Hire the best Software Developer with Technical Assessment

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Software engineers are notoriously difficult to find. It’s difficult to find a solution that works, whether it’s a lack of time to undertake technical assessments, an inability to locate the proper people in the first place, or a lack of trust in the recommendations.

The majority of technical hiring processes begin with a preliminary technical assessment:

Code test
Technical evaluation to be completed at home
Technical interviews in real-time

A guide to each sort of technical assessment, as well as how to use them to hire software developers and make final recommendations, can be found below.

Code Test

Technical recruiters employ code tests, which are timed, automated evaluations, to filter candidates in or out at the start of the hiring process. Candidates must write and run working code that answers a single or a series of questions. Typically, technical recruiters would send an email invitation to candidates inviting them to take the test.

Candidates must write and run solutions to questions presented to them in a code test on their own. The majority of code tests return a binary pass or fail result based on absolute completeness and accuracy.

Candidates from minority and unorthodox backgrounds may be harmed as a result of these limits. Many code tests will fail a candidate’s answer if it uses the correct algorithm and data structures but contains a tiny error, such as a typo.

When should a team do a technical assessment using a code test?

In high-volume hiring efforts that focus on junior developers, code tests are useful. Code tests are widely used in university recruiting programs that recruit fresh graduates. To choose which candidates to progress or reject, some companies utilize a combination of a code exam and a technical interview.

For specialized engineering professions and more senior candidates, code tests are not an acceptable technical assessment. These candidates are less likely to take the code exam since it is associated with junior candidates, and they believe it will not accurately reflect their abilities. Code tests yield less dependable suggestions, and they’re right. Because code tests are based on a coding exercise rather than a discussion of business logic complexity or code review, this is the case. The latter is more relevant to professions, which are specialized and senior software engineering roles.

Technical evaluation to be completed at home

Candidates are free to use whichever programming environment they like. Take-home tests may include questions that are similar to code assessments in order to examine algorithm and data structure skills. Other times, they urge candidates to build or extend programs using tools they use on the job because they have more time and flexibility.

Technical interviews in real-time

The most human-centred technical assessments are live technical interviews. Technical interviews, which are not to be confused with phone screens, should comprise questions and problems that are relevant to the role and are handled with the help of a trained interviewer.

The ideal technical interview is as follows:

Is no longer than 60 minutes long
It makes use of a development environment that is interactive (IDE)
Uses the same interview questions every time.
While coding, the interviewer and candidate can communicate via video chat.

Final Considerations

Consider every conceivable task a new hire will have in addition to keeping the assessment relevant for each role. This guarantees that you have the necessary skills for the job and that you can accurately assess their performance.

Inform candidates of the type of assessment they will be required to complete. Candidates should have ample time to prepare for live interviews or real-time coding tests, especially when it comes to live interviews or real-time coding tests.

Use both a coding test and a live technical exam for junior developers. High-volume technical hiring processes will benefit from this.