Scale Engineer

Software Engineer

Software EngineerL4Medium to Hard

The Software Engineer L4 interview process at Whatnot is designed to assess a candidate's technical proficiency, problem-solving abilities, and cultural fit. It typically involves multiple rounds, including technical interviews, a system design interview, and a behavioral interview.

Rounds·3

Timeline·~7d

Experience·3 - 7 yrs

Comp band·US$130000 - US$180000

Interview time·150 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Technical Skills (Data Structures, Algorithms, Coding Proficiency)
  • Problem-Solving Abilities
  • System Design and Scalability Knowledge
  • Communication Skills
  • Teamwork and Collaboration
  • Cultural Fit
  • Motivation and Passion

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Review fundamental data structures and algorithms (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps, sorting, searching).
  2. Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or AlgoExpert, focusing on medium and hard difficulties.
  3. Study system design concepts: scalability, availability, reliability, databases (SQL vs. NoSQL), caching, load balancing, message queues, APIs.
  4. Prepare for behavioral questions using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
  5. Research Whatnot's products, mission, and values.
  6. Understand common software development principles (SOLID, DRY, KISS).
  7. Be ready to discuss your past projects in detail, highlighting your contributions and learnings.
  8. Practice explaining your thought process clearly and concisely.
  9. Prepare thoughtful questions to ask the interviewer about the role, team, and company.

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

01 / 04
01

Phase 01 of 04

Data Structures and Algorithms

Weeks 1-2: Data Structures & Algorithms (Arrays, Trees, Graphs, Sorting, Searching, DP). Practice coding.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on Data Structures and Algorithms. Cover arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues, trees (binary trees, BSTs, AVL trees), graphs, hash tables. Practice implementing and analyzing the time and space complexity of operations. Solve problems related to searching, sorting, recursion, and dynamic programming.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Given an array of integers, find the contiguous subarray with the largest sum.
  • Design a system to handle real-time notifications for a social media platform.
  • Tell me about a time you had to deal with a difficult stakeholder.
  • How would you optimize a slow database query?
  • Explain the concept of eventual consistency.
  • Describe your experience with cloud platforms like AWS or GCP.
  • What are the trade-offs between microservices and a monolithic architecture?
  • How do you approach debugging a complex issue in a distributed system?
  • Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned from it.
  • If you were to build a recommendation engine for Whatnot, what would be your approach?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

San Francisco Bay Area

Interview focus

Strong emphasis on data structures and algorithms.Deep dive into system design principles and scalability.Problem-solving approach and coding efficiency.Understanding of distributed systems and their trade-offs.

Common questions

  • How would you design a URL shortener?
  • Explain the difference between a process and a thread.
  • Describe a challenging technical problem you solved.
  • How do you handle concurrency in your applications?
  • What are your thoughts on microservices vs. monoliths?

Tips

  • Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, focusing on medium and hard difficulty.
  • Familiarize yourself with common system design patterns and trade-offs.
  • Be prepared to explain your thought process clearly and concisely.
  • Research Whatnot's tech stack and products to tailor your answers.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

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

DSA

Coding questions at Whatnot.

Frequently reported on Whatnot loops

View all at Whatnot

Other guides

More at Whatnot.