How We Hire Developers

Applying to engineering jobs can be stressful! To ease the anxiety, learn what to expect from our process.

“A process that’s different than any other I’ve seen in my 15+ year career in tech. There’s plenty of support, but no hand-holding. In-depth knowledge assessment, but no whiteboarding. Rigorous, but designed to be fair and truly reflective of real-world skills.”

Tiago Ilieve – Code Wrangler

Guiding principles

Our process is fair and inclusive

People from different backgrounds, with different identities and experiences, help make our products better. Just as our users come from everywhere, a diverse staff helps us create products that are accessible to a wide range of people. And it all starts with Automatticians.

Unconscious biases are real, so our interviewers actively seek to make our process less biased via annual anti-bias training; by using a standardized hiring rubric to ensure objectivity, fairness, and consistency; and by documenting our hiring decisions with written evidence structured around the specific qualities we’re looking for.

Our process is enjoyable and a learning opportunity

Our second most important goal, in addition to finding great new Automatticians, is to be the best Automattic ambassadors there are. This means:

  • We are unfailingly kind to candidates, no matter their skill level, attitude, stage in the hiring process, or our final decision.
  • We provide timely, clear, and honest communication and feedback to candidates, as well as access to our people for any questions and concerns.
  • We never miss an opportunity to share the Automattic story: how we do things, what our mission is, and why it’s a great place to work.

At the end of the process, we hope that candidates have learned something about Automattic, about programming, and/or about themselves, and feel that their experience was instructive and worthwhile, no matter the outcome.

We give people the courtesy of a quick response 

We ensure transparency throughout the process and will always seek to provide timely feedback and to move people through the process as efficiently as possible.

View open jobs

Our hiring process

These include roles like web frontend, backend, mobile, and full-stack Engineers.

When you apply and are selected for an interview at Automattic, it kicks off a four-part process conducted via Slack, GitHub, and P2s.

It gives you (and us) a chance to see what it would be like if you worked here, and it means that, by the time you’re hired, you’re familiar with how we do things and can hit the ground running.

Application

You submit a formal application for a current job opening, giving us a sense of your communication style. We assess based on criteria that vary depending on the opening and the needs of the team, and pay close attention to your answers, so share as much relevant information as possible!

Intro

After a successful application review, you are being invited to a private channel in Slack for a brief get-to-know-you chat with an engineer from the team. This is an opportunity for you to ask any questions about the role, the process, our culture, and anything else you like before embarking on the more technical steps that follow.

Coding challenge

This stage is a take-home coding challenge with a near-real-world piece of code that closely replicates our normal work. We use it to evaluate your abilities around security, performance, and problem solving, as well as how you communicate and adapt to an unfamiliar codebase.


We generally allow a week to complete this stage, though it’s fine if you need more time; just let us know. We timebox this part of the process so you have clear expectations around how much time to spend, and because we know you have other obligations in your life. Unlike in a whiteboarding interview, you can do this at your own pace and with your own tools.

Trial

Here’s where you really get to see what it’s like to work at Automattic. Trial projects help both of us to determine mutual compatibility and let us evaluate your work, communication, and effectiveness. This work is paid, part-time, and designed to last between two and eight weeks, for a total of around 15–35 hours of work. This is very flexible, and we’ll craft it to work with your schedule, both when you can start and what your availability is. If you’re able to work full-time on the project, great. If you can only work three hours on a couple of days during the week, that’s fine, too.

The Offer

Our HR folks will share feedback from the hiring process and tender a formal offer to join Automattic—one that takes account of your compensation expectations, interview feedback, work experience, and trial performance. You’ll be involved in the team assignment process—one that takes your interests and skills into account. Welcome aboard!

Check our open jobs or discover what to do after applying to Automattic.