Atlassian Interview P5
Summary
I interviewed for a Senior SDE (P5) role at Atlassian in Bangalore, leveraging my 10 years of experience from Amazon. The interview process included several technical rounds focusing on system design and algorithms, as well as behavioral assessments. Ultimately, I was downleveled to a P4 role.
Full Experience
I had my interview rounds for a Senior SDE (P5) position at Atlassian in Bangalore. With 10 years of experience, primarily from Amazon, I was confident in my preparation.
Interview Rounds:
- Round 1 (Coding/DSA): I was asked to implement a Fixed Window Rate Limiter.
- Round 2 (Coding/System Design): This round involved a question similar to the All-O(1) Data Structure problem on LeetCode. Following my approach to this, we had a detailed discussion on various distributed systems scenarios related to the problem.
- Round 3 (System Design): I was tasked with designing an Image Crawler. The prompt specified it should be similar to a web crawler, but with the distinct goal of crawling and saving images.
- Round 4 (Behavioral/Values): This was a values round, focusing on cultural fit and alignment with Atlassian's principles.
- Round 5 (Hiring Manager): The final round was with the Hiring Manager, which typically assesses overall fit, career aspirations, and team alignment.
Verdict:
After all rounds, I received the verdict that I was downleveled to a P4 role instead of the Senior SDE (P5) position I applied for.
Reason & Conclusion:
The reasons provided for the downleveling were quite vague and, frankly, didn't make much sense to me. Having spent 7-8 years involved in hiring SDE 1/2/3 at Amazon, I have a clear understanding of the hiring bar and expectations for candidates. My experience leads me to believe a few things regarding Atlassian's interview process:
- Some of the technical interviewers lacked experience in conducting interviews effectively and seemed unreceptive to solutions that didn't align with their preconceived notions.
- There appeared to be a feeling of superiority or ego among some Atlassian interviewers, making them less open to different perspectives.
I genuinely feel that Atlassian could benefit significantly from improving their interview process and implementing stricter training on interview techniques and candidate evaluation. Without these improvements, they risk losing out on good candidates.
Interview Questions (3)
I was asked to implement a fixed window rate limiter.
The question was similar to LeetCode's All-O(1) Data Structure problem. Following my solution, there was a discussion on distributed systems based upon various scenarios.
I was asked to design an image crawler. The problem specified it should function similarly to a web crawler, but with the distinct goal of crawling and saving images.