At this stage, the candidate has passed the first interview and is moving on to the technical task, which could be either:
Since Shape Up principles and a product engineer mindset are important to the companies you work with, we must ensure candidates demonstrate:
✅ MVP-first thinking—focusing on tradeoffs rather than over-engineering.
✅ Clear, structured communication—both in documentation (homework) and thinking out loud (live coding).
✅ Product engineering mindset—understanding why they are building something, not just how.
✅ Engagement & collaboration—interviewers should see them as a potential team member, not just a coder.
Provide a Technical Task Prep Pack
Once the prep pack is shared, schedule a quick call to:
✅ Ensure they fully understand expectations.
✅ Test their approach before they start coding.
✅ Prevent common mistakes that could lead to rejection.
📞 Key Questions to Ask in the Prep Call
| Area | Test Question | ✅ Good Answer (Low Risk) | ❌ Bad Answer (High Risk) | ⚠️ Risk Factor to Mitigate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task Clarity | Can you walk me through what you’re expected to do? | "I need to build a simple version of X, focusing on Y tradeoffs. They’ll assess my decision-making and code quality." | "I’m just going to build the best version I can." | 🚨 Over-engineering—may fail due to excessive complexity. |
| Tradeoff Thinking | How will you decide what to prioritize? | "I’ll focus on delivering a working MVP first, then consider optimizations." | "I’ll build everything I can to show my skills." | 🚨 Doesn’t prioritize—risks not completing the task on time. |
| Submission Strategy | How will you present your work? | "I’ll document my choices in a README, explaining my tradeoffs." | "I’ll just submit the code and let them figure it out." | 🚨 Poor communication—might hurt evaluation. |
| Live Coding Readiness | How will you approach the real-time task? | "I’ll clarify assumptions, break the problem into steps, and talk through my thought process." | "I’ll try to code as fast as possible." | 🚨 Fails to engage with the interviewer. |