I applied online. The process took 4 months. I interviewed at Octopus Energy (Londres, Inglaterra) in Feb 2024
Interview
Disorganised, from the first call to the final interview it took about 4 months, between each step there wasn't any communication, I generally had a sense that they didn't care too much about the time and effort you were putting in.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Many questions about the take home test I worked on.
I applied online. I interviewed at Octopus Energy (Berlín) in Apr 2024
Interview
I applied through the company's career page, and the entire interview process comprised four rounds.
First Round: This was a phone interview with the company's internal recruiter. The recruiter was articulate and listened attentively to everything I had to say. I was asked to provide a brief introduction, discuss my current job and company, explain why I wanted to switch jobs and join Octopus Energy, and describe my experience with the tech stack.
Second Round: The following day, the recruiter called to invite me to the second round, which took place four days later. This was an online interview via Google Meet with two Senior Software Engineers. The session was more of a discussion aimed at understanding my background, experience, and career aspirations. I introduced myself and explained a project I was particularly proud of. Both interviewers were polite and listened carefully. They asked a few cultural fit questions, inquired about my teamwork approach, and how I handle conflicts. That same evening, the recruiter informed me that I had progressed to the third round.
Third Round: This was an offline tech challenge. The task was to implement a Django application that processes files, extracts information, and stores it in a database. I was given several days to complete the challenge but was advised to spend no more than 3-4 hours on it to minimize the burden on applicants. Any incomplete tasks needed to be documented in a README file.
Final Round: A few days after submitting the tech challenge, I was invited to the final round of interviews. This round involved two Senior/Lead Software Engineers. They asked questions about the tech challenge and general queries relevant to a Python/Django backend engineer. There were no algorithm questions, online coding tasks, or trick questions, and the interviewers did not intend to grill the candidate. I will list some of the specific questions in a later section.
I believe I received a conditional offer the next day (or perhaps two days later). The recruiter was highly diligent and managed the entire process with exceptional care and efficiency.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Database Model Selection: I was asked why I chose a particular database model, especially in terms of normalization. The interviewers were interested in understanding my reasoning behind the database structure and how it ensures data integrity and efficiency.
Database Transactions: The interviewers inquired about how well I had considered database transactions. They wanted to know if I had implemented strategies to ensure data consistency and handle potential errors effectively.
Design Approach: Questions were also asked about my approach to the tech challenge and why I chose certain design patterns. While they did not require explanations of specific terminology or design patterns (as it is assumed that a senior role would be familiar with these concepts), the focus was on understanding my problem-solving process and the rationale behind my decisions.
I applied online. The process took 6 weeks. I interviewed at Octopus Energy (Tokio) in Feb 2024
Interview
I applied via Octopus Energy website. The whole process took one and half month.
1- Code Challenge: I requested to create a project for an API integration.
2- Behavioral Interview: We talked about my past experiences. I was asked some questions about them.
3- Technical Interview (System Design): I received the problem before the interview. It is open-ended so I can't say it is easy or hard. It was a friendly chat about this problem.
4- Offer Call
People were very friendly. I think code challenge review took a bit longer but it's understandable when we consider huge number of applicants.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
First interview was not technical so I can say that I mostly talked about my past experiences and questions related with it.
On the second interview (system design), we discussed a technical problem (kind of cloud communication issues) which i got the details before the interview.