This is mostly happening thanks to the "Frontend Hiring Route" where engineers typically just need to show they know how to use React (eg. FB, Apple) - but I've heard (mind you, a few years ago) of people squeezing in Google Deepmind just by knowing the topic they're supposed to work on (shocking!) instead of having to spend months practicing puzzles.
I suspect we'll see this trend getting stronger with AI and companies requiring a lower number of developers with more specialised knowledge
Am I seeing things / too hopeful?
FB: I currently work here. LC style questions but with a frontend twist. Best believe if you don’t have a strong handle on algorithms, data structures and Javascript, you won’t stand a chance.
Google: Phone screen is leetcode, during onsite they ask two leetcode questions & 1 frontend focused one.
Apple: Phone screen is Leetcode, onsite is a combination of leetcode & frontend.
I actually find frontend interviewers to be harder because you have to have a strong handle on frontend technology + data structures and algorithms, as opposed to non-frontend roles where just doing leetcode is all you need.
Also, there is the very wrong notion among people ignorant about the frontend engineering world like yourself that assume all it entails is simply knowing how to use React & CSS. It is more complex than that, you’d have to know about the DOM tree, know how to manipulate it, think about accessibility & performance. It can become complex very fast. Most of these interviews create Leetcode style questions from DOM tree manipulation & they are harder to reason about.
The coding questions were novel (so no needing to memorize tons of existing questions) and non trivial, but did NOT require obscure algorithmic knowledge or esoteric math. They wanted lots of working code, and for you to explain your thought process. So I was definitely happy I practiced on hackerrank and leet code, and think anyone would still need to practice coding under some time pressure, but it was a nice experience.
Contrast that to Microsoft interviews where they would just straight up ask me "code a way to find the shortest path in a graph". "Merge two streams in optimal time". just asking for me to implement code straight from Algorithm textbooks and hackerrank questions.
> Does this role require implementing two-dimensional dynamic programming problems? Seems like this is very poor benchmark for finding the right people to accomplish your business goals.
Anecdotally it works well filtering out mindless bullshit companies. The kind of companies that operate with a school of fish strategy rather than stand out and think different.
What position? No coding test for a research scientist is more plausible than no coding test for a software engineer.