Although it can be said that recruitment processes are tailor-made to pick the best, essentially every organization has a standard procedure to do the same. Interviews are tables you can turn for or against yourself and when it comes to an interview with an excellent tech- startup, like square, an interview provides the platform to perfectly square it down to a wholesome future. If you are reading through this, you are without a doubt already familiar with Square and are probably here just for some Square interview tips. Let us know Square Interview Questions and Sample questions.
Square has a robust four-stage recruitment process. The initial screening checks whether to go ahead or not with a particular candidate based on his/her candidature and future aspirations. The next round involves discussing past experiences and ensuring that the candidate fits the role and organization. After these rigorous technical interviews sift the list of applicants further.
In technical interviews, a candidate is expected to demonstrate his/ her skillset through Pair Programming, case studies, portfolios, or project presentations. Lastly, the candidate faces a panel interview in which questions are posed to assess the soft skills of the candidate. Square’s interview series aims not only on evaluating the candidate technically but also on ensuring that the candidate fits the Square Work Culture
What to expect?
Whether you are someone who has got a call from Square or maybe just applied at Square your prelim preparatory step is to know the company’s recruitment process. As Square puts on its website, its recruitment process is transparent, mindful, and collaborative and they look for individuals who are passionate about contributing to economic growth.
Square bifurcates its recruitment process into the following four steps:
1: Interview with a recruiter: As this is the initial screening, questions are more focused on ensuring the credibility of the resume and getting to know the overall personality and suitability of the candidate. This is the step in which you expect to be asked the famous why questions. So “Why Square”, “Why the switch? Etc.
2: Interview with the Team: The second round of interviews is more specific in terms of questions revolving around the previous positions held or projects done and checking whether the candidate fits in Square’s work culture and ethics. The interviewer will delve deeper to gauge the abilities and skills of the person.
3: Technical Assessments: The third round of the interview is also technical like the second round, just a little more intriguing. It sometimes involves a series of interviews.
Depending upon the department and position applied for, the candidate may have to present a previously accomplished project, present a newly designed project, walk through a case study, or pair programming with a teammate.
Although the candidate is marked for his skillset throughout the length of the recruitment process, it is here that the candidate gets a fair chance to showcase his/ her skills well and hence gives better insights to the organization.
4: Panel Interview: This is the final round of the Square interview. Questions are mostly targeted at assessing the soft skills of the candidate. In this round, the organization ensures whether the meritorious candidate is suitable for a specific position or not.
Sample Square Interview Questions:
Now that you are aware of the recruitment process, you must scan through the sample questions expected at various levels:
| Initial Screening | Introduce yourself. Briefly describe your work experience. Can you tell us about your current/ previous role? Why are you leaving your current job? What do you know about Square? Why are you choosing Square as your next best? Where do you envision yourself in the next five to ten years? Which of your strengths will help you in this role? What are your weaknesses? Which strategies will you use to overcome the weaknesses? What does your day usually look like? Which programming languages do you know well? How will your previous roles enable you in this role? |
| Interview with teams | Describe a project of which you are proud. Why? Which technologically advanced product have you recently used? What makes you feel that it is technologically advanced? Tell us about any innovative idea that you have had and what did you do about it. Did you succeed in implementing it? Help me understand how you are analytically minded. What gives Square an edge over its competitors? What are the network protocols to follow while building scalable payment systems? How would you change the physical checkout on the Square Terminal? How would you improve Square? Design a product to help people find the best doctor nearby. |
| Technical Assessment | Present your portfolio. Present the project you have prepared. Find two missing numbers from an unsorted set of numbers ranging from 1 to N with exactly two missing numbers. How will you introduce a new investment scheme in universities? Design a mobile application geared towards small-scale industries. |
| Panel Interview | What are the similarities and differences between your experiences and the values of Square? Tell us more about your ideal boss. How well do you take criticism? Tell us about one such situation. Tell us about a time when you had to persuade someone about an idea and how did you manage it? Tell us about a conflict that you managed. Tell us about a time when you had to finish a project with a teammate you didn’t get along with. What is your most significant accomplishment? Why? |
Prep tips:
- Start preparing for the interview as soon as possible.
- Do extensive research about Square and the role applying for.
- Know yourself and pitch well.
- Read, practice, and do whatever it takes to polish your skills and knowledge base.
- Brainstorm and practice commonly asked behavioral questions.
FAQ’s
- Why does Square use Pair Programming in interviews?
Square uses Pair Programming in interviews because it believes that the best way to check the suitability of a candidate is to observe, monitor or work with him/ her while he/she is working on a problem.
- Is it better to go for pair programming in an interview or an individual led project presentation?
It is always better to go for the option you feel most confident in. Whilst in the individual presentation one can master the content and present it in the best manner, Pair Programming enables showcasing collaborative skills along with technical skills.
