Ask Programming Superstars: Do you have to interview?

If you're at the superstar level you don't generally apply for a job, you get headhunted. Typically someone who you know will be used to reach out to you to setup an informal conversation to test interest which is generally followed up with meetings with other senior staff, etc. before a formal offer is made.<p>References are generally taken much more seriously at that level as well (i.e. taken from mutual acquaintances who have incentives to be open).

Yes, for two reasons. Almost all bad hires come from some exception to the hiring rules. If everyone goes through the same process it limits that risk. I wouldn't want to work at a company that didn't seriously and exhaustively vet candidates.<p>The second reason is cultural fit. You're going to be spending a lot of time with these people, you want to make sure you're going to get along.

Absolutely, many people don't realize that interviews are a two way street. Not only is the company interviewing you to assess your technical skills and cultural fit, but you are interviewing the company as well to see whether you'd like to work there.<p>If you're a "superstar" (I don't really like that term), you want to work with other talented individuals. So if the interview process is non-existent or overly easy, it sends a negative signal about the "potential" quality of other hires.

I've often wondered what it was like, for example, for Google to recruit Eric Brewer. I would imagine it was something similar to <a href="http://www.quora.com/How-Was-X-Recruited-to-Facebook/How-did-Yishan-Wong-get-recruited-to-Facebook" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/How-Was-X-Recruited-to-Facebook/How-did...</a> , but it could really be anything.

I've only been on one job interview where the hiring manager looked at my github account prior to the interview