Thank you for taking the time to interview with us and for your interest in the role! This prep guide will guide you through the steps of our hiring process. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to anyone on our team, we’re here to help! While this candidate experience is tailored to your role, please note that the process may be subject to change. We will contact you with any updates to notify you of any changes when and if they apply!
Interview steps
Screening Interview
A 30-minute conversation with someone from our Talent Acquisition Team to go over your qualifications, the position requirements, and to go over our operating principles.
Hiring Manager Interview
This will be a 45 to 60 minute video interview with the hiring manager for the role you're interviewing for. They will be doing a deep dive on your resume and skills. You can expect to discuss your career goals, as they are seeking to determine if you're a good fit for the role.
Team Interviews
Team interviews consist of 30-minute interviews. Generally, the interviews are in quick succession. These interviews are a way for the team to get to know more about your industry knowledge, background, and various projects you have worked on, and seek to determine your suitability for the role.
- Docker Interview (60 minutes): Please have the latest working Docker environment (including Docker Compose), and GitHub with 2FA enabled and installed and be ready to share your full screen for the entire interview. Ahead of this interview, please provide your Github alias so we can share a repo with you for us to work from. The session includes a coding challenge where AI use is allowed, followed by a short discussion section to talk through your solution and reasoning. We’re looking to understand how you solve problems, use your tools, and communicate your thinking.
- Stakeholder Interview (60 minutes): This interview is a way for the team to get to know more about your industry knowledge, background, various projects you have worked on, and seek to determine your suitability for the role.
- Systems Design Interview (90 minutes): We will work together to diagram a system architecture that meets specific requirements. You do not need to prepare any tools for this interview.
Guidance on AI in SRE Interviews:
At Chainlink Labs, we understand that AI tools are increasingly part of the engineering workflow. During the Docker interview, use of AI tools is permitted, provided it aligns with the expectations outlined below. Please bear in mind; If you choose to use AI tools during an interview, we will pay close attention to how you interact with those tools and whether you're applying sound engineering judgment.
You’ll be expected to:
- Demonstrate understanding before prompting.
- You should be able to explain the problem and your approach clearly before turning to any AI tool for assistance.
- Share your screen fully, including any AI interfaces in use.
- We want visibility into how you formulate prompts, interpret responses, and make implementation decisions.
- Engage critically with AI-generated output. Interviewers may ask a few light questions to understand your thinking, such as:
- What assumptions is this prompt making?
- How would you verify this code works as intended?
These questions are meant to surface your judgment and approach, not to disrupt your progress. If AI is used, we expect it to be a tool to support progress, not a shortcut around problem comprehension or engineering rigor. Ultimately, through our technical interviews, we want to still assess your ability to reason about systems, apply best practices, and work effectively-regardless of how you choose to leverage available tools.
Take Home Exercise (case by case)
Having you complete a take-home exercise is an effective way for us to mutually evaluate the experience of working together. These exercises can take anywhere from 4-6 hours to complete. With that said, the expected completion time is detailed in the brief we send you. We kindly ask that the project be completed within 7 days. However, if you think the exercise will take you longer than what is noted in the brief, you can reduce the scope and do what you can within the allotted time frame instead. We’re happy to accommodate your schedule and will work with you to find the best fit in terms of your availability. We will invite you to a 30-45 meeting to present your work to the team.
Web3 Bar Raiser (Case-by-case)(30 minutes):
In this interview, you'll be assessed on your understanding of the Web3 ecosystem, including your fluency with key concepts, trends, and hands-on experience. The goal isn’t to test role-specific skills, but to gauge how comfortably you can operate in a Web3-native environment.
Alignment Interview (Case-by-case)
The Alignment Interview is a 90-minute non-technical chat with a senior member from a different team to get a wider perspective on what it would mean for us to work together. It will be a conversation, not simply a Q&A. The purpose is to get your perspective on a variety of topics that are important to our CEO and our company as a whole. You will have a chance to talk about the company and ask any questions you have about our operating principles or working with us.
Executive Interview
An executive interview is an interview in which you will meet with a high-level executive or manager, such as a C-Suite, VP, or Director. During this interview, you can expect to do a deep dive into your skills and experience as they are trying to gauge a mutual fit within the company.
Closing Process
At this stage, you will be asked to submit your references, complete a background check, and attend a check-in call with the recruiter you've been working with during the interview process.
General tips for success
Listen carefully
It is perfectly fine to rephrase questions for better understanding or to request clarification. Also, if you need a moment to gather your thoughts, don't hesitate to let the interviewer know.
Be direct
Ensure your responses address the question directly. Avoid using pre-prepared examples that do not relate to the question being asked.
Focus on the process, not just the answer
The interviewer is interested in your problem-solving approach. Don't stress about finding the perfect answer. Be prepared for follow-up questions.
Communicate clearly
Explain your thought process out loud during the interview. This helps the interviewer understand your approach and reasoning.
Be ready
Remember, interviewing is a two-way street. Come prepared with thoughtful questions (e.g., team priorities, culture, etc.). We want you to feel comfortable and understand how the role aligns with your career goals.
Learn about us
We highly encourage you to visit our resources page to deepen your understanding of our organization. Familiarizing yourself with our mission, products, and recent initiatives can help you feel more confident and prepared for each step in the interview process.
Why join us?
Our mission
Build decentralized systems that link everything to the truth, creating a fair, unbiased world.
Why join us?
Joining the Chainlink Labs team means you will be working directly alongside an A-team of industry experts and will have a high degree of real responsibility in cultivating the growth of Chainlink. We’re pioneers shaping the future of blockchain, positioned at the forefront of a massive technological shift. Here, boldness isn’t optional—it’s essential.
Key Principles alignment
We are proud of our collaborative culture. Be prepared to discuss how you align with our Key Principles:
Ownership
We apply high standards in our work and take complete, unconditional responsibility for all outcomes. We always go the extra mile when helping one another, our users, and our community and working toward achieving our objectives.
Focus
Prioritizing outcomes and avoiding the many distractions in our industry enables us to pay full attention to our objectives and achieve more in less time without wasting energy.
Dialogue
Chainlink Labs is an idea meritocracy. We seek to arrive at the truth about every situation through open, honest, and constructive dialogue. We avoid personal biases and ego and seek to overcome the fear of engaging in productive conflict to arrive at truth.