Google Respins Its Hiring Process For World Class Employees

An anonymous reader writes "Maybe you've been intrigued about working at Google (video), but unfortunately you slept through some of those economics classes way back in college. And you wouldn't know how to begin figuring out how many fish there are in the Great Lakes. Relax; Google has decided that GPAs and test scores are pretty much useless for evaluating candidates, except (as a weak indicator) for fresh college graduates. And they've apparently retired brain teasers as an interview screening device (though that's up for debate). SVP Laszlo Beck admitted to the New York Times that an internal evaluation of the effectiveness of its interview process produced sobering results: 'We looked at tens of thousands of interviews, and everyone who had done the interviews and what they scored the candidate, and how that person ultimately performed in their job. We found zero relationship. It's a complete random mess.' This sounds similar to criticism of Google's hiring process occasionally levied by outsiders. Beck says Google also isn't convinced of the efficacy of big data in judging the merits of employees either for individual contributor or leadership roles, although they haven't given up on it either." This has led TechCrunch to declare that the technical interview will soon be dead.

Puzzles are pointless

[SnapperHead]

I have walked out of job interviews where they asked nothing but puzzles. I solve technical challenges and write code. If you really have trouble determining how many toasters you can use to cook 50 pancakes, guess what. I am not the right person for you. If you are looking for someone who can code their ass off, I am the right person.

I have interviewed hundreds of candidates over the years. I have been the hiring manager a few times and never once pulled the puzzle bullshit. I have found the best indicator in the world is to just casually bullshit about technology. You can very quickly find someones strengths, weaknesses and if they are full of it. In a casual chat, people let their guard down and you get a look in.

The data is masked by the hiring delays

[Antique Geekmeister]

I have colleagues and friends who've gone through Google hiring in the last 2 years. I've seen excellent personnel whom I've recommended not get the interview for 3 months, finally be interviewed because it turned out they were still looking to upgrade their position, and finally given job offers _over one month_ after the interview. Every single one of them found another role in the meantime, including promotions in their old company as new budgets were made to include a new position for them. The people who are still available after such a lengthy process are those who've effectively paid aa quite large Google hiring tax, of either weeks unemployed or of months at a lower salary.. While Google pays well, they don't pay well enough for people to pay such a task on the mere _hope_ of getting the Google role.

I've also seen some excellent personnel rejected because they applied for a specific role, which had requirements not in the job description and for which they were not made an offer. They were then unable to apply their existing interview results for roles which better suited their skills and which were not published as available when they applied to Google. They had to start over from the beginning. Coupled with the long hiring time for Google, and these personnel were long gone by the time they were made an offer or even interviewed for the second role.