1. Technical Interview
Excellence
Blake Cai

2. Introduction of Blake Cai
• Staffing Consultant supporting Server & Tools
Business China.
• Work in China R&D staffing team under Patrick
Sullivan’s org.
• 15 months old in Microsoft.
• Studied Broadcasting & Drama in college.
• Once dreamed of being another Oprah Winfrey.
• Currently learning Japanese as personal project.
• Have great passion in watching and collecting Cartoon
movies.

3. Background
Server & Tools Business China grows from 20 to 300
FTEs in 3.5 years.
On average, each fiscal year we have…
100 Requisitions 400 Loops 2000 Interviews
C
H • Hiring Need VS Interviewer
A Quantity? Quality? Availability?
L • Interviewer VS Candidate Experience
L Capability? Skill? Experience?
E • Hiring Manager VS Hiring Practice
N Understanding? Compliance? Advocacy?
G
E

4. Methodology
Continuous, two-way
communication with clients
Finalizing
 1:1 with BG leaders
Planning  Modify proposal
 Present the project
proposal on STBC SLT
 Prioritize meeting
Probing requirements
 Design project
features
 1:1 Interview
 Work out general
Initiating (Senior
Interviewer/Hiring
project plan &
deliverables per phase
Manager)
 Observation  Survey all
(SC)+Feedback interviewers in STBC
(Candidates)
Identify the Identify
potential requirements, Design project Get support
existing top problems & framework from SLT
problems solutions

5. Project Framework
Training/Brown Bag
Scalable, different layers & target audience
F
Interviewer
E Ramp-up
Program
A Process
T Optimization on process design Campus
Interview
U Excellence
R Interviewer
E Criteria/Guidance Inventory
Criteria to rank interviewers
S Guidance to drive an interview loop
Responsibilities of hiring manager, interviewer, staffing, AA

6. STBC Interviewer Ranking
AA A B C D
• As Appropriate • AA Trainee • Solid & very • Trustful phone • Every external
Interviewer • AA trust and is experienced screener hired employee is
• AA for close to AA in MSFT interviewer • Proficient at by default “D”
Campus/Industry skills and • Mastery at interviewing before finishing
candidates maturity level interviewing his/her discipline the smart hiring &
• Can be AA for his/her discipline up to L61 ramp-up program
intern candidates up to L63 • Able to provide • Is not eligible for
• Expert at • Proficient at accurate doing an onsite
interviewing interviewing feedback on a interview
his/her discipline lead/mgr level relevant independently
up to L65 candidates discipline
• Mastery at • Proficient at
interviewing providing
lead/mgr level valuable
candidates feedback cross-
• Mastery at discipline
providing solid
assessment
cross-discipline
*All interviewers in STBC will be graded by
AA together with BG Leads & reviewed half a
year.

7. Interviewer Ramp Up Program
• Manager identify
interviewer • AA check
candidates . capabilities
• Employee needs of
to pass the • Certain amount interviewer
probation and of technical after loop
performance is at phone screens • AA check
least “achieved” • 1:1 assigned by with mentor
in last review or mentorship staffing before and
from his/her • Mentor doing the onsite approves D
manager’s should be interview to C and
assessment.
Smart Hiring ranked as “A Mentor Trial above.
or B” in the
Training inventory . observation Interview
• Take the Quality
Candidate course Mentor
Phone Screen • Mentors Control
Identification before doing Identification • Needs to
any types of needs to
observe 3 FTE observe the
interviews /intern first 2
interviews of interviews
mentor before of the fresh
doing any types interviewer
of interviews

8. Q&A
Welcome to E-mail me at i-blcai@microsoft.com
Thanks!