After I first applied for this job I was contacted by the recruiter who then scheduled a call between him, an engineer and myself. The call went great and we got a chance to talk over a bit about myself, Philo as a company and the role. Then, the engineer and I dived into a technical conversation about a past project of mine. Following that call I got a home assignment to complete in about 2 weeks (though I think it took me a bit more but there was no pressure from their side) and I was invited to a slack channel for any questions I might have. I really liked the way the assignment was built and it allowed me to write code and show my skills in a real scenario and timeframe. The “onsite” (virtual due to COVID) part took place after I handed in my assignment. It consisted of 5 interviews. 2 technical interviews (1 design and 1 was more of a pair programming style), 1 interview in which we discussed the specifics of the assignments and thought of any needed improvements to it, 1 demo of Philo’s product and 1 behavioral interview. Through all of these interviews I really got a good feel of the culture of the company and the people within it. It felt really different (in a good way) than any other interview I did during that time. The last part of the process was an interview with the CTO about was mainly about making sure that what I’m looking for and my goals align well with what Philo are looking for and has to offer (It also included a very small coding question). Overall process was a little long for me, around 2 months (part of it was due to the amount of time that took me to hand in the home assignment) but enjoyable, respectful and felt like you’re being tested for actual skills rather than solving “Leetcode” questions.

After a couple of phone conversations with the recruiter and one of the leads, they sent me a homework assignment, with flexible timeline, which is great compared to live/whiteboard coding, since you can demonstrate your coding and problem solving skills in a more realistic manner. After submitting the code and passing the test cases, I was invited for an on-site interview. I was given a site tour and a product tour, and then was interviewed with 4 of the engineers and the recruiter. These interviews were more focused on dealing with different scenarios I had faced before, and potentially at Philo. One interviewer went through my homework code with me. The interview included a lunch break with the staff, which was a great opportunity to talk and learn about company's vibe and culture. Everybody was very nice and welcoming. A few days after the on-site interview, I had a video call with the company's CTO, which included more general questions about priorities, long-term goals, and expectations. It also included a short live-coding exercise. The CTO was very patient, honest, and open-minded. I got an offer a few days later.