Technical Case Questions

Written By Wendy-Lynn

While Google has reduced its use of the technical interview, other product companies have started picking it up.

While coaching the technical interview is not my strength, I do know how to prepare for it.

You need to be able to walk through how to design products from an execution standpoint. You will be given a prompt and you need to walk through how you would approach the technical design.

Key things you will be graded on are covered here. The TL;DR: Focus on the bottleneck.

Sample Questions:

  • Designing a URL Shortening service like TinyURL

  • Designing Instagram

  • Designing Dropbox

  • Designing Facebook Messenger

  • Designing Twitter

  • Designing Youtube or Netflix

  • Designing Typeahead Suggestion

  • Designing Twitter Search

  • Designing a Web Crawler

  • Designing Facebook’s Newsfeed

  • Designing Yelp or Nearby Friends

  • Designing Uber backend

  • Design Ticketmaster

  • Design a system for last-mile delivery.

  • Design a voice-driven system like Amazon Alexa.

  • Design Alexa enabled treadmill.

Alternatively

There are also algorithm-type questions.

  • Design a playlist based on one song.

  • Recommendation engine showing most recent first vs. most relevant first.

  • What is the accuracy required on a security camera before you can start using it to let people in.

Wendy-Lynn https://intrico.io
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