The complete guide to design interviews
Shh… We’re hiding from the twins underneath my son’s bunk bed. Last week’s dirty clothes and the “smell of boy” are down here with us. I’m writing this while he slays the Ender Dragon in Minecraft. His whisper informs me that I’m a “noob” because I don’t have the skills to craft a simple Diamond Sword, and “noobs” need to “git gud scrub.” Bro, did you just call me a “noob”? My generation invented that word, little man. Hmph! I’m not mad. He knows I’ll crush him in a game of Mario Kart any day — don’t even get me started on my fatherly dominance in Smash Bros. I’m a force to be reckoned with, and he knows it. Being a dad is hard work, much like your upcoming interviews will be. I’m writing this for product designers in hopes that it helps you prepare to slay the Ender Interview Loop one day.
Overview
There’s a good chance that you’re reading this because you landed an interview with your dream company. Now you want to be prepared to wow your interviewers. That’s precisely why I’m writing this insanely long article. I’m spilling the beans on everything I know about the product design interview process, who you’ll meet, how design loops are organized, give you helpful tips, and share how you’ll be assessed during the interview. I want you to feel comfortable and ready to wow your interviewers. Ultimately, this will be a fulfilling experience for you and not one you dread, so long as you’ve internalized this article.
Before we dive in, you should know that every interview process is different. I won’t be able to speak to every company’s interviews, their process, and how to be successful for each. I have experience with big tech companies like Facebook, Amazon, not Apple, Netflix, and Google (FAANG). Regardless of the company, this article will still be valuable to you.
The First Interview is Silent
You’ve already completed your first interview with the company, and you didn’t even know it. The first interview isn’t one you attend. It’s when the company reviews your online portfolio for the first time. They’re assessing your work to see if they should contact you. If they see signs that indicate you’re a good fit for the role, they’ll continue the process. If they don’t, you’ll be silently rejected.
I’ve written an article on creating a compelling design portfolio that companies will notice, which is meant to increase your odds of getting callbacks. So check that out if you suspect you’re silently rejected.
The beautiful thing about the silent interview; if the company contacts you, they already like something about you and your past work. You’ve already made a positive impression with the company without speaking a word. Let this fact be a moment of comfort for you. Someone will break the silence and reach out if you’re a match. That person is likely your friend, the recruiter.
My son just dropped his iPad and told me I’m his best friend. Clearly, he’s never met some of the amazing recruiters out there.
Recruiters Are Your Friend
You’ll meet a few people before your interview loop. The first is likely to be a recruiter. They’re the people combing the internet to find the best designers, and they found you. These recruiters have many tactics for reaching out. Sometimes it’s through a cold email, a LinkedIn message, through your portfolio website, or your Dribbble account. It could also be the other way around. Maybe you applied to a job listing, and the recruiter is contacting you back. Regardless of contact method, they’re reaching out because they believe you’re a good fit for the role on the team they’re supporting.
These recruiters are invested in your success from the very beginning of the interview process. The reason being that many companies measure recruiters’ performance based on how many designers they hire. You can use this to your advantage. Recruiters are willing to answer any reasonable questions you have, share helpful resources and groom you for a successful interview loop. They’re like the design equivalent to a fiduciary — sort of. You can trust them and see them as your friends throughout the process.
Screener Interviews
A coordinator will schedule time with your recruiter as well as set up a short series of informal screener interviews. I don’t consider these first interviews part of the formal interview loop, but they’re important nonetheless and you should be prepared. The intention behind screeners is to learn about you and your interest in the position. They’re an introduction between you and the company. They want to understand if you’re open to switching jobs or relocating and that you’re an actual human, not some designer Dribbble-bot. I’ve personally come across three types of screener interviews:
- Background screener: This interview is often a phone call and consists of questions about your background. They want to know if they can hire you and your motivations for leaving your current role, if any. As well as begin to understand your skills, strengths, and weaknesses. They’ll note these and share them with the other interviewers as part of your interview packet.
- Portfolio screener: The next screener interview is an informal portfolio walkthrough. This interview is a preliminary assessment of your product thinking, interaction design, visual design, intentionality, drive, and self-awareness skills. Though this is considered an informal interview, I highly recommend you create a formal portfolio presentation deck for it. Then, you can revise the deck based on your conversations during the screener for the formal portfolio presentation during the interview loop. You will learn more about these decks later on in this article.
- Exercise screener: Some companies will also have a third type of screener interview, which centers around your problem-solving skills. Sometimes it’s a take-home exercise you can do on your own time, and other times it’s an in-person exercise like an app critique or whiteboard session. They want to understand your design process, product sense, and if you make intentional decisions or not. I highly recommend practicing for these types of interviews because they’re the most difficult. Again, I’ll go into more detail later on.
Screener interviews act as a filter for the company’s design team and you can be rejected at any point. When you make it through this filter, the company will invite you to meet the design team for a formal interview loop. More on that later on. But first, let’s get you prepped for the loop.
Come Prepared or Get Rejected
I want you to succeed, so listen to this; companies know when you’re winging it and haven’t prepared for your interview. It’s obvious. I’ve seen far too many designers fail by not knowing their work, strengths, weaknesses, not knowing the company or role they applied for or overselling their abilities to compensate for lack of preparedness. All of these things are obvious to interviewers. So the most important advice I can give you is to make sure you schedule the interview a week or two out and begin prepping for it. The formal interview loop is the most challenging part of your job hunt. Here’s how I recommend you prepare.
Know Your Work
You should know your work better than anyone else. When it comes time to share your work, know every detail and speak to it without the aid of your presentation. There are moments during the interview where you’ll be asked about your work to clarify questions the interviewer may have. While it’s not the worst thing you can do, cracking open your presentation a second time to answer questions is a sign of unpreparedness. Read your case studies over and over. Try presenting your work to friends or family — whatever it takes to internalize your work, do it.
My son’s convinced that you must “know how to craft a Diamond Sword” to be successful in life. My lazy metaphor: Your work is the Diamond Sword. Know how to craft it and share those instructions with others. Maybe I’ll rewrite this if I come up with a better metaphor. Meh.
Know Your Strengths & Weaknesses
Someone who’s self-aware knows what they do well and what they need to improve. Self-aware people know how other people perceive them, how to manage time, ask relevant questions, and so on. When you apply for a design role, the hiring manager wants to know if your strengths are an appropriate fit for the position and if you’re coachable and open to strengthening your weaknesses. Know who you are and honestly share your weaknesses when asked these personal questions. You should take time to self-assess and reflect on your strengths and weaknesses before your interview loop.
Know the Company & Role
How much do you know about the company and role in which you applied? If the answer is “I know everything about the company and role,” You’re all set and can move on. But if your answer is “I know a little bit” or “I’m unsure,” then you need to take the time to understand everything you can about the company and role. Questions about why you’re interested in the company and position will undoubtedly come up during your interview, and you should know precisely why you’ve applied. It will also prepare you for the tricky question of “why are you a good fit for this role?” Learn how to answer this question.
Be Your Authentic Self
You may feel pressure to be an idealized version of yourself. To do your hair or makeup, wear a suit or tuxedo, put on a fake smile, speak in a baritone voice, walk with your chest out and head high, make uncomfortable eye contact for extended periods. Even worse, you may feel you need to mimic other designers or hide your diverse perspective and world opinions. You don’t need to do any of that. Companies want to know the real you — the diverse, disheveled, unkempt, timid, authentic you. The authentic version of you is the person showing up to work every day and not the idealized version of yourself. Not to mention, the best products are ones created by people of diverse backgrounds. So, celebrate who you are and bring your authentic self to the interview.
He’s learning how to read and asked if I could teach him to spell the word “poop.” This is my child, folks. And now he’s laughing because he sees it written above. Great…
Practice Beforehand
The recruiter will give you the schedule for your interview loop at some point. That plan will include the types of interviews you can expect during the loop. Once you’ve identified your interview types, begin practicing. Problem-solving exercises and presentations are the ones you should spend the most time mastering because these are the most challenging interview types to ace. I’ll give you tips on how to practice later on.
The Day of Your Interview Loop
First, let me start by saying you may be nervous, anxious, panicked, fidgety, sick, or all-of-the-above. That’s completely normal, and we’ve all experienced the same nerves. You’re in good company, too, because I’m a nervous wreck before every interview I’ve had. I distinctly remember puking my guts out in my hotel room just before my Hulu interview. But, you know what, that’s less common and kind of gross, but also normal. To overcome these nerves, you can set yourself up for success by being prepared beforehand.
If the interview loop is over a video call, ensure you have a solid internet connection and your camera and mic are working. The last thing you need is a technical issue to exacerbate an already stressful experience. If your interview loop is on-site and in-person, make sure you’ve had a good night’s rest and a hearty breakfast to get the brain juices flowing. Consider performing a morning stretch and meditate before your interview as well. It helps me, so it might help you too.
I highly recommend taking the day off so you can devote 100% of your attention to your interview loop. Splitting your focus between your current job or family and a design interview loop can be especially difficult and further contribute to your stress levels. Try to remove as many obstacles as you can to make the day go smoothly.
Your Interview Loop
An interview loop has multiple interview sessions. Sometimes there are four, five, or even six (or even seven!) sessions in one loop. Each company will have its unique loop structure. You will also find that these sessions will vary in duration. Some companies prefer thirty-minute sessions, where other companies prefer sixty-minute sessions. I recommend always being mentally prepared for the longer sessions and thankful when they are only thirty minutes.
You may be lucky and have a choice between scheduling all your interview loop sessions on one day or splitting them over multiple days. There are benefits to both options. Having the sessions all on one day allows you to complete the loop quicker. For me, I prefer doing all the sessions at once — like ripping off a Minecraft-themed band-aid. Splitting up the sessions of multiple days allows you to rest between sessions, though. You can also revise your thinking or presentation between these sessions if you believe you made a mistake the previous day. The drawback, of course, is that this option is much slower. Choose the option that fits your abilities and schedule if you get a choice.
On-Site vs. Online
The main difference between on-site and online interview loops is one you have to wear pants too and the other you don’t. Joking aside, you technically don’t have to wear pants to either. Let’s move on.
The Panel of Judges
Let’s introduce you to the stereotypical group of people involved in your interview loop. This group includes a panel of judges trained to assess your portfolio, your skills, and background. They’re a diverse mix of people. The most common mix of people involved in your loop is:
- Coordinator. This person organizes the loop schedule and is the person you contact when you need to reschedule or have technical issues. They hold everyone’s hand during the interview loop.
- Recruiter: I hope you’ve met your recruiter by this point, but if not, they’re the one coordinating the entire loop. They’re not always a judge during the loop but can be in some cases.
- Hiring manager: This is the manager assembling their dream team and is tasked with finding the best person for the role.
- Design peer: This person may already be on the team and has a perspective on being a successful designer on the team. They’ll know team dynamics and how to work across functions (XFN).
- XFN peer: This person is partnered with the design team and is a key part of the product development cycle. They have an outsider’s perspective on how to work with the design team.
- Director: This is the person who’s responsible for creating a team of teams. In your case, it will be a team of design teams. They’re people strategists.
- CEO: In some rare cases, you may be interviewed by the CEO of the company. They have the final say and will sign off on you. Don’t let this intimidate you. They’re normal people, just like you and me.
The Six Axes You Must Demonstrate
These interviewers are trained to gather signals on the following traits about you and your work. Therefore, you need to ensure you find ways to demonstrate them all, not just speak to them. Here are the six axes interviewers are mining for:
- Product thinking: This skill demonstrates your business sense. You must understand business needs, user needs, and their underlying goals. Then, you must identify opportunities based on those goals and know how to create a successful product.
- Interaction design: This skill demonstrates your ability to create successful user experiences. You must have a thorough understanding of existing interaction design patterns and how to use them properly. The more senior you become, the more you’ll need to understand how to create new interaction design patterns based on human behavior.
- Visual design: This skill demonstrates your ability to create attractive user interfaces. You must understand color, typography, layout, motion, imagery, etc. You’ll also need to know how visual design relates to interaction design and accessibility.
- Intentionality: This skill demonstrates your design process for creating products. You must know the problem-space, set reasonable goals, make informed product choices based on data, iterate until you have the correct solution, collaborate with others, and communicate your work — all while remaining organized.
- Drive: This skill demonstrates your enthusiasm for your work. You must have an appetite to learn new things, teach others, build community, move fast, and accept failure.
- Self-awareness: This skill demonstrates your ability to know your strengths and weaknesses. You must know what you do well, how people perceive you, how to be an ally, give and receive constructive feedback, and be honest about your growth areas.
I learned these six axes from Papa Zuck at Facebook, and while they are specific to Facebook, I found that they translate to almost all product design interviews. Some companies may use different vocabulary or break down these axes in other ways, but the spirit remains the same. Everything you do will need to ladder up to user and business impact to impress your interviewers.
“Dude, did you just fart on me, or is that the pile of clothes next to you?” We’re cleaning his room after I finish writing this. There’s a spilled barrel of monkeys in the corner I keep stepping on and it's been driving me mad.
A Note on Unconscious Bias
Most companies worth applying to are bias-conscious these days. This means that their interviewers are trained to understand their own unconscious biases and ensure they don’t interfere with the hiring process. In addition, this bias training gives you a layer of protection as the company interviews you. For example, interviewers will overlook age, race, disability, gender, orientation, Minecraft vs. Mario Kart, etc. So, take comfort in that your panel of judges is empathetic towards protected groups.
Take Your Breaks
Most interview loops will have pre-scheduled breaks, so you have time to refresh before each interview session. Take full advantage of these breaks. Get up and walk around, take your mind off the loop, eat a snack, and take a bio-break. Just stay away from your computer — whatever you do. You’ll need to do this so you can keep your energy levels high throughout the entire loop. Some people may be gifted and can endure the long process without breaks, but we normal humans should be taking our breaks. A good interviewer will even ask you if you need to take a break before beginning the session. They are looking out for your best interest and know how hard the interviewing process can be. Also, if you feel you need a break, simply ask.
Types of Design Interview Sessions
As I’ve mentioned before, a design interview loop consists of multiple interview sessions. Each session uncovers different traits about you and your work. For example, some sessions lean more heavily on product thinking, interaction design, and visual design — where other interview sessions are geared more towards learning about your intentionality, drive, and self-awareness. All sessions uncover some signals on all axes, but other sessions are more focused on specific axes. The following are the most common design interview types you’ll come across during interview loops.
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The Portfolio Presentation
All interview loops I’ve been a part of began with a portfolio presentation. The goal of this presentation is to walk the panel of judges through your past projects and share every intimate detail you can about your design process so that they gain a signal on your six axes. This presentation includes all of the axes you must demonstrate, which is why it’s the first session in the loop.
Interviewers will introduce themselves at the beginning of the presentation, but they expect you to drive the entire presentation. They will take notes and capture questions that they’ll save for later sessions with you. It’s normal to have only one person hold your hand while the other interviewers observe. This is the interview lead, the person who’s responsible for keeping everyone on time. Don’t let the interview lead fool you. You should be driving your presentation and keeping time, not them.
Prepare for a Sixty-Minute Presentation
Speaking of time, your presentation should be deep enough to fill an entire hour session. Some interview loops expect you to present multiple projects during this hour. It’s better to have too much content than not enough. If your session is only thirty minutes long, you can remove a project or two. Another “gotcha” to watch out for is going overtime. You should have the self-awareness to know how long your presentation is and when the session is close to ending. Going over on time makes all the other sessions late. So, watch the clock and be prepared to wrap up your presentation on time.
What to Present
I hope you’ve read my past article on creating a compelling portfolio website. If you have, you should already know the kinds of projects to include in your presentation deck and the type of content to include as well. The projects the panel is expecting to see are your greatest hits. They want to see your best work.
The main difference between a portfolio website and a presentation deck is the goal behind them. The website’s goal is to hook companies within thirty seconds, so you get a callback. The goal behind your presentation deck is to dive deep into your product design process and be able to demonstrate all six axes within thirty or sixty minutes thoroughly.
Share everything you have related to your projects in your presentation deck. Each case study should be structured with context first; then, you must highlight the problems, the actions you took to solve those problems, and finally share the results of your actions. Problems and results should be backed up with data, as this is what interviewers expect and is a sign of intentional design.
You may feel pressure to have projects that fit perfectly with the job description. This isn’t necessary. If you don’t have a project that’s a perfect match for the role, you can still showcase your great hits and get the job. The panel isn’t looking for your past work to be an exact match; they’re looking for the six axes.
How to Present Your Work
Your presentation deck must be visually engaging first. Your voiceover narration will fill in the gaps that your visuals can’t cover. The visuals and narration need to keep the panel of judges interested for the entire presentation. You should know your work well enough to speak clearly and confidently. Here are a couple of tips that work for me:
- Slides should be thirty seconds long at most. That way, the presentation has an engaging pace. Find ways to break apart your slides into smaller, more memorable pieces.
- Avoid making your presentation slides long blocks of monotonous text to keep the presentation engaging for the panel.
- Find ways to include motion in your presentation. Again, you want to keep the panel engaged throughout the presentation, and meaningful motion is a great shortcut.
- Use your presenter notes. My entire presentation is also written in text form within my presenter notes. These notes help me stay on track. Over time you will rely less and less on these notes.
- If questions come up during the presentation, politely ask the interviewer to hold their question until later. You don’t want questions interrupting your flow, especially if the question is answered in a later slide anyhow.
Lunch Interview
You may be scheduled for a lunch interview if it’s on-site. These lunch interviews aren’t technically interviews. They’re intended to be a moment of rest and refresh you before your next session. You’ll likely be coupled up with a lunch buddy. Use this time to ask questions and get a better sense of what it’s like to work at the company. This lunch buddy may also be a panel member, and keeping them interested while they eat could build a positive impression for you. Keep in mind that your lunch buddy is also eating lunch. You should strike a healthy balance of chatting and eating; that way, you’re both rested before the next session. It’s a two-way street.
All this lunch talk is making me hungry. I’ll be right back. “Kid, want a banana?”
Problem-Solving Exercise
The problem-solving exercise is by far the most difficult of the bunch. This is primarily because you need to solve a difficult problem while thinking aloud in a constrained amount of time. Not everyone can juggle those three variables well. I’ll suggest this over and over again. You should practice problem-solving exercises before your interview loop if you’re uncomfortable. That way, you’re prepared to juggle in front of a panel member.
The Prompt
The interviewer will have a couple of prompts in mind while they attend your portfolio presentation. If they struggle to gain signal on any of the six axes, they will pick a prompt intended to uncover more about the axes they lack signal on. Let’s say your portfolio is primarily feature-work; their prompt will likely be about design vision. Let’s say your portfolio is full of technical dashboards; their prompt may be geared more towards creating a simple app. You should know your portfolio’s weaknesses and be prepared to solve problems related to those weaknesses. I want to stress that the interviewer isn’t trying to trip you up; they want to understand if you’re a well-rounded designer or need coaching when hired.
Here are a few examples of problem-solving prompts:
- Redesign a TV remote
- Redesign an ATM
- Create a to-do app
- Create a podcast app
- There are many more examples online
Notice that all of these examples are one line. That’s intentional. The interviewer is expecting you to fill in the blanks yourself. Another thing to note is that it’s okay to ask for a different prompt if you feel uncomfortable with the prompt they asked you to solve. The interviewer should have multiple prompts ready.
How to Solve the Problem
You’re expected to lead the entire problem-solving exercise from beginning to end. Once the interviewer gives you the prompt, you’re on stage and should be ready to perform. This session also uncovers signals on your drive axis. Leaders will naturally own the exercise. In practice, what this looks like is thinking aloud and showcasing your thought process so that the interviewer understands why you’re making the decisions the way you do. This is the second axis that’s uncovered through problem-solving exercises — which is your intentionality.
Define the Problem Space First
There are many ways to solve these problems, and everyone will have different methods of doing so. The first tip I can give is to pretend the interviewer is the business and ask them questions to understand the problem space. Interviewers will happily roleplay and give you the background information you need to build a design brief. You need to ask. They won’t give this information out automatically.
Avoid using your personal experience to solve the problem, if possible. You must remember that you’re not the user, and designing a solution that’s specific to you will likely lead you down the wrong path. Instead, the interviewer will know the target user and give you the hints you need to design a successful product.
Here’s the typical info you should collect before you begin to solve the problem:
- Business mission
- Business problems
- User problems
- Demographics
- Platforms
- Goals
- KPIs
- yadda yadda
A common mistake I’ve witnessed countless times is designers beginning with the solution first. Don’t do this. That’s a major red flag and is seen as someone who has an ill-defined design process. Save solutions for later.
Identify Opportunities
Once you’ve collected the necessary info to define the problem space, I recommend spending time identifying opportunities you’ve uncovered from the problems in the design brief. Then, spin the problems into “how might we” prompts and begin brainstorming around them. Ensure your brainstorm covers macro design decisions like platforms, regions, monetization, etc., as well as micro design solutions like design patterns, feature sets, animation, etc. Of course, you will not be expected to include all of these in your wireframes, but it’s great to demonstrate the breadth of your product thinking skills — which is the third axis uncovered during problem-solving exercises.
How might we craft a Diamond Sword, kid?
Solve the Problem
Now that you have your opportunities defined walk the interviewer through how you typically design a solution for one of the opportunities. Another common mistake is to choose an opportunity that you can’t solve in a sixty or thirty-minute session. Instead, choose an opportunity you believe is the most impactful and can be designed in the allotted time.
A typical process many designers follow is to define a task flow as their next step. This is a great method of demonstrating your thought process without getting trapped in tiny details. The last thing you want to do is rathole on a tiny detail that’s inconsequential to the final solution. Instead, begin your task flow with an entry-point and finish it with an exit-point after the user has completed their goal. Once you’re satisfied with your task flow, then move on to wireframes.
By this point in the session, you’re likely running short on time. Take the pressure off yourself and know that you’re not expected to have high-fidelity mockups by the end of the problem-solving session. Instead, you’re expected to get as far as you can and be as diligent as possible. If you make it to the wireframing phase of your process, focus on the heartbeats of the solutions. These are the most important moments in the flow. Define the appropriate interaction patterns needed to complete the flow and speak to the pros and cons of each pattern.
Finally, leave enough time at the end of the session to recap all the steps you took with the interviewer. You’ll also want to mention the moments where you believe you could improve your solution. I like to pretend there is a second session where I get to iterate on the design and speak to how I would iterate at this moment. You can even ask the interviewer where they believe you should iterate next time and make them a part of the critique.
If you made it this far in the problem-solving session, you just completed the most difficult part of the interview loop.
Product Critique
This is my favorite type of session during the interview loop. It’s just a conversation about a product. Sometimes it’s an app, a website, or a physical product. However, the end goal of this session is always the same. Do you know how to identify the user and business opportunities from an existing product? Do you know how to give constructive feedback? Do you know how interaction patterns behave and how to improve them? Do you know how to separate visual design from interaction design? And so on. These are the topics of discussion you’ll have during this session.
You’ll be assessed on your intentionality and self-awareness axes, including communication skills, decision-making skills, collaboration skills, etc. Refrain from being negative during this session and bashing a product because you “hate it.” That’s not constructive. Instead, focus on how you would improve the app to make it better. Talk about macro improvements as well as micro improvements.
The conversation you have during the product critique isn’t one-sided either. The interviewer is expecting you also to ask them questions about the product. Doing so demonstrates your ability to collaborate — which is another sign of intentionality.
You’ll only be able to rely on your personal assumptions about the product. Each time you make an assumption, discuss how you would test that assumption. Designers who do this will stand out from the rest. A designer who can define a test to validate or invalidate their design assumptions is seen as a strength that companies seek out. So, make it a point to discuss your research and data know-how in the context of this product critique.
Just like my son testing my patience. No, I don’t know how to craft Diamond Armor either.
Background Interview
The panel of judges wants to know more about your background. This session will dive deeper into your work history, skills, and product design philosophy. You’ll notice the interviewer asking difficult questions during this session. They don’t intend to confuse you or trip you up during this session, but it can feel like these questions are direct and sometimes abstract. Be prepared to answer these tough questions thoroughly and honestly.
Common questions you’ll be asked during this session:
- Can you tell me more about yourself?
- Why do you believe you’re the right person for this role?
- Tell me of a time when you disagreed with someone, and how did you handle the situation?
- Tell me about your most innovative design?
- What do you value as a designer?
- How do you like to work with others?
- How do you give constructive feedback?
- Can you tell me more about your design process?
- What are your strengths and weaknesses?
- Tell me about a time you failed as a designer?
- Do you have any questions for me?
- Blargy blah blah
There are hundreds of questions online that you should practice answering. You can also expect focused questions about the role and your skills.
Peer Interview
Finally, you’ll be interviewed by a design peer. This is someone who’s already on the team you’re interviewing for and has valuable context about the role. They’re assessing your intentionality, drive, and self-awareness axes. The format of this session is similar to a background interview with one notable difference; the person interviewing you was in your shoes once upon a time. So you can expect to answer similar questions as the background interview.
I highly recommend asking questions to your peers and reversing the roles during this interview. You want to uncover how to be a successful designer at the company, what’s working well on the team, and what needs improvement. You can also get a sense of the team dynamic and morale from this session. When done correctly, you can be seen as an ally for this peer and someone they can trust.
When You Don’t Know the Answer
There will be multiple instances during the interview loop when you’re asked questions you don’t have the answer to. Sometimes it’s because your past experiences never put you in a specific scenario or maybe because you are still early in your career. You’re not expected to know everything and have an answer ready.
A major red flag for an interviewer is when they notice you’ve answered a question that you’re unsure of. It tells the interviewer that you lack intentionality and are willing to jump to a conclusion without knowing the answer. But, unfortunately, this also signals that you may be willing to jump to incorrect design solutions.
It’s okay to say you don’t have an answer to their question. But, in these moments, speak to how you would go about finding the answer. Would you conduct research? Would you ask clarification questions? Would you try something new? Again, it’s better to speak to how you learn than to answer haphazardly.
Another tactic is to reframe their question to an experience you’ve had that is similar and still gives them the signal they’re after. An example is perhaps they’re asking about a time when there was conflict on your team, and you’ve never experienced conflict as they described. So instead, reframe their question and speak to how you overcome conflict in other ways.
You’re Interviewing the Company Too
The panel of judges assesses if you’re a good fit for the role you’ve applied for. You should also assess if the company and role are a good fit for you too. You should be interviewing the company just as much as they’re interviewing you. These are the factors to consider before accepting a job offer from the company.
- Is the company a place where you will thrive?
- Are there opportunities to learn and grow?
- Do you believe you will have a positive impact on the company?
- Is the team healthy and excited for you to join?
- Does the company mission align with you?
- Does the team’s design philosophy align with yours?
- Would you consider working at this company for more than five years?
- Would this company be a place you’re proud to tell your friends about?
- Is the compensation package attractive to you?
- And so on.
Notice that all of these questions are self-centered. The answers to these questions should align with who you are and what you’re looking for in your next role. If any of the answers to these questions are deal-breakers, consider declining the job offer.
General Don’ts
I want to keep this section short. So, let’s just dive into a bullet point list. Bada-bing, bada-boom:
- Don’t be late. Do I need to explain this one?
- Don’t lie. Duh.
- Don’t be a stalker. If you get a list of who’s interviewing you before the interview loop, don’t look up personal details about the interviewers and use them as ice breakers. It’s just creepy. I know from experience. It sets an uncomfortable tone for the remainder of the interview.
- Don’t be negative. Maybe you’re having a bad day, or another interviewer’s questions probed too deeply. Take a moment to reset and refresh if you need, but don’t be a downer.
- Don’t name-drop. Your personal connections have little bearing on whether you’ll get the job unless that person submitted a referral.
- Don’t forget to ask questions. Interviewers will ask you if you have questions at the end of the session. So make sure to have questions prepared.
- Don’t belittle your own work. For example, maybe the project is older, or you dislike the project. Keep those types of comments to yourself.
- Don’t ramble. It’s okay if you’re detailed but keep the talking on-target.
- Don’t forget to be you. Bring your authentic self to the interview. Not some idealized version of yourself.
After the Interview Loop
Congrats on making it through the entire product design interview loop. That’s no small feat. You’ve done something amazing, and you should celebrate. So, let’s crack open a bottle for you. Cheers! Regardless of getting the job or not, you should feel accomplished. The loop was the most difficult part of your job hunt.
The panel of judges will typically meet within five business days to discuss how your interview loop went. This period is known as the debriefing period. You should expect to hear very little from the company during this time. You may get the occasional check-in from the recruiter, but other than that, it’s radio silence for five business days.
Behind the Scenes
The panel of judges will meet to compare their notes. They were keeping close tabs on the six-axis of your product thinking, interaction design, visual design, intentionality, drive, and self-awareness. Each time you demonstrated one of these signals, they took a note. They also gauged how strong or weak you were for each axis, and this is what the primary conversation will be about during the debrief.
The debrief is a conversation between all of the judges. Some will advocate for you, while others will oppose you. It’s a structured debate and not just a series of boxes they’re checking off. There may have been mixed signals during different sessions of the loop. These are also moments of discussion during the debrief.
The outcome of the debrief is a hiring decision. Should they extend a job offer to you or not? For most companies, the decision needs to be unanimous before they consider extending an offer. However, in the moments of disagreement, some judges will go above and beyond to sway the opposers by pitching their confidence in you. This sometimes leads to judges changing their minds.
If they decide to extend an offer, there is one last conversation to overcome. Hiring managers and interview leads will discuss the level at which they should hire you. For example, should they hire you as a junior, mid, senior, or a principal designer? Your background will determine the outcome of the leveling conversation and not your current job title. This conversation will also include a discussion of whether or not you’ll need a coach to help you succeed. The company may assign a mentor if they believe you’ll need the help within your first ninety days. It’s a positive thing to have a design buddy because the company is invested in your success once they’ve decided to hire you.
When to Check In
In the rare case that you haven’t heard from your recruiter within five business days, it’s okay to check in with them. You can reasonably expect them to be responsive to you within 48 hours of checking in. Any company worth applying to will not ghost you, but sometimes people slip through the interview loop cracks. Send a polite email nudging the recruiter. If you still don’t hear back, then you can try calling them.
Handling Rejection
Rejection is part of the interviewing process. You should expect to be rejected from all interviews. Setting your expectations this way will reduce the sting when you hear back from the company, and it’s a rejection call. It’s a bummer but simply part of the process. I’ve experienced four types of rejection:
- “It’s a “no” for now.” This type of rejection comes from a lack of experience. The company saw potential but wanted to see you grow more before they were willing to hire you. Once you’ve gathered enough relevant experience, try applying for another role later on.
- “It’s the wrong role.” This type of rejection comes from applying to design roles that don’t match your skillset. As a result, you may be asked to interview for another role that’s a better match later on.
- “Nope. Never.” This type of rejection comes from a lack of self-awareness. You may be considered a “brilliant asshole.” This rejection stings the worst because it’s personal.
- Ghosted. The final type of rejection is painful too. It’s when the company doesn’t care enough about you to communicate your rejection properly. They simply avoid your emails and calls. The silver lining here is this is a major red flag and is a sign of toxic culture. If they didn’t care enough to contact you, imagine all the other things the company doesn’t care about. Maybe it’s for the best that you were rejected.
Asking for Feedback
So you’ve been rejected, and you want to know why. Unfortunately, in almost all cases, the company will not provide feedback about your interview. It’s a company policy to keep interview notes private. I’m sure it has to do with legal reasons or optics or something. Maybe it’s because the interviewer’s notes are brutally honest and might hurt to hear. I personally don’t know why. That said, it’s not unheard of to get feedback, and there’s no harm in asking. So just ask and see if they’ll provide you with feedback.
Offer Stage
The final conversation you have before joining the company is one about compensation and your start date. Your offer letter cannot be extended to you until you’ve negotiated and agreed on your compensation package. The package is your base salary and benefits combined. This conversation is candid, and if you’re uncomfortable with money, do your research and buckle up.
Apparently, my son’s switched to playing Roblox now and asked to purchase “Robux.” Am I supposed to know what that means? Oh no, am I getting “old?”
How to Negotiate
You need to do your research before having a conversation about your compensation. First, have a firm grasp of your current yearly compensation and how that maps to the industry standard for the role. Next, you need to know your cost of living and your personal worth. Finally, you need to know what other designers make at that company. There are many resources online to help you collect this kind of compensation information. Your goal is to have a reasonable compensation range in mind before negotiating.
The recruiter will ask you for your total compensation figure. If it’s above the budget for that role, the recruiter will bluntly tell you. You can then propose a lower number. My recommendation is to start with your highest figure and walk back from there. Eventually, you’ll arrive at a number the recruiter feels comfortable pitching to their leadership. I’ve personally never had more than one round of negotiations. If you do, though, be flexible. The last thing you want to do is fumble at the finish line.
How to Decline an Offer
Numbers don’t always work out. Since the compensation budget for the role is never shared with you, it’s hard to know if the company can pay what you’re worth. I’ve personally experienced this twice in my career. I proposed a compensation number, and the recruiter couldn’t come close to what I was asking for in compensation. You can’t strongarm a recruiter to give you more money. There is only so much budget for the role they’re hiring for. Or maybe it’s not about money. Maybe you discovered through the interviewing process that the company doesn’t align with your core beliefs. Regardless, you have to decline the offer.
Here’s how to decline the offer:
- Quickly. Contact the recruiter at your earliest convenience. That way, they can line up another candidate for the role.
- Politely. Be direct and polite about why you’re declining the role. Don’t make it personal or burn bridges. You may get another chance with the company someday.
- Provide feedback. If you’re feeling courageous, give the recruiter the feedback they need to improve the process.
How to Accept an Offer
First, you must sign the offer letter. Once you’ve signed, it’s time to celebrate. My personal style is to stand up from my computer and begin dancing while screaming at the top of my lungs. But you do you.
Here, let me ask my son how to do a Fortnite dance for you. He just informed me that Fortnite isn’t cool anymore. Ok, let’s move on. I’m not cool anymore.
This article is insanely long because there are so many things to consider and demonstrate while you’re interviewing at FAANG companies. It’s not easy to be hired at one of these companies as a designer. Thousands of designers are applying for the same role as you. If you’ve internalized this article and applied the learnings from it, you’ll have a significantly better chance of getting hired. I know this because I’ve interviewed hundreds of designers throughout my career as well as been interviewed by every FAANG company, except Apple. Sigh. One day Apple…
My son asked if I’d ever work at Roblox? “Would that make me cool again?” He quickly replied, “nope.” Gotta love him.