Module 05 · Question Bank
Interview Question Banks by Function
Pick the function you're hiring for. Every question comes with the signal it's designed to produce — ask fewer questions, go deeper, and write the evidence down before you form a view.
Founding and early engineers. Test build velocity, judgement and product instinct.
19 questions
Technical Judgement
Walk me through the architecture of something you built end-to-end. Where would it break first at 10x?
Signal Depth of ownership vs. having been near the work.
Follow up What would you do differently if you rebuilt it today?
Tell me about a technical decision you made quickly with incomplete information.
Signal Pragmatism over perfectionism.
When have you deliberately chosen the 'worse' technical option?
Signal Understanding that speed is a feature at seed stage.
How do you decide something is good enough to ship?
Signal Quality bar calibration relative to stage.
Product Mindedness
Tell me about a time you changed the spec because you understood the user better than the spec did.
Signal Product-minded engineer, not a ticket-taker.
What's a feature you argued against building?
Signal Willingness to push back with reasoning.
How do you get in front of users?
Signal Whether user contact is a habit or a novelty.
Breadth & Speed
What's outside your core stack that you've had to pick up and ship in?
Signal Generalist range — essential in the first ten engineers.
What's the fastest you've gone from idea to something real users touched?
Signal Bias to build.
Follow up What did you cut to get there?
Show me something you built outside work.
Signal Intrinsic drive. Absence isn't disqualifying — the reaction to the question is telling.
Motivation & Context
Walk me through the last two moves you made and why you made them.
Signal Decision-making pattern. Are they running toward something or away from something?
Follow up What would have kept you at the previous company?
What are you optimising for in your next role — and what are you willing to trade for it?
Signal Real priorities and honesty about trade-offs.
What does a great first 90 days look like for you here?
Signal Whether they've thought concretely about the role or are just interviewing broadly.
Tell me about a time you worked with far less structure than you'd have liked.
Signal Early-stage tolerance for ambiguity.
Follow up What structure did you create yourself?
Ownership & Grit
Tell me about something you shipped or fixed that nobody asked you to do.
Signal Agency. The single strongest early-stage predictor.
Follow up How did you decide it was worth your time?
Describe a project that failed. What was your part in it?
Signal Self-awareness vs. blame-shifting. Listen for 'I' before 'we'.
What's the hardest week you've had at work and what did you do?
Signal Resilience and behaviour under pressure — not just the story.
Collaboration & Feedback
Tell me about a time you disagreed with a decision after it was made.
Signal Disagree-and-commit behaviour.
What's the most useful piece of critical feedback you've received?
Signal Coachability. Vague answers usually mean they've never really heard any.
Follow up What did you change afterwards?
How to use these well
- Pick 5–7 questions per interview, not 20. Depth beats coverage.
- Map each question to a requirement on your scorecard before the call.
- Ask the same core questions of every candidate for the role — that's what makes scores comparable.
- Always follow up with “what did you personally do?” and “what happened next?”.
- Write evidence during the interview. Score afterwards.
- Avoid questions that touch protected characteristics — see the Diversity, Bias & Legal Basics guide.