🎯 Process Overview

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📌 Roles Available:

• Software Engineer
• Technical Analyst

💡 Tip: For candidates less particular about the role, applying for the Technical Analyst position might offer a strategic advantage due to fewer applicants.

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📌 Stages:

• Online Assessment
• Technical Interviews: 2 rounds
• HR/Strategic Interviews: 3 rounds

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📝 Online Assessment

The test was *straightforward, with *over 150 candidates passing this stage.

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🛠 Interview Rounds

🔹 Technical Interview — Round 1

📝 Questions:

• Introduction:

  • Tell me about yourself.

• Puzzles:

  • A modified version of the “Banana Desert” puzzle (referenced from GeeksforGeeks).

• OOP Concepts:

  • Expected thorough explanation of OOP pillars demonstrated in a project.
  • Traffic Management System Design: Asked to design a traffic light system using OOP principles.
  • Specific question: How to manage road IDs when multiple roads merge at an intersection.

• Data Structures:

  • Tasked with finding the second largest element in an array or stream with multiple modifications after each solution.
  • Solutions proposed:
    • Brute-force traversal (O(N²) complexity).
    • Sorting the array.
    • Using a data structure like a priority queue or set.
    • Finding max and second max in O(N) time.
    • After further modifications, proposed an ordered set or *priority-based data structure solution, which the interviewer seemed *unfamiliar with, potentially impacting the outcome.

• Project Questions:

  • Detailed questions based on the projects listed in my resume.

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🔹 Technical Interview — Round 2 (Business Strategy Focus)

📝 Scenario:

• Comparison between two companies: One being an *established, sales-driven company, and the other a *newer, fast-growing company excelling in social media.
• Industry: Kids’ one-stop solution sector.
• Data: Provided in a PDF for analysis.

📝 Questions:

• SWOT Analysis: (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) on the given data.
• Growth Strategy: Suggestions on increasing revenue and visibility for the established company.

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🔹 HR Interview — Round 3

👤 Interviewer: Head of Pune Office ⏳ Duration: A brief 5-minute interview due to time constraints.

📝 Questions:

• Personal Introduction.
• Flexibility towards work responsibilities.
• Experience in college clubs and prior internships.

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❌ Verdict:

• Outcome: Not selected.

🔍 Reflection and Advice:

• Company Preference: Ion seems to value candidates with *strong business acumen and adaptability, focusing more on *street smarts than solely technical skills.
• Self-Reflection: More preparation on applying OOP principles to real-world systems could have enhanced my responses.
• Quick thinking and situational awareness are essential for such roles.