9y
Appreciate the feedback; we are familiar with critiques of both HackerRank and non-technical problem solvers. We have a culture of testing and iterating, are doing the same with our recruiting tools, and will do continue to test and tweak over time.
To explain our view, we don’t use HackerRank as a core diligence tool, but rather as a minimum qualifier. A huge problem for start-ups is to bring candidates through multiple rounds of developer interviews (where I'm sure you discussed SQL, microservice architecture, etc), only to find actual coding ability/speed sorely lacking. While undoubtedly a cost to candidates, HackerRank is proving to reduce these misses, giving considerable time back to our developers so they can focus on what they love to do the most.
On non-technical problem-solving questions, we’re a team not only of talented specialists, but also of folks with high, generally-applicable, mental motors. This may or may not bear on one’s ability to knock out great code, but we’ve found it leads to better cultural fit.
Understand the critique about any given teaser, though of course it’s not about the right answer, but rather how one structures or frames the problem to work through it. One such non-technical question across many rounds of technical discussions does not seem imprudent. Finally, I'll note that such a question is not dispositive; it is only one data point among many when we develop a perspective on a talented candidate.
Thanks again for your time and interest.