Most of the translation is from reverse-interview, supplemented by other netizens.

Intended usage

  • Check which questions interest you
  • Check out what you can find online for yourself
  • If you can’t find it, ask the interviewer

Never try to ask every question on this list.

Keep in mind that things are flexible and organizational restructuring will often occur. Having a bug tracking system does not guarantee efficient bug handling. CI/CD (Continuous Integration System) also does not necessarily guarantee a short delivery time.

Duties and responsibilities

  • What are the plans or regulations for on-call? Do you get paid for working overtime when you are on duty or have problems?
  • What is my daily job?
  • What is the ratio of junior to senior engineers on the team? (Do you plan to change?)
  • What is the orientation like?
  • What is the approximate ratio of individual development activities to step-by-step work?
  • What are the expected/core working hours per day?
  • How successful is this job in your opinion?
  • Am I adding or replacing a colleague who left? Is there any technical debt to be paid? (zh)
  • Which project team did you work on after joining? Was the project newly established or existing? (zh)

technology

  • What is the common technology stack used by the company?
  • How do you use the source control system?
  • How do you test your code?
  • How do you track bugs?
  • How do you integrate and deploy code changes? Is it continuous integration and continuous deployment?
  • Is your infrastructure setup method in the version management system? Or is it coded?
  • What does the workflow look like from planning to completing a task?
  • How do you prepare for failover?
  • Is there a standard development environment? Is it mandatory?
  • How long will it take you to set up a local test environment for your product? (min/hr/day)
  • How long does it take you to respond to security issues in your code or dependencies?
  • Do all developers have access to local administrator privileges on their computers?
  • Does the company have technology sharing activities? If so, how often? (zh)
  • How is your database versioned? (zh)
  • Are business requirements documented? How is it recorded? (zh)

team

  • How is the work organized?
  • How does intra-team/inter-team communication usually look?
  • How to deal with different opinions?
  • Who sets the priorities/plans?
  • What happens if it’s returned? (” This can’t be done in the time I expect. “)
  • What kind of meetings are held every week?
  • What is the product/service planning? (n Monday release/continuous deployment/multiple release streams /…)
  • Production environment accident how to do? Is there a culture that analyzes problems without criticizing people?
  • Are there teams experiencing challenges that have yet to be addressed?
  • What is the structure and composition of the company’s technical team? (useful)
  • Is there a meeting/travel budget? What are the rules for use?
  • What is the promotion process? How are requirements/expectations communicated?
  • Are technical and management career paths separate?
  • What are the current status or views on diversity recruitment?
  • Are there company-level learning resources available? Like e-book subscriptions or online courses?
  • Is there a budget for certification?
  • How mature is the company? (Early looking for direction/content work/maintenance /…)
  • Can I contribute to open source projects? Does it need approval?
  • Is there a non-compete or non-disclosure agreement to sign?
  • What do you think are the gaps in the culture?
  • Can you tell me a story about a company that was in a bad situation and how it was handled?

business

  • Are you making a profit now?
  • If not, how long will it take?
  • How is the company funded? Who influences or designates high-level initiatives or direction?
  • How do you make money?
  • What’s stopping you from earning more money?
  • What do you see as your competitive advantage?

Work remotely

  • What is the ratio of telecommuting to office work?
  • Does the company provide hardware? How about the renewal plan?
  • Can additional accessories and furnishings be purchased through the company? Is there a budget for this?
  • Do you have a budget for co-working or Internet access?
  • How often do I have to go to the office?
  • Are company meeting rooms always ready for video conferencing?

Office work

  • What is the layout of the office? (Open/cubicle/independent office)
  • Are there support/marketing/other teams that need a lot of calls working next to my team?

treatment

  • How will the bonus, if any, be distributed?
  • What percentage of bonuses, if any, have usually been paid in the past few years?
  • Do you have five insurances and one housing fund or other retirement benefits? If yes, does the company have accompanying commercial insurance?

paid leave

  • How long is your paid vacation?
  • Are sick leave and personal leave separate or together?
  • Can I use my vacation time in advance? So the vacation period is negative?
  • What is the renewal strategy for the holidays? That is, whether unused vacation days can roll over to the next cycle
  • What is the child care policy?
  • What is the unpaid leave policy?