I will start with the technical recruiter. She was phenomenal. From our first call to her sharing the unfortunate news that I wasn't being offered a job she was there for me 100% of the way. I can't think of a recruiter who was as responsive, genuinely invested in my story and making sure there was a fit for me at Earnest. As the interview process progressed I got to meet my potential co-workers, and again I was taken back by how ridiculously nice and genuine they came across. The process was not cookie-cutter and formulaic except for a full day on-site interview, but their emphasis on culture fit stuck me as a differentiator. So few companies care about whether an engineer will be someone who adopts the culture and believes in the work they do, but this was not the case of Earnest. There was some technical section to the day onsite interview, but it was a nice blend of practical questions and architecture discussion rather than obscure CS trivia. From my brief glimpse into the company, it was the best culture I had seen at a company and although I was bummed to not get the job I really wish them the best. They have smart people, and a culture that fosters a very community feel spanning across the company.

The hiring process was very similar to how I would interview candidates if I were putting together a company. All the steps of the interview process were made clear to me ahead of time, which I appreciated very much. The recruiter is such a nice and responsive person; she played a significant role in making the entire process seamless and professional. When I did the on-site interview, everybody I met was very genuine and honest. The process was unique in the sense that it had a very fluid conversational tone yet at the same time it was an excellent way to assess my knowledge and personality. I think the company cares about hiring people who are culturally a good fit, which I think is necessary if you want to maintain a good environment in the office. I also liked the fact that they emphasize good code design and testing, which you could demonstrate in the battleship game.