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When AI Writes the Code, What Are Employers Hiring For?

An expert discussion of how to conduct better software engineering interviews in the age of AI. Introduces the 4 Dimensions of Engineering Judgment scorecard.

By Richard Ewing·

The Death of the Whiteboard Interview

If an AI can generate a perfect sorting algorithm in 2 seconds, why are we still asking candidates to whiteboard it? We are testing a skill that has effectively been commoditized.

The 4 Dimensions of Engineering Judgment

Employers should shift to the Audit Interview model. Provide the candidate with a 500-line block of AI-generated code containing subtle architectural, security, and logic flaws. Score them on:

1. Verification: Did they catch the hidden SQL injection or memory leak?
2. Prioritization: Can they differentiate between a P0 critical failure and a P3 style nitpick?
3. Communication: How well do they explain the risk to a non-technical PM?
4. Judgment: Under what business constraints would they "ship it anyway"?

We are no longer hiring code authors. We are hiring code auditors.


Generate practice scenarios using the Audit Interview Tool. Article found on Built In.

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Published Work

This article expands on ideas from my published work in CIO.com, Built In, Mind the Product, and HackerNoon. View published articles →

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Richard Ewing

The Product Economist — Quantifying engineering economics for technology leaders, PE firms, and boards.