What NOT to do in Barclay's Capital Interview (IT profile)

Note: Applies to any non IT company offering an IT job for their in-house requirements.

Why I applied for this profile in this company is a topic which deserves a separate post itself. For now let us assume, without loss of generality, that:

a. I like/know coding

b. I need an internship/job

c. I need/want/like money

d. I am capable of sinking quite low for a, b and c

This post is for all those people who, WLOG, would like to apply to this company (or similar ones) in future for the assumed reasons (mainly c and d).

Anyway, so I applied for Barclay's Capital IIT Summer Internship Programme. I got shortlisted for the "Group Activities" which were held in Taj Bengal, Kolkata on 9th October, 2011. There were primarily two activities - Time management/Work prioritization and Case Study. Those who cleared this round have no clue what they did right. Universal advice would be not to dominate/fight/act-like-a-know-it-all. Do speak something, preferably something sensible (although what is 'sensible' to the assessors is again quite debatable).

None the less, the next day (10th) were the personal interviews. There were three panels - two of which (as we later found out) asked purely HR questions and the third mostly technical. Here are some general pointers -

1. There is no uniformity/set-agenda in the process, don't be fooled by their "we-want-people-passionate-about-technology" statements and the "IT-skills" section in the form. The lesser you know, the better. Brownie points if you have an irrelevant background like Geology/Civil/Mechanical.

2. Even if you know any programming languages, it would be better to pretend as if you don't. In any case, before the interview Google up stuff like "common interview HR questions" and mug up the best answers.

3. The perfect handshake - Do not under estimate the importance of the handshake. For all you know, it would be the deciding criterion. I am not an expert in handshakes but I am sure there are some tutorials on the web. Practice it with your friends. Take feedback about the warmth/firmness of your grip.

4. Practice sitting postures and facial expressions of awe/rumination/anticipation/excitement.

5. No matter how many times the hiring team stresses upon honesty, be prepared to lie/fake/hide-natural-reactions.

6. Be wide eyed most of the time and decently nervous. Don't give them even the slightest impression of confidence or ease.

7. Practice some guesstimation.

Now coming down to specifics of my own interview, the nuances of which, if studied and interpreted properly, can be really helpful to any one anxious to succeed in future. Not to mention that they are also quite entertaining.

Date - 10th October, 2011

Venue - Training and Placement Cell, IIT Kharagpur

Time - 10.45 am ( to 11.30 am)

Interviewers - Harsha Yale, Karen.

I am summoned to the room. I enter. I am taken aback by the hands forwarded in my direction, I realise it is for a handshake, I put my hands forward (rather clumsily, in hindsight), mentally trying to remember when was the last time I shook another persons hand [Don'ts #1: Do not let your mind wander off even for a moment. Stay focused!]

I sit down. The interview begins with some chit chat about the previous day's group activities. I reply normally, what I thought about it etc. [Don'ts #2: Chit Chat! :O! Nothing is chit chat in an interview. Don't tell them the same things you told your friends last night.]

Karen opens my CV, Harsha is already ready with my BarCap application form. Karen, without even looking at my CV, asks me a vague question (and I quote) "Have you been part of any team?". I am wondering why doesn't she just look down at the bold headings in the section titled "Extra-Curricular Activities". [Don'ts #3: Do not raise eyebrows/give confused looks]. I reply that I was the Governor of Debating Society and I start explaining what I did in it etc. She kept cutting me with questions like "your contribution", "your duties" etc. [Don'ts #4: They don't care about the truth. Answers like these should be at the tip of your tongue, full of action words like achieved/ implemented/ contributed blah blah.] Anyway, after my explanation, Harsha asked me if I could do an extempore right there. I said ofcourse and he asked me to speak for and against the topic "Steve Jobs made this world a better place". I said whatever came to my mind.

Karen, again not even glancing at my CV kept on the table, asks me (again very vaguely) to tell her about anything challenging that I have done. "Projects you mean?" I ask [#3!]. I go ahead an explain my work at IIIT Hyderabad where I developed a search engine and recommendation system in Python. [#4!]

Harsha pitches in and starts questioning my decision to choose Python for the above project. He inquires about the pros and cons of the language, which I answer. I accept that the language is slow but my reasons were purely academic. He doesn't let it go. There is more discussion on it. Moving on, he asks me about the difference in C++ and Java. I choose to point out that C++ allows low-level system facilities while Java does not. After which I had to explain what these low level facilities were, going into pointers to manipulate memory etc. This was followed by some very simple questions about pointer arithmetic, which on answering lead to more complicated practical implications etc.

It is Karen's turn now and she finally looks down at my CV and of all the things, she chooses to ask me what versions of Windows and Linux I have used. [#3!] This prompts Harsha to ask me some Linux shell commands, two of which I didn't know and I say so.

Another vague one from Karen, "How do you find out what is happening in the world?". [#3!, however difficult it is]. "Umm, you mean like current events and news?", I try to understand the question. [Don'ts #5: Do not not jump at this opportunity into a whirlwind of how fanatically you follow the finance news etc]. I answer, "For specific updates, I use google alerts and for others I follow Yahoo News.", still not sure what this was leading to. [Don'ts #6: Do two level thinking and read the interviewers mind, answer accordingly!]. She asks me what I follow in the news. The Yahoo.com homepage flashes in my mind and I say, "umm, Sports, Hollywood and Bollywood gossip (with a silent '?' to convey does-it-matter?) [Don'ts #7: Do I really need to say it?]. Karen is not amused. Harsha smirks. In my mind, I thought it was a comic relief. [Don'ts #8: They don't like funny people]. Karen (finally) spells it out, "What do you know about the investment banking scene?". I give her a Aha!-So-ask-that! look and explain everything I had read up about the markets, the company's position in it. I explain some of the recent reforms introduced and how they would effect the investment banks etc. Harsha asks me to explain ring-fencing in particular, which I do (and in my head I do a pretty good job too!) [Don'ts #9: Don't evaluate yourself in your head, focus!]

Then comes a tricky one. "Why do you want to work in an IT department of an investment bank and not software companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple etc?". For the first time in the interview, I am forced to think. [Don'ts # I-lost-track-of-the-count: Think? :O Such questions are a golden opportunity to impress them and pledge your loyalty. Basically, lie with a straight face. Kiss their ass. Suck up to them. Whatever it takes.] I answer, rather honestly (and hence stupidly), "Those companies are for people who are crazy about their code." Mortified, Harsha asks, "So you mean to say you are not crazy about your code?". "I know it doesn't put me in the best light here, but yes, I am not. I mean I like coding but at the end of the day, I don't care who uses the code." (I am thinking, "Honesty - check, Forthrightness - check! Nailed it \m/". He is thinking, ":O Direct insult!".)

Karen clears her throat to speak. I turn to Karen, already with a tired oh-now-what look. [Don'ts #x: Don't let them see through you. Be as fake as possible.] As expected, she throws another bouncer at me, "Have you done anything new?". "Umm, I do a lot of new things. Most of which are written in my resume (gritted teeth, if only you would look!) like blah blah." She puts my CV aside implying I have to say something not written there. "Nothing which has any academic relevance", she clarifies. "Oh okay, Guitar? I learnt to play the guitar, actually I am still learning. It is fun." I smile. [Don'ts #x: Guitar? Seriously? They don't care. Should prepare some awe-inspiring speech about how you taught slum kids or how you saved a drowning man etc.]

Somewhere in the course of the interview I had said I like Math. Harsha brings it up. I confirm, "Yes I enjoy Math." Continuing in the same tone, he asks, "What do you know about Singapore?". "Related to Math?", I ask, thoroughly confused. [#3 and #6!]. He eggs me on, "Yes, anything you know about it." [#6. Math + Singapore? He expects you to give him some numbers! You don't understand? Join the club!] Finally he clarifies, "What do you think is the population of Singapore?". I say I don't know. [Don'ts #x: This is called Guesstimation. Don't say you don't know, just say some number confidently.] Anyway, he goes on asking about population of cities like Allahabad, Bangalore etc. When I do give him a number, he asks me, what would be the area of these cities. I give up. "Sorry, I am not able to visualise the cities in terms of square meters." [Don'ts #x: However much you would want to believe that statements like these convey good communication skills, according to them - they don't.]

Finally they ask my preference in terms of location and whether I would like to ask them anything. I ask something random about the project assigned to interns etc.

They get up.

I get up.

I shake their hands and leave.

Smiling, thinking it went quite well. [#9!]