In a standard interview process, you’ll be asked about specific projects you’ve worked on and then pressed for details. These questions are often asked in the following form:

  1. Find an item on your resume and ask you to introduce it directly
  2. Remind yourself of the most shareable (large/difficult/technical/memorable) projects you’ve ever worked on
  3. If you were asked to design XX systems/projects, how would you go about it

These general project-related questions can reveal a candidate’s technical, business, and architectural skills, as well as identify whether the candidate has actually worked on a project, and uncover soft skills.

Here’s how to answer these questions.

How do you describe a project you worked on

According to section 1 of your resume, you need to select items that are technically difficult and detailed. To introduce a specific project (including combing a project), follow the following steps.

1. Introduce the project background

Why was this project done? What was the big environmental background at the beginning? Or is it a program designed to solve a problem? Background is very important. If you do not know the background and listen to a conclusive project at the beginning, the interviewer may have a misunderstanding of the technical selection and technical difficulty of the project, and even doubt whether there is really such a project.

Backbone: Our project uses “backbone” as its backbone, and then… “Backbone” has been a relatively new technology three or four years ago, now there will be a better choice, if you do not introduce the time background of the project, the interviewer will definitely be confused.

2. Assume roles

What are the roles of the people involved in the project, and what is their role in it?

Here candidates tend to dig holes for themselves, such as exaggerating their role in the project. Generally speaking, when the interviewer asks for details, if the candidate can explain the details or technical solutions clearly and clearly, no matter he has really done it or done it with others, or he has seriously thought about it, it can reflect the candidate’s technical level and technical vision. The premise is still to do a reasonable amount of “beautification” within the scope of your pocket.

3. Final results and benefits

In the process of project introduction, the final results and benefits of the project should be introduced, such as how long the project finally went online after development, how the data after the launch is, whether it meets expectations, or brings new problems, and how to remedy the problems.

4. Finish what you start: Project summary and reflection

There is a summary and reflection, there will be progress. After the project is finished, there will often be some experience and experience, this time should tell the interviewer. The following list can be used to comb through the summary and reflection of the project:

  • What are the gains?
  • Are there any deficiencies and how to improve them?
  • Is it transferable?

For example, I introduced a project in detail before, which seemed to have no problems at that time, but now there is a better solution, the candidate should mention here: Now it seems that the project still has problems with XX, I can solve it by THE way of XX.

Another example: when doing this project, you can transfer your outstanding points to other projects and use them directly. From small code fragments to large solutions, there will always be something worth summarizing and sorting out.

After the introduction of the project summary section, you can also guide the interviewer to think in their own areas of expertise. For example, if the question mentioned above is about the project, you can guide the areas that you are good at, even if the interviewer didn’t ask you, you introduced them.

Following the above four-paragraph introduction to the project will give the interviewer the impression that the candidate has a clear mind, understanding and thoughts of the project as a whole, and is able to reflect on the benefits and problems of the project.

What if you haven’t done a big project before

For a fresh graduate looking for a job, or for an interviewer asking you to design a large project, the candidate may not have similar experience. Don’t start with “I wouldn’t, didn’t do it”.

If you really don’t have a project to talk about, then you can mention your daily practice project, or see a solution article/book, a project mentioned, express your thoughts.

If the interviewer asks you to design a project/system, follow these steps:

  1. Have you come across similar projects
  2. Have you ever read a similar solution
  3. Can the project be disassembled? Can you find the project you have done that can be used during the disassembly process
  4. What is the problem solved by the project, and is there a better solution to this kind of problem

In short, remember not to give up a “do not know, have not done”, every question is an opportunity to show their own.

Follow-up on project details and technical points

During the presentation process, the interviewer may ask for technical details, so when preparing for the interview, we should try to clarify the technical details, including:

  1. Technical selection scheme: the situation faced by technical selection at that time
  2. Technical solution: The reason for the final determination of a technical solution, for example: why Vue was used instead of React?
  3. Project data and revenue
  4. The hardest part of the project
  5. Pits encountered: pits encountered using a framework

Generally speaking, the following factors need to be considered when selecting the technology:

  1. Time: What are the hot technologies now, why are they hot, what problems have they solved, and can they be used in my project?
  2. Teams: What is the individual or team’s familiarity with a particular technology, and what is the cost of learning?
  3. Business requirements: What are the requirements and can they be quickly addressed using existing mature solutions/libraries?
  4. Maintenance costs: Can a solution no longer cover coverage?

The data and revenue encountered in the project should be well tracked to ensure the authenticity and credibility of the data. In addition, the interviewer may ask a lot of questions, especially some popular technologies (Vue, React, webpack), most teams are using, so be sure to prepare in advance.

summary

This section introduces how to answer questions about projects in the interview. The project should be introduced in four paragraphs, including background, role, benefits and effects, and summary and reflection.

As you prepare for this interview, review and organize your projects using what I’ve always advocated as a mind map.