No matter what stage of your career you are in, interviewing can be and almost always is an intimidating process. Here at Campfire Analytics, we try to employ a different approach; evaluate the candidate holistically and as a person instead of focusing on the bullet points on their resume. Here is an overview of what that looks like in practice:
Stage 1: Resumes
Like most organizations, the very first step in evaluating candidates is to review their resume. At this stage, we are trying to determine two primary factors:
Does the candidate have the skills and experiences to make an impact in the short term (1-3 months)? And;
Do they have the capacity and passion to acquire those skills in the future?
When assessing potential for immediate impact, we look to see if a candidate has professional experience working with any of the tools and technologies we commonly use. For future impact, we look to see how a candidate has demonstrated their passion for analytics and the steps they have taken to grow their skillset.
With that said, we recognize that a resume never fully represents what a candidate brings to the table and so we’d much rather have a conversation with the candidate.
Stage 2: Phone Screen
The next step is a simple phone screen. We try to keep this casual; it is an opportunity for us to learn about the candidate’s skills and experience in detail. Additionally, it is an opportunity for us to learn about what is most important to the candidate when evaluating their next role and organization. Finally, it also gives candidates a chance to learn more about Campfire Analytics and our culture.
This step is as important for the candidate as it is for us. It is meant to ensure that our expectations are aligned and to minimize any surprises that might arise down the road!
Stage 3: Take-Home Assignment
For our analysts, the next step is a basic take-home data exercise. The objective of this exercise is two-fold. It provides a glimpse of a candidate’s problem solving and critical thinking skills and the methodologies they use to generate insights with an unfamiliar data set.
Additionally, it provides candidates a very basic perspective on the minimum role requirements. Once a candidate has submitted their completed data exercise, they will be asked to present their analysis to one of our team leads. This helps us assess the candidate’s communication skills.
Stage 4: Interview Loop
The final stage of our evaluation process is the Interview Loop. During this time, we ask our candidates to meet with senior leaders across our three primary disciplines: Analyst, Data Engineer, and Dev. This allows us to evaluate a candidate on how they would perform within their specific role, but also their ability to engage with other roles.
In the past, our preference has been to conduct these interviews in person, as there is something to be said about face-to-face interaction. However, since the start of the pandemic, we have done our loops entirely over teleconference.
If you’re interested for a first-person perspective, take a look at this blog post from 2019!
Do you have any questions about interviewing with us? Want to learn more about positions we’re actively recruiting for? Head on over to our careers page, or reach out to info@campfireanalytics.com.