Bowtie Life Insurance Interview Q &A
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Interview
Q: How should I prepare for my interview?
A: Here at Bowtie, we are not trying to find the “best” applicant but rather the applicant who is the best fit for the role. We highly recommend reading the job description one more time before the interview to refresh your memory on the responsibility and qualification of the role that you applied for.
Additionally, you should also think of a project that is related to the job that you applied for/that you are most proud of.
Lastly, we do not believe that interview is unidirectional. Instead, we want to make sure the position fit with your interest and passion. You can read about Bowtie’s mission and values here and experience from existing employees here. Please also feel free to prepare some questions in advance to ask our interviewer (it can be related to the role, the supervisor, the team, or the company in general).
Q: When should I get a decision after the interview?
A: We try our best to give prompt feedback/updates. Given the number of candidates, we are processing it takes time for us to have a thorough discussion and to make a decision.
We usually make a decision two weeks after the interview. If you don’t hear back from us in two weeks, please contact your interviewer to ask for an update of decision.
Q: What quality are you looking for in an applicant?
A: We want someone who is genuinely interested in the job and good at solving challenging problems. We don’t expect you to be an “expert” on day 1 (in most cases), but we expect you to know how to find answers to your questions and efficiently utilize the resources (including new technology, Google, and people around you). We also want you to be self-motivated and self-initiated instead of passively waiting for “orders” from your supervisor. In other words, we want thinkers, not soldiers.
Last but not least, we are looking for people who appreciate and demonstrate our 4 values — Live your purpose, Own it, Unbreakable, & Be Kind.
Q: What will be my growth trajectory at Bowtie?
A: We truly value talent, and we want you to stay in the company. We don’t think everyone is fit or interested in becoming a manager. Some people like focusing more on technical things, and that’s perfectly fine! Therefore, we offer both manager and non-manager tracks, so you don’t feel forced to become a manager just to move to the next level.
Furthermore, we offer internal transfer to another position if the work of the other team sparks your interest — we have actuary-turned-software-engineers, lawyer-turned-product-manager, etc.. on our team!
Q: How does our interview process look like?
A: 1. A phone interview or one-way interview (share about the company, get to know your expectation and available time)
2. Technical assessment or technical interview
3. Peer or manager interview (share about our culture and working style of each other)
4. Interview with senior management (in some cases)
Technical Interview (software engineer only)
Q: How does Bowtie’s tech interview look like?
A: First, you will complete the take-home assignment. We do not have a time limit for completing the take-home assignment, but we recommend spending around no more than 8 hours on it. In the next stage, you will meet face-to-face with our software engineers. First, they will review your take-home assignment with you and learn more about your thought process. Even if you didn’t reach the optimal solution, we value how you approach the problem. Therefore, please share as much detail as possible with us. In addition to the review, you will be asked to work on a pair programming exercise that consists of 1 or 2 algorithm questions. Our software engineer will rate your performance on the following criteria: optimal solution, errors & edge cases handling, coding style (e.g., naming convention), proper testing, debug skill, and your answer to our follow-up questions.
Q: Will I be allowed to use Google or IDE?
A: You are allowed to use any resources for your take-home assignment (including Google and any IDE). In fact, we encourage you to take advantage of Google since it is a must-know skill for any successful programmer. We also encourage you to discuss how you use Google efficiently during the face-to-face interview. Since we also want to assess your basic programming skill, we do not expect you to use Google or IDE during your pair-programming exercise. We expect you to have a firm grasp of the basic syntax with your preferred programming language (you are allowed to choose which programming language you wish to use). However, we do not want to over-penalize for forgetting syntax, so please ask our permission to use Google if you are truly stuck (usually, we will allow it).
One-way Interview
Q: What do I do if I don’t have a google account?
A: Create a google account. It is free.
Q: What do I do if google meet does not work?
A: We are not affiliated with Google, so we can’t help with any technical problem with Google Meet itself. You can first try to resolve the issue by googling the issue. If you still cannot solve the issue, please try recording the meeting using another platform. You may google what other platforms support recording video. Please make sure the format can be previewed on Google Drive (we cannot download the video for security purposes)
Q: What do I do if I can’t upload the video to Google Drive?
A: Try to google the problem first. If you still cannot upload the video to Google Drive, we accept public YouTube, Vimeo, or any other video platforms’ videos as long as it is PUBLIC. Also, you need to make sure we can view the video online on whatever platform you choose (we cannot download the video for security purposes)
