Verily

Software Engineer

Software EngineerL4Medium to Hard

This interview process is for a Software Engineer (L4) position at Verily. It is designed to assess a candidate's technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and cultural fit within the company.

Rounds

3

Timeline

~14 days

Experience

3 - 7 yrs

Salary Range

US$130000 - US$175000

Total Duration

150 min

Overall Evaluation Criteria

Technical Proficiency

Problem-solving approach
Algorithmic thinking
Data structures knowledge
Code quality and efficiency
System design capabilities
Understanding of distributed systems
Communication skills
Collaboration and teamwork
Adaptability and learning agility
Alignment with Verily's mission and values

Communication and Collaboration

Ability to articulate thought process
Clarity of explanations
Active listening
Ability to ask clarifying questions
Constructive feedback during pair programming

Cultural Fit and Behavioral Aspects

Motivation for joining Verily
Alignment with company mission
Teamwork and interpersonal skills
Handling of past challenges
Growth mindset

Preparation Tips

1Review fundamental computer science concepts (data structures, algorithms).
2Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or similar.
3Study system design principles and common architectural patterns.
4Understand distributed systems concepts (e.g., consensus, fault tolerance, CAP theorem).
5Prepare for behavioral questions using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
6Research Verily's mission, products, and recent news.
7Be ready to discuss your past projects in detail, highlighting your contributions and learnings.
8If interviewing for a specific domain (e.g., healthcare, genomics), brush up on relevant concepts.
9Practice explaining complex technical concepts clearly and concisely.
10Prepare thoughtful questions to ask the interviewers.

Study Plan

1

Data Structures and Algorithms

Weeks 1-2: Data Structures & Algorithms fundamentals. Practice 5-7 problems per topic.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on core data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, dynamic programming, graph traversal). Practice implementing these from scratch and analyze their time and space complexity. Aim for at least 5-7 problems per data structure/algorithm type.

2

System Design

Weeks 3-4: System Design principles and case studies. Focus on scalability and reliability.

Weeks 3-4: Dive into system design. Study common design patterns (e.g., load balancing, caching, database sharding, message queues). Work through at least 5-10 system design case studies, focusing on scalability, reliability, and trade-offs. Understand concepts like CAP theorem and eventual consistency.

3

Behavioral and Company Research

Week 5: Behavioral questions (STAR method) and company research.

Week 5: Prepare for behavioral and situational questions. Reflect on your past experiences and prepare examples using the STAR method for common questions related to teamwork, conflict resolution, leadership, and handling failure. Also, research Verily's mission, values, and recent projects.

4

Advanced Topics and Domain Knowledge

Week 6: Distributed Systems and domain-specific knowledge.

Week 6: Focus on distributed systems concepts and any domain-specific knowledge relevant to the role (e.g., healthcare data, genomics). Review topics like concurrency, parallelism, fault tolerance, and consensus algorithms. If applicable, study relevant biological or medical concepts.

Commonly Asked Questions

Given a stream of user activity logs, design a system to detect fraudulent patterns in real-time.
How would you design a URL shortening service like bit.ly?
Explain the difference between concurrency and parallelism.
Describe a time you had to deal with a difficult stakeholder. How did you handle it?
Write a function to find the k-th largest element in an unsorted array.
How would you design a system to handle millions of concurrent users for a social media platform?
What are the trade-offs between SQL and NoSQL databases?
Tell me about a project you are particularly proud of.
How do you stay updated with new technologies?
If you were to build a recommendation engine for Verily's health products, what approach would you take?

Location-Based Differences

South San Francisco

Interview Focus

Emphasis on understanding biological data and its implications.Ability to translate complex biological problems into technical solutions.Collaboration and communication skills with non-technical stakeholders.

Common Questions

How would you design a system to handle real-time patient data monitoring?

Describe a challenging debugging experience you had with a large-scale distributed system.

What are your thoughts on the ethical implications of using AI in healthcare?

How do you approach collaborating with cross-functional teams (e.g., biologists, clinicians)?

Tips

Familiarize yourself with common biological data formats (e.g., VCF, BAM).
Understand the basics of genomics and molecular biology.
Be prepared to discuss projects involving healthcare or life sciences.
Highlight experience working with data scientists or domain experts.

Mountain View

Interview Focus

Scalability and performance of distributed systems.Proficiency in cloud computing and related services.Data engineering and pipeline design.Security and privacy best practices.

Common Questions

Design a scalable data pipeline for processing large volumes of sensor data.

How would you optimize a distributed system for high throughput and low latency?

Discuss your experience with cloud platforms (GCP, AWS, Azure) and their services.

What are your strategies for ensuring data privacy and security in a cloud environment?

Tips

Review common cloud services and their use cases.
Practice system design problems focusing on scalability and distributed architectures.
Be ready to discuss your experience with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes).
Understand concepts related to data warehousing and big data processing.

Process Timeline

1
Coding and Algorithms45m
2
System Design60m
3
Behavioral and Managerial45m

Interview Rounds

3-step process with detailed breakdown for each round

1

Coding and Algorithms

Assess coding skills and fundamental CS knowledge through coding problems.

Technical Interview (Coding)Medium
45 minSoftware Engineer

This round focuses on your fundamental computer science knowledge. You will be asked to solve coding problems, typically involving data structures and algorithms. The interviewer will assess your ability to understand the problem, devise an efficient solution, write clean code, and explain your reasoning. Expect to write code in a shared editor or on a whiteboard.

What Interviewers Look For

Clear and structured approach to problem-solvingCorrect implementation of algorithms and data structuresAbility to analyze time and space complexityClean and readable code

Evaluation Criteria

Problem-solving skills
Data structures and algorithms knowledge
Coding proficiency
Logical thinking

Questions Asked

Given an array of integers, return indices of the two numbers such that they add up to a specific target.

ArrayHash Table

Implement a function to reverse a linked list.

Linked List

Find the median of two sorted arrays.

ArrayBinary Search

Preparation Tips

1Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode (Easy to Medium difficulty).
2Review common data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, dynamic programming).
3Practice explaining your thought process out loud as you solve problems.
4Be prepared to discuss edge cases and optimize your solutions.

Common Reasons for Rejection

Inability to articulate thought process
Poor problem-solving approach
Lack of fundamental CS knowledge
Inefficient or incorrect code
2

System Design

Assess ability to design scalable and reliable software systems.

System Design InterviewHard
60 minSenior Software Engineer / Architect

This round evaluates your ability to design complex, scalable, and reliable software systems. You will be presented with a high-level problem (e.g., design Twitter, design a ride-sharing service) and expected to break it down, identify components, define APIs, choose appropriate technologies, and discuss trade-offs. Focus on scalability, availability, latency, and consistency.

What Interviewers Look For

Ability to design scalable and reliable systemsUnderstanding of distributed system conceptsKnowledge of various architectural patternsAbility to justify design choices and trade-offsConsideration for security, availability, and maintainability

Evaluation Criteria

System design capabilities
Scalability and performance considerations
Trade-off analysis
Understanding of distributed systems
Database knowledge
API design

Questions Asked

Design a distributed key-value store.

System DesignDistributed Systems

Design a rate limiter.

System DesignAlgorithms

Design a notification service.

System DesignScalability

Preparation Tips

1Study common system design interview questions and patterns.
2Understand concepts like load balancing, caching, database scaling (sharding, replication), message queues, and CDNs.
3Practice designing systems for scale.
4Be prepared to discuss trade-offs between different design choices.
5Familiarize yourself with cloud platforms (GCP, AWS) and their services.

Common Reasons for Rejection

Lack of understanding of system design principles
Inability to handle scale and performance requirements
Poor trade-off analysis
Not considering failure scenarios
3

Behavioral and Managerial

Assess past experiences, work style, and cultural fit.

Behavioral InterviewMedium
45 minHiring Manager / Senior Team Member

This round focuses on your past experiences, work style, and how you handle various workplace situations. You'll be asked behavioral questions designed to understand your strengths, weaknesses, how you collaborate, handle conflict, and your motivation for joining Verily. Use the STAR method to structure your answers with concrete examples.

What Interviewers Look For

Honesty and self-awarenessAbility to provide specific examples using the STAR methodPositive attitude and enthusiasmEvidence of collaboration and leadershipCultural fit with Verily

Evaluation Criteria

Behavioral competencies
Teamwork and collaboration skills
Problem-solving in past situations
Adaptability and learning
Alignment with Verily's mission and values

Questions Asked

Tell me about a time you faced a significant technical challenge and how you overcame it.

BehavioralProblem Solving

Describe a situation where you had a disagreement with a colleague. How did you resolve it?

BehavioralTeamwork

Why are you interested in working at Verily?

BehavioralMotivation

Preparation Tips

1Prepare examples for common behavioral questions (teamwork, leadership, conflict resolution, failure, success).
2Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answers.
3Be honest and reflective about your experiences.
4Research Verily's mission, values, and culture.
5Think about why you want to work at Verily specifically.

Common Reasons for Rejection

Lack of self-awareness
Poor communication of past experiences
Negative attitude towards past roles or colleagues
Inability to demonstrate alignment with company values

Commonly Asked DSA Questions

Frequently asked coding questions at Verily

View all
Group AnagramsMEDIUMJump GameMEDIUMHappy NumberEASYKth Largest Element in an ArrayMEDIUMGuess the WordHARDMinimum Area RectangleMEDIUMMinimum Area Rectangle IIMEDIUMVideo StitchingMEDIUMLongest String ChainMEDIUMFind Original Array From Doubled ArrayMEDIUM