership and people management principles. Review concepts like team building, performance management, conflict resolution, and career development. Study common behavioral interview questions and practice articulating your experiences using the STAR method. Read articles and books on effective engineering leadership.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Tell me about a time you had to manage a conflict within your team. How did you resolve it?
  • How do you prioritize competing demands from product, engineering, and other stakeholders?
  • Describe your approach to mentoring and developing engineers at different career stages.
  • Walk me through a complex system you designed or significantly contributed to. What were the trade-offs?
  • How do you foster a culture of innovation and psychological safety within your team?
  • Tell me about a time you failed. What did you learn from it?
  • How do you measure the success of your team and your own performance as a manager?
  • What is your strategy for attracting and retaining top engineering talent?
  • How do you handle underperformance on your team?
  • Describe a time you had to make a difficult technical decision. What was your thought process?
  • How do you stay current with emerging technologies and industry trends?
  • How do you balance the need for speed with the importance of code quality and technical excellence?
  • Tell me about a time you had to influence a decision at a higher level.
  • How do you delegate tasks effectively?
  • What are your thoughts on the current state of distributed systems and cloud computing?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

San Francisco Bay Area

Interview focus

Emphasis on strategic thinking and long-term vision.Deeper dive into cross-functional collaboration and influencing skills.More focus on scaling teams and processes.Greater expectation of experience with complex distributed systems and architectural decisions.Assessment of ability to navigate ambiguity and drive change in a fast-paced environment.

Common questions

  • How do you handle underperforming engineers in your team?
  • Describe a time you had to make a difficult decision that impacted your team. What was the outcome?
  • How do you balance technical debt with delivering new features?
  • Tell me about a complex technical challenge you faced and how you overcame it.
  • How do you foster innovation within your team?
  • What are your strategies for recruiting and retaining top engineering talent?
  • How do you manage stakeholder expectations across different departments?
  • Describe your experience with agile methodologies and how you've adapted them.
  • How do you ensure the quality and reliability of the software your team produces?
  • What is your approach to performance reviews and career development for your engineers?

Tips

  • Research Uber's specific engineering challenges and recent product launches.
  • Prepare examples that demonstrate impact on a large scale.
  • Understand Uber's engineering culture and values.
  • Be ready to discuss your experience with global teams if applicable.
  • Highlight your ability to influence product strategy and roadmap.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

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

DSA

Coding questions at Uber.

Frequently reported on Uber loops

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Other guides

More at Uber.