Recently we've been looking for a new Developer, nothing fancy just c#, SQL server, OOP and design patterns would be nice. but sadly we've not found a single one this time round that makes the grade. We don't send things into space nor do peoples lives depend on any realtime processing.  Where do all the candidates fall down; they first can't describe basic microsoft technology. Can't describe things on their own CV. Have absolutely no concept of OO; this is the real sticking point.  I have found there are types of developer out there or that we seem to interview.

Web Design Company:   Might know the front end quite well, good chance they've never used visual studio and use web matrix as their tool of choice. They only see front ends and have no real concept of application frameworks or any real depth in application design. OO forget it they know OO from their college days which was anything between 1 month and 10 years ago. Databases sure they know databases as long as its access and have no knowledge or stored procedures nor any db schema design .

Large Company :  They might use good applications that are well written and designed, but they did not write them. They add bits and bobs and make the odd patch here and they and can fix a bug or two.  SQL experts; but really only hack someone elses code code. There are other types who do small quick apps for internal use.

The Jumper: No quicker are they in a company than they are looking for their next position. The warning signs are they have only been in their current company for 3 months and have some lame excuse of why its not working. Still wants another 4K extra though as they as broad experiance in lots of companies.

Shelf-life:  Sometimes they jump sometimes, sometimes they are pushed (steady but periodic gaps) but they have a finite life in most companies. Not sure what  they seem to do or don't do but they have to month to 12 months before they are back on the market.

The Good ones:  These mythical being are out there but very hard o find.

Disclaimer:  The above is very very generalised and a lot of folk might seem to fall into one of the above while looking at CV we do give them the benifit of the doubt and interview them.

How we Interview

We look at  a CV and the experiance and start talking; we delve down routes to experiance and skill level and start asking questions until we can't ask anymore or they dry up. With luck they will be better than us. Then we go down another router and another. Why we do this is simple; we want to see if they an expert or a good grounding in their area of experiane, it is impossible to find a good candidate that matches your needs exactly so we look for good engineers in their experience.

Technical Test

This is sadly where most fall down. We give them an application spec and they have 2 hours to derive an application. The spec and app is flexible enough so they can show off their skills and we see how they focus their efforts. They can even use the internet or bring a book or use the books lying about or even ask other developers in the department for help. A good percentage only manage a few lines of code and most don't put those OO skills to the test. Some don't seems to read the spec either.