25 Tech Interview Questions to Identify Top Technical Talent

Technical positions have recently become multifunctional, and companies need employees who not only master a wide range of tools but also are problem-solvers, fit into the company culture, and possess the psychological qualities to handle any situation. This makes asking the right questions crucial to finding the best candidate in the pool.

We know that asking technical—and now behavioral—questions to tech professionals can be challenging. However, in this guide, you'll find the 25 best questions to ask your candidates to help you spot the rock star among them.

What is a Technical Interview?

Essentially, a tech interview is a job interview, as we all know, but designed explicitly for roles within an organization's tech department. It is commonly used to recruit for engineering, programming, computer science, or software roles, like a new Python or SQL back-end or front-end developer.

Nonetheless, here are other tech positions you might fill:

• Data Scientist
• Machine Learning Engineer
• Blockchain Developer
• Cybersecurity Specialist
• Cloud Architect

However, these interviews go beyond determining if someone has mastered the necessary tools. 

Technical interviews are also designed to assess problem-solving abilities, communication skills, and the candidate's ability to think under pressure, giving you a peek into how they would approach real-world challenges in a typical work environment.

25 Technical Interview Questions and Answers

These 25 well-prepared questions—covering behavioral aspects, tools and education, and purely technical topics—are essential to finding the best candidate. 

These interview questions for tech roles range from understanding their motivation to join your team to how they navigate complex challenges.

Behavioral Interview Questions

These questions assess problem-solving, communication, teamwork, and adaptability, giving you a clearer picture of whether the candidate aligns with your company culture and has the personal qualities needed to excel in the role.

1. How would you overcome the challenge of working with a difficult co-worker on a team project?

This question aims to evaluate the candidates' interpersonal skills, conflict resolution, and teamwork approach. It helps to determine if they align with the company culture and how effectively they can collaborate within a team, manage tensions, and contribute positively to a project. 

2. How do you handle tight deadlines?

Evaluating the candidates' time management, prioritization skills, and ability to perform under pressure is crucial in understanding how they handle tight deadlines in a constantly changing, competitive, and high-pressure environment.

3. How would you deal with conflict with a co-worker?

This question considers the candidates' conflict resolution skills and ability to maintain a cooperative work environment, even in times of direct—even personal—conflict.

4. Can you provide an example of a complex project you completed and explain how you managed it?

The candidates' answers should show you how they are set to handle complex projects, proving their project management skills, strategic thinking, and adaptability. They should also highlight how they plan, execute, and solve the problem on the go throughout the project lifecycle, which is vital in the tech world.

5. Can you describe a challenging technical project you worked on and how you overcame obstacles?

This question evaluates the candidates' technical expertise, problem-solving skills, resilience, and ability to adapt themselves and their team while they're surfing new challenges. 

6. How have you handled a situation where you were under a lot of pressure to solve a technical problem?

Understanding the candidates' approach to high-pressure situations reveals their resilience and ability to stay composed while tackling challenges. This insight is crucial for roles where quick thinking and problem-solving directly impact project outcomes and team efficiency.

Questions About Skills and Education

Now that we have covered the best behavioral questions and you have a good idea of how candidates behave in different situations, the next step is evaluating their personal incentives to continuously update their skills and knowledge since the tech world evolves and updates almost exponentially.

7. How do you keep your tech skills up to date?

The goal here is to consider how candidates stay updated in a rapidly changing tech landscape and whether they proactively look out for learning opportunities on their own or even have taken their past role education allocation for new courses or to gain knowledge in a new set of skills.

8.  What technical certification do you have?

Determine the candidate’s technical qualifications and commitment to advancing their knowledge through formal training and certifications.

9. How did your education and past tech experience prepare you for this particular role?

Explore how their academic background and career path have shaped the skills and mindset they bring to the table, ensuring alignment with the job’s requirements.

10. What's your favorite piece of technology, and why?

This question helps you understand what triggers the candidates' interest in technology. The candidates' answer can show their personal interests, how they evaluate tools, and how their passion aligns with your team’s tech stack.

Questions About Tech

We've reached the section that might be the most challenging if you're a Hiring Manager: tackling the technical questions directly related to the position you're trying to fill—and perhaps the main reason you're here.

But worry not; these right questions will help you assess the candidates' technical expertise and ensure it aligns perfectly with the role's requirements. Let's start. 

11. How do you go about deploying a product?

Experience firsthand the candidates' deployment approach offers insight into their organizational skills, technical expertise, and ability to handle challenges during a critical project delivery phase.

PS: Deployment is the process of making a product or service operational in a live environment and outside the test scenarios.

Sample answer: «I ensure all systems are fully tested and documented before deployment. Coordination with the team is key so everyone is on the same page. During deployment, I monitor performance closely and troubleshoot issues immediately to ensure minimal downtime and a seamless rollout. Afterward, I review the process for improvements.»

12. How do you keep up with the latest advancements in AI, and what experience do you have working with AI tools?

Understand the candidate's enthusiasm for staying updated on AI trends and their hands-on experience with relevant tools, showcasing their adaptability in this fast-evolving field.

Sample answer: «I subscribe to AI newsletters, attend webinars, and participate in online forums like Reddit’s AI communities. I’ve worked with tools like TensorFlow and ChatGPT APIs, leveraging them for predictive analytics and customer interaction enhancements.»

13. What is your favorite software development methodology, and why?

Explore how candidates use digital resources to stay productive, solve problems, and enhance their technical skills.

Sample answer: «I frequently use Stack Overflow for troubleshooting, GitHub for collaborative coding, and Coursera for continuous learning. These platforms help me stay sharp and solve challenges effectively.»

14. What kinds of tech projects do you like to work on when you have free time?

Get insight into the candidate’s personal interests, technical creativity, and passion for experimenting with new technologies outside their professional responsibilities.

Sample answer: «I enjoy building small IoT devices. Recently, I worked on a Raspberry Pi project to automate my home lighting system. It gave me a chance to explore Python and deepen my understanding of hardware-software integration.»

15. What is your troubleshooting process?

Evaluate the candidate’s logical thinking, problem-solving skills, and ability to resolve technical issues systematically.

Sample answer: «I start by isolating the issue, gathering as much data as possible. I then list potential causes, testing one hypothesis at a time. Once the problem is resolved, I document the solution to streamline future troubleshooting.»

16. What design software do you know? Which do you prefer?

Understanding the candidates' experience with design software spotlights their technical toolkit when choosing tools that align with project goals or even if they learned a new tool to help deliver a project.

Sample answer: «I'm familiar with design software like Figma, Sketch, and Adobe. I love using Figma for its collaborative and scalability features, which make teamwork seamless during UI/UX projects.»

17. How do you think recent changes in technology will affect your work?

Assess how the candidate stays informed about technological shifts and their ability to adapt their skills and strategies to future challenges.

Sample answer: «With the rise of AI and automation, I foresee focusing more on leveraging these tools to optimize workflows. In my field, staying adaptive and continuously learning new technologies like generative AI will be crucial for remaining competitive.»

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18. Can you share a specific project you worked on and feel proud about?

Highlight the candidate’s ability to take ownership of impactful projects and showcase their problem-solving, collaboration, and technical expertise.

Sample answer: «I led a project to migrate a legacy system to a cloud-based solution, reducing downtime by 30%. This required close collaboration with stakeholders and technical creativity to ensure a seamless transition and minimal disruption.»

19. How do you decide between building a custom solution or using third-party tools?

This question evaluates the candidates' ability to consider the trade-offs between cost, efficiency, and flexibility when choosing a technical solution in a pressure environment.

Sample answer: «I assess project needs, timeline, and budget. For example, if speed is critical, I use third-party tools, but I build custom solutions for unique requirements or long-term scalability.»

20. How do you describe a technical concept to a non-technical person?

Evaluate the candidates' ability to effectively communicate complex technical concepts in a way that non-technical team members or stakeholders can easily understand. This skill is vital for collaboration across departments.

Sample answer: «I focus on breaking the concept into relatable analogies or everyday examples.»

21. What approach would you take when dealing with a challenging technical problem?

This question helps uncover the candidates' thought process and how they tackle challenging technical issues, offering insight into their creativity.

Sample answer: «I begin by isolating the problem to identify its root cause. I then break the issue into smaller parts and tackle each systematically using available tools or resources. Collaboration is also key—I consult with team members to gather diverse perspectives. Once resolved, I document the solution to streamline similar processes in the future.»

22. How do you monitor and maintain system uptime?

Understand how the candidate ensures system reliability, proactively prevents outages, and responds to critical incidents. This question also reveals their experience with monitoring tools, incident response protocols, and strategies for maintaining high availability in production environments.

Sample answer: «I use monitoring tools like Prometheus and Grafana to track system performance and set up alerts for anomalies. For uptime, I implement redundancy and failover strategies to minimize downtime.»

23. What’s your experience with cloud platforms like AWS or Azure?

Assess the candidate's hands-on experience with cloud platforms, ability to leverage cloud services for scalability and efficiency, and understanding of deployment processes. This question provides insights into their expertise in managing cloud-based infrastructures.

Sample answer: «I’ve worked extensively with AWS, using EC2 for compute power, S3 for storage, and Lambda for serverless functions. I also set up CI/CD pipelines using CodePipeline for automated deployments.»

24. What's your experience with APIs? Have you built or integrated any?

Understanding the prospects' experience with APIs offers insights into their technical expertise in integrating or creating systems that enhance functionality and user experience.

PS: APIs, or Application Program Interfaces, are software intermediaries that allow applications to communicate.

Sample answer: «I've built REST APIs for internal tools and integrated third-party APIs like Stripe and Google Maps in my past roles. I always focus on documenting everything to ensure smooth functionality of any integration.»

25. Describe how you've handled data security or privacy challenges in a past project

This question will help you estimate the candidates' experience with data protection, understanding of compliance requirements, and ability to manage security risks in real-world scenarios proactively.

Sample answer: «In a project involving sensitive customer information, or any type of data really, I implemented encryption for both data at rest and in transit. I also ensured compliance with GDPR by conducting regular audits, addressing vulnerabilities, and training to maintain high-security standards.»

What is the Importance of Conducting Technical Interviews?

Technical interviews are vital for finding the perfect—yes, technical—candidate for an open position, whether a software engineer, computer scientist, or cybersecurity specialist.

However, let's remember that the most important thing—and not the only one—isn't getting the correct answer to the questions you ask the job seekers, but evaluating how they handle situational or behavioral questions to get a sense of how they've responded to stressful situations, times when they might not have had the necessary knowledge but learned it on the go.

Some companies limit their hiring process to posting job descriptions on their website or LinkedIn. To truly identify the best tech talent, go beyond generic interview questions: craft role-specific technical questions and thoroughly assess candidates' hard and soft skills throughout the interview stages.

Tips to Prepare for a Technical Interview

Organizing the perfect tech interview requires a well-structured approach and cooperation between your tech team—especially when, most likely, you are not a tech expert and want to hire a backend developer for your tech company. 

Start by defining the essential technical skills and qualities needed for the role. Work with a tech team member to craft questions that assess these skills and ensure the interview includes real-life scenarios to evaluate problem-solving and communication abilities.

Here are some useful tips to prepare for a technical interview:

1. Define critical skills and qualities needed: identify the technical and soft skills essential for the position.
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2. Prepare questions with expert input: Ask a tech expert on your team to help you create relevant questions specific to the position.
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3. Familiarize yourself with frequently asked technical questions: As a recruiter, understanding what you're asking and its relevance to the role can help the conversation flow more naturally. This approach prevents misunderstandings and allows you to bring out the best in the candidate, even in a high-pressure situation.
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4. Draft a solid interview structure: Design a clear agenda that includes dedicated time for technical, behavioral, and situational questions. Reserve a conclusion phase for open discussion, where both you and the candidate can address any questions about the role, the hiring process, or specific wins.
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5. Clarify your expectations for problem-solving abilities: be prepared to articulate what logical reasoning and problem-solving skills are essential for the role and how they'll be assessed.
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FAQs

Can a technical interview be conducted virtually?

Yes, virtual platforms like Lupa make it easy to assess candidates remotely with tools for real-time coding challenges.

Is a technical interview difficult? 

Technical interviews can be challenging for non-tech hiring managers, but they are not impossible with the right questions, as they test both situation questions and specific technical knowledge.

What should I prepare for a tech interview?

Prepare a structured plan with clear questions, role-specific scenarios, and a way to evaluate both technical and soft skills.

What is the STAR method in interviewing?

The STAR method is a structured response format to discuss Situations, Tasks, Actions, and Results. Make sure to ask your candidates to follow this process.  

How should candidates answer behavioral interview questions about teamwork?

Candidates should highlight specific examples of collaboration, conflict resolution, and achieving goals as team members or managers.

Need help with your interview process? Connect with Lupa. We're experts in tech roles and can help you hire in LatAm to find the perfect fit for your team.