Navigating the Journey to Becoming A Katalis

How to ace the hiring processes in a tech company.

By Ralitza Passileva and Marudi Tri Subakti

Developing groundbreaking products that profoundly impact lives requires a band of exceptional trailblazers committed to innovation. At DKatalis, we consistently raise our recruitment standards to align with our ambitious vision.

While our recruitment process may not substantially deviate from those of other tech companies (though we’ve heard some amusing feedback about the difficulty of our tests), we actively seek unique qualities in prospective candidates. Whether it’s technical expertise that aligns with our ever-evolving tech stacks or those distinctive, intangible personal traits, our selection process is selective.

This article serves as your guiding light, offering insights into navigating the DKatalis hiring process, and it can also be invaluable when pursuing opportunities in other tech companies.

The Process, in A Nutshell

In a nutshell, here are the five stages you’ll undergo when applying for a position at DKatalis tech team:

1. HR Interview

In this stage, you are going to have a discussion with our Talent Acquisition (TA) team. But please note that this might not be a ‘normal interview.’ At DKatalis, our TA will give you an overview of the organization, from our product and impact to the culture. You are also expected to share your career aspiration, which will help us understand your career path and whether our people team can help you reach it.

2. Take-Home Test

After the interview, our TA will send you the take-home test that challenges your technical capability. Each role has different tests based on the skillset needed for each function. Usually, the take-home test will take around 5 days to complete. FYI, our take-home test is tricky, but our TA team is open to answering any questions if you have difficulties while doing the assignment.

3. Technical Interview

Once our hiring managers review your submitted take-home test, we will invite you to a technical interview with our engineering team. They will inquire about details related to your submission and other questions about the position you applied to. This interview is very informal — so please relax and enjoy the conversation.

4. Bar Raiser

In this stage, you will meet with the leaders from the team you’re applying for –data, product, or engineering. The leaders will have a brief technical discussion before deeply delving into your career aspirations. This stage is also a space for you to ask as many questions as you have about the organization and working culture within, so use it wisely :)

5. Offering

Yay, you are 1 step closer to becoming a Katalis! If our hiring managers are keen to get you on board, they will tell the TA team, and all you have to do is wait for them to reach out with an offering package.

Areas of Focus

During the process, just like what other recruiters and hiring panels do, we will assess you based on the following:

Product understanding

Do you know the products DKatalis is developing? While you might have been aware of our major involvement in developing the Jago App, DKatalis also builds a human resources management solution called PX. Hence, experience within these fields will be advantageous.

Familiarity with the stacks

DKatalis tech team is well-versed with [stacks]. However, our engineers maintain a keen eye on emerging tools and technologies. When these tools promise to enhance productivity and efficiency, our team eagerly incorporates them into our expanding toolkit. If you are an expert in specific tools, consider it a valuable asset when joining our team!

Culture fit

As mentioned, creating pioneering products often requires unconventional approaches. That’s why, starting in early 2022, the DKatalis tech team adopted the Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS) framework. You can dive into the details of LeSS by exploring our [LeSS series link]. Furthermore, we don’t separate the engineering team into frontend and backend teams; they are encouraged to master both ends instead.

The Common Pitfalls

According to our data, most candidates struggle during the take-home test and technical interview, and for various reasons. Let’s comb through each of them carefully and discover how to overcome them.

Cheating

While checking the assignment, sometimes our hiring team notices that the candidate is cheating. Some areas can give away their sneakiness, such as the naming of the assignment, some codes that contain someone else’s name, similarity with another candidate’s submissions, and others. The subsequent interview will also reveal whether your submission comes from an honest work or a copy of someone else’s. Sometimes, we asked the candidate to do code pairing, and they could not explain their own code. Please be sure that you submit your honest work.

Rushing while working on the assignment

We usually give candidates 3 to 5 days to finish their take-home assignments. However, if you need more time to design a better solution for the assignment, don’t hesitate to ask for an extension so you don’t have to work in a rush.

Be passive during the interview

When talking with our engineering hiring panel, you might find them rich with unusual questions or statements. Don’t be afraid, they are just very eager to challenge your point of view! For us, an interview is not a mere step to cross in a hiring process –we treat it as an opportunity to learn new perspectives.

So, don’t just passively agree and say ‘yes’ to their statements. If you have a different opinion, raise it to them or challenge them back!

Acing The Stages

Now that you know what pitfalls to avoid, let’s explore some preparations to help you. Marudi Subakti, one of our senior engineers who is also part of the hiring panel, breaks down practical tips for each stage and thoroughly explains how they are useful.

Assignment stage

Good points if the assignment focuses on these points:

1. Have good documentation of your code. Most of the time, candidates don’t have proper documentation of the code they submitted, or when they do, it doesn’t properly explain how their code works. It might be insignificant, but it has a big impact.
2. Test your code. One thing that our Chief Technology Officer emphasizes all the time is that codes must be testable. Unit test is the strongest gatekeeper for any behavioral change in the code. However, not all candidates from both junior and senior levels have this mindset instilled. Ensure that you conduct end-to-end testing for your code, even though it’s only for an assignment test.
3. Pay attention to code readability. Ensure that the assessors can understand your code easily. Aside from syntax, pay attention to the project structure.

Technical interview

1. Be honest. Assessors will dig deeper into the code you’ve submitted, and don’t think you can fool them easily. We usually check on how candidates accommodate the request, whether they can complete it on the spot, and if the structure is as clean and structured as seen in the assignment stage. We often find candidates whose take-home assignment passes with flying colors but can’t perform well in this stage.
2. Explain your work. In a pair coding session, the ability to articulate your code’s logic and function is a strong plus point.
3. Embrace feedback. As we review your assignment together, the hiring panelists may provide some feedback. At DKatalis, we value the culture of constructive feedback among team members, with the aim of pushing everyone towards growth. Candidates who welcome and respond positively to feedback signal a potential cultural fit within the organization.

Bar Raiser

In this stage, you will get the opportunity to directly discuss things with the leaders. Of course, you have to remember that this is still part of the hiring process, so they will look out and expect you to possess certain qualities, skills, and potential.

1. You will face many questions about your personality, aiming to assess your fit within the organization’s culture. Candidates often go above and beyond to present themselves exceptionally well, but our leaders, with around 15 years of experience in their respective fields, will know when a candidate is not being honest. So, just be genuine with your answers.
2. Expect some technical discussion, though less intricate than in the technical interview, so remain at ease.
3. Take the initiative and ask questions. The opportunity to have a deep and extensive discussion with the leaders is rare due to their busy schedules. So, don’t hesitate to inquire about anything that will help you better understand the organization. You would want to understand what you are getting into before deciding to join.

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