It’s the eternal conundrum of a hiring manager – you have to hire for every single position in the company without any first-hand experience. How to do it? If you can have a trusted programmer sit in on the interview, that’s ideal, of course. But what if you’re hiring your first programmer? Or what if you’re hiring a freelancer? Or what if company policy dictates that you’re the only person allowed to do the interviewing? Well, in that case, you need some helpful advice and your innate bullshit detector. We questioned programmers and hiring managers and compiled a list of dos and don’ts. Here are some things to ask when interviewing programmers:

Past Experience

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Ask the programmer about the biggest disaster of his career so far, and how he handled it. Did he come in at midnight to fix the code? Was he unaware of the problem until someone brought it up? Did someone else handle it?  According to our programmer sources, “Anyone worth their salt has caused a major meltdown. If they say they haven’t, they’re lying. Or very, very green.” Pushing a code with bugs in it isn’t necessarily bad. Not handling it well is bad.

As usual, your biggest asset is not knowing the field, it is knowing people. Asking about career disasters can be uncomfortable, but if the interviewee is experienced and honest then she won’t have a problem telling you about it, and you will get an idea of how she handles mishaps. Even if you don’t understand what the disaster was or how it was fixed, you should be able to tell how honest she’s being and how she handles being put on the spot.

Communication

Ask about the favorite project he’s worked on, or the biggest – but make sure he knows that you’re a non-techie before you ask. Prefacing the question with a disclaimer of non-techness warns the interviewee that he needs to explain the project in a language you will understand. If he can’t convey the gist of the project so that you understand, or does not realize that he should, then you might have a communication problem down the road. After all, in most situations, your programmers don’t work in a bubble. If they are not able to communicate difficult concepts in understandable language, will they be able to explain roadblocks in a project, or advise the company on the best way to execute an idea? This may not apply if you are hiring a freelancer to do some well-delineated work, but if you are hiring staff, or if you are hiring for an extended, nebulous project, the ability to turn something complicated into something simple is vital.

Teams vs. Individual

Does she like to work in teams, or on individual projects? Both answers are valid, but it will give you some insight into the person you’re thinking of hiring. What are your needs? If you’re hiring a freelancer to do a project for you, you are going to want someone comfortable working without the direction and support of a team.  And if you are hiring someone who will be working with an existing team of programmers, you will want someone who loves the collaborative atmosphere. Of course, many programmers are happy to do both, which is ideal.

Another question in this vein applies to the kind of work she prefers. Does she like to develop her own projects, or does she prefer to improve the existing code base? Once again, both answers are valid, and some programmers will be equally comfortable with both. This question merely helps you pin down the person you’re interviewing, so that you can decide if he has the skills you’re looking for.

Passion

            An important facet of any employee is passion. What does he do outside of work? For programmers, ask what side projects, if any, he is working on. Is he excited to talk about it? Does he offer up details? If he starts talking about his pet project and shares his frustrations, his successes, how long it is taking, how it came about, etc., then the project is clearly on his mind and he’s invested in it. Although it may seem contradictory to want your potential employee to be invested in an outside project, it shows dedication and enthusiasm that is vital in a programmer. You want someone who is self-motivated. Someone who works hard a personal project with no guarantee of money or success. Chances are, a person with that kind of passion will approach the company projects with the same level of involvement and commitment.

            One thing to keep your ears open for is something called GitHub. It’s a good sign if they have code on there, because it means they are involved in programming in their personal life and are interested in sharing with and learning from the community. You can also have someone look up your interviewee’s projects on GitHub to see how active he is and how many people have starred his projects. Of course, that course of action would be most informative with a programmer standing by to interpret.

Talent

            The final suggestion is an obvious one, but it bears mentioning: talent. For the most part, the only way you will be able to tell is by asking for references and contacting past employers. And don’t worry if they have a long list of former employers! In a programmer, that doesn’t necessarily indicate fickleness or inability to hold a job. Their skills are in high demand, so they are less hesitant about leaving jobs that are not paying enough or aren’t challenging enough. If their references say that they were conscientious and skilled, that is all that matters.

If you already have programmers in your company, ask for a sample of the interviewees work to pass on. It may not mean anything to you, but if you’re actually considering this person, it can’t hurt to get that extra confirmation from someone who knows.

Avoid

            Two major interviewing “nos” are puzzles and the five-year question. Everyone we spoke to (as well as Google’s hiring managers) says that puzzles only demonstrate how calm they are in interviews, or whether or not the programmer has encountered the puzzle before. It has no bearing on their work or talent.

And where do you see yourself in five years? Well, you should only ask that if you want an honest answer. As we mentioned previously, programmers are not desperate for work. It’s a labor market for them. Their skills are in high demand, they know it, and they will only stay if they are given proper incentive. So if you ask them where they see themselves in five years, the honest answer will probably be “Here, if you pay me enough and the work is enjoyable. If not, somewhere else.” After all, most programmers can get a bigger pay jump by finding a new job than by sticking with the company raises. However, most interviewees will not be so blunt (and rightly so). Instead of asking about her five-year plan, an alternative would be to ask why she left the previous company. Once again, only ask if you want an honest answer: financial reasons, lack of interesting projects, etc.

It’s a lot to wrap your head around, but hopefully some of these tips will come in handy during your next interview. And, as always, it’s all about your b.s. detector. You can use these questions as starting points, but your instincts will serve you best. Cockiness, bullshitting, evasiveness, and all the other warning signals apply just as much here as they do in any other interview.

Of course, tips directly from the front lines are always a great resource. How do you deal with interviewing someone in a technical field? Are there any great questions that we’ve missed? What about questions you wished you’d asked?