Microsoft Hiring Process

Microsoft was valued at more than $1 trillion in 2019. The company continues to grow and is frequently grouped with other tech goliaths such as Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Google.

As an employer, it provides generous salaries and an excellent benefits package, including healthcare insurance and exclusive discounts.

On-site shops and services are available at Microsoft’s headquarters, and employees have access to a company shuttle bus. If you are interested in getting hired at Microsoft or know Microsoft hiring process, this article is a complete guide.

Origin of Microsoft

Microsoft is a multinational corporation that specializes in computer technology. Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft on April 4, 1975, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The Microsoft Windows operating system; Microsoft Office, a suite of productivity software; Xbox, a line of entertainment products including games, music, and video; Bing, a search engine; and Microsoft Azure, a cloud services platform, are the company’s current best-selling products.

Microsoft had global annual revenue of US$86.83 billion as of June 30, 2015, and 128,076 employees worldwide. It creates, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of software for computing devices.

Skills Necessary to Be Employed at Microsoft?

Microsoft has a set of skills that it requires for you to be hired. –

Collaboration – The interviewer will seek evidence of effective communication skills. You should be able to provide examples of situations in which you communicated effectively both within and outside of your team.
Drive for results – You demonstrate that you have the tenacity to follow through on your commitments regardless of the obstacles you may face. You must be someone who is always looking for the next challenge, holding yourself and others accountable for your team’s actions.
Customer-centric – Microsoft strives to enable every individual and organization to achieve more.
Influencing for impact – You should be able to influence and persuade others through your communication skills effectively.
Decision-making – You should be able to evaluate complex problems effectively, using your business awareness to make evidence-based decisions.
Adaptability – You should be able to deal with uncertainty or problems in the workplace with agility.

Tips To Get Employed At Microsoft

Some of the tips you need to get employed at Microsoft are-

Prepare to demonstrate how you meet the job requirements by sharing specific examples from your past or ideas for how you would complete a specific task.
Make it a point to explain how the skills you’ve acquired throughout your career will translate to the role for which you’re interviewing.
Some positions may require you to write code, submit a creative portfolio, or provide examples of your work in other ways.
You’ll meet with a few people for up to an hour each, including potential teammates and cross-functional colleagues. The hiring team gets to know you, and you see the section. Following the interview, your recruiter can assist you in understanding the specific timeline for when you can expect to hear back about the hiring decision.

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Before your interview

Do your research.

Don’t stop at fully grasping the position for which you’re interviewing. You should know what is going on in the technology industry, what Microsoft is doing well, and how we can differentiate ourselves from the competition. Make a list of questions to ask during your interview. This is also an opportunity for you to confirm that the option is exactly what you are looking for.

Understand your core competencies.

The interviews will include competency-based questions as well as resume-related questions. Remember to keep the core competencies in mind. Consider sharing or incorporating examples into your conversation.

Culture must be accelerated.

At Microsoft, it is believed that living the culture is critical to accomplishing our mission. Choosing people with the right skills and mindset is vital.

During your interview

Be yourself

Microsoft places a premium on authenticity and unique perspectives. You don’t have to get dressed up to impress. Wear whatever makes you feel the most at ease.

Showcase your critical thinking and inquisitiveness. They want to see how you think as well as what you know. Prepare to explain your decision-making process and share your thought process. Ask clarifying questions, state your assumptions, and be ready to share your opinions or explain your choices when asked to solve a problem or write code.

Make it specific.

When answering questions, it is recommended that you use the STAR(R) model. This will assist you in developing clarity and structure for your response.

Situation

Task

Action

Result

Reflection

First Stage – Application

The first step is to submit your application via the Microsoft Careers page. The steps you should take are as follows:

Submit your resume. Before applying, you should polish your resume. Keep it brief and relevant to the job role you’re applying for, with ‘headlines’ of previous experience on the first page.

The recruiter will want to know about your accomplishments, strengths, and specific skills and qualities that would make you a good fit for the role at Microsoft. It is critical to focus on what you have accomplished in previous job roles rather than simply listing your duties.

If possible, attach documents or links to previous work – this will help to demonstrate your working style.

Include a summary of any volunteer or extracurricular activities you participate in outside of work on your resume.

Again, this helps bring your resume to life and reveals more about your personality and interests to the recruiter.

Your application will be reviewed, and if the recruiters believe you are a good fit for the job, they will contact you for an initial phone interview.

If you are not contacted, your information will be added to the shared candidate database. This means that you may be contacted about other job opportunities with Microsoft in the future.

In addition, this is one of Microsoft’s hiring process

Second Stage – Phone Screen Discussion

The primary goal of the phone screen discussion is to go over your resume. The recruiter will also ask you some behavioral questions during this brief call. These are intended to assess your level of curiosity, eagerness to learn, and leadership abilities.

The phone screen will be longer for technical roles such as engineer or developer (around 45 minutes). More technical questions about algorithms and data structures will be posted to you.

You will have 30 minutes to answer a coding question using a shared editor and develop a solution.

Although C# is Microsoft’s programming language for Windows.NET, candidates are not required to be fluent in it. This is the second stage of the Microsoft hiring process.

Third Stage – Telephone Interview

If you pass the phone screening stage, you will be invited to a phone interview. This is usually done a week or two after the phone screen.

To assist you in preparing, the recruiter will provide you with an agenda and an overview of the topics you will be asked to discuss in advance.

If you applied for an engineering position, you might be required to participate in a second phone interview. An engineering manager or senior developer will interview you this time.

The interviewer will be looking for evidence that you understand algorithms and data structures (quicksort, divide and conquer, mergesort, depth-first search, breadth-first search) (hash tables, linked lists, queues, stacks, and arrays). In addition, this is the third stage of the Microsoft hiring process.

In addition, this stage is one of Microsoft’s hiring process

Fourth Stage – Face-to-Face Interviews

Applicants who pass the phone interview stage will be invited to a series of on-site, face-to-face interviews. This includes up to five interviews as well as a lunch with the team you hope to join.

The lunch should be considered as part of the formal interview process. A panel of two Microsoft employees will evaluate you during each interview. This assists in avoiding unconscious bias during the interview process.

Fhe person interviewing becomes more senior as you progress through the interview stages. Communication skills of the highest caliber and a professional demeanor will be required. Because the interviews will be held in rapid succession, the day may appear to belong and to exhaust.

The panel will mark you as ‘hire’ or ‘no hire’ after each round of interviews. If you receive three “no hire” decisions, your interview may be terminated, and you may be sent home. You will receive feedback as soon as the on-site interviews are completed. You will be given a job offer quickly – sometimes even on the same day if you are hired.

If you are applying for a non-developer position, you will most likely skip the phone screening stage and go straight to the on-site interview stage. The interview will take place at the Microsoft location where you applied for a job. All expenses incurred in order for you to attend will be reimbursed.

Fifth Stage – Formal Offer or Rejection

You will usually receive a formal offer or rejection following the on-site interview. You may be asked to attend one final interview with human resources in some cases. There will also be an opportunity to discuss the salary and benefits package.

Preparing for an Interview with Microsoft

Carry Out Detailed Research

Your research should be divided into three major categories:

The organization – Learn about Microsoft’s history, culture, and mission by visiting their website. Look at social media profiles, blog posts, and news articles.
A panel of interviewers – View the profiles of the interview panelists on LinkedIn. This will allow you to better understand their job responsibilities, priorities, and areas of interest. You can use this information to tailor your answers during the interview. It will also assist you in determining the best questions to ask them.
The position you are applying for – Devote some time to thoroughly reading the job description and/or person specification. Make a note of any areas where you need clarification, and make a note of how your skills and experience will help you.

Check Your Video Calling Equipment

Set up your teleconferencing technology and ensure that it is operational. Familiarize yourself with all of the features. If you want to boost your confidence, conduct a mock video interview with a family member or friend.

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Be Prepared to Sign an NDA

As a Microsoft job applicant, you will have access to sensitive information about the company’s operations. To confirm that you will not share information, you will be required to sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement).

Gather Evidence of Your Previous Projects

Having this information on hand during the interview will be a helpful visual aid in prompting you to discuss your accomplishments. Consider your long-term objectives or vision. What do you hope to accomplish? What do you hope to accomplish while working for Microsoft? Consider how your own objectives relate to Microsoft’s mission statement and key objectives.

FAQs on Microsoft Hiring Process

Yes, technically. However, it is always advisable to consider your skillset, the area in which you wish to specialize, and the team you are interested in.

On average, it takes four to eight weeks to receive an offer, but it can take longer in some cases.

A phone interview with a recruiter. A phone interview with the hiring manager or a hiring team member. A full-loop interview with 4-5 people on-site.

yes, Microsoft has (5) Rounds

If your interview went well, you should receive a response from a recruiter within a week or two. Depending on your location, you may be flown to any of the Microsoft campuses.

Microsoft coding interviews are extremely difficult. The questions are difficult, Microsoft-specific, and cover a wide range of topics. The good news is that proper preparation can make a significant difference.

Conclusion

Employees are involved in exciting projects and have varied and interesting workloads. Microsoft is almost always hiring for technical positions such as software engineers and developers.

The company is looking for candidates who have the skills needed to work with Azure, Microsoft’s cloud platform.

There are also opportunities to work in business functions such as finance, human resources, research, and technical positions.

References

carrus.io– Microsoft hiring process
wiki job– company interview questions
geeksforgeeks– Microsoft recruitment process
candor.co– interview process at Microsoft
glassdoor.com– Microsoft interview questions

Origin of Microsoft

Skills Necessary to Be Employed at Microsoft?

Tips To Get Employed At Microsoft

Before your interview

During your interview