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So you've made this far, successfully passing the initial screening and two technical interviews. Congratulations, for you are on the final level.

This interview goes by many names, be so "Meet the team", or "Soft skills assessment", or "Final talk about your goals and values" or "Meet the CEO" - all that is "Cultural fit", and you will be examined for the values match, the culture match, and whether this particular position/company is for you.

Some say such interview is more like a formality, but I strongly disagree. First of all, your goal here is to make good impression on people you will be working with, and it is not always an easy task to do. Second, this interview is a good chance to ask questions still left unanswered: about the business, the company, the values, the mission. This is important, right questions asked will demonstrate your motivation, and also will help you make your final decision, especially if you have multiple offers on the table. You are about to give this company 1-2 years of your life after all.

# What to expect

In my experience, the interview will most likely take an online format, 30-45-60 minutes max. There is going to be either one person interviewing, or a group of people, sometimes even an entire team.

After a short intro round, they will start asking behavioural questions probing your teamworking, conflict management skills, etc. The questions will likely be prepared in advance, but sometimes people improvise.

The most common questions I've heard were:

• Imagine there is a conflict in your team. One engineer wants to merge a PR, and you strongly disagree. What would you do? - this question is an absolute leader, it is asked on every interview. They screen for a good team player. Here you can say that it's important no to be biased by your own judgment, listen to the other side of the conflict and seek diplomatic solutions, council and opinions.
  • If they ask about the worst situation you ever had, it's okay to say there was none, as you managed to solve the problem before it had to be escalated.
• Tell me about your biggest failure. - a check for your ability to withstand pressure and learn from your mistakes.
• How do you prioritize your work? Who decides what to do next? - they are trying to figure out, are you a leader or a follower? You can mention here decision tactics, such as the Descartes Squares or the "impact vs effort" matrix.
• How do you manage technical debt? - a good question to check for your prioritization skills.
• How do you make other people shine? - a good question probing for your ability to motivate others.
• How do you keep your knowledge up to date?
• Describe a time you had to handle a high-pressure situation. How did you cope?
• What excites you most about this role and our company? - they check for your motivation and general interest in working for the company.
• What do you look for in a company culture?
• What is the difference between mentoring and leading?

There could be niche-specific or company-specific questions, for example:

• You work for a company that maintains an open source project. You and another contributor submitted similar PRs at the same time. Which one of two PRs will you let in?

There could be questions that probe your soft skills and seniority, for instance:

• How to go about finding the cause of performance bottlenecks?
• What does Principal mean to you?
• How do you make sure the result matches the requirements?

The list of questions can potentially go on and on.

# How to behave

There isn't much to be advised here, there is no algorithm for success, unlike with the technical interviews. Be a better version of yourself, be relentless, show curiosity, don't play victim, don't blame anyone. Show good soft skills, show that you care about business, your work and your team.

Learn the company values and show that you are aligned with them. Study the Job Description and the company's website once again.

Take the list of most commonly asked questions and come up with good answers in advance. Reinforce your answers with examples from your own professional experience.

Prepare your questions in return.

It's sometimes not quite comfortable putting yourself in front of many unfamiliar people at once, but it actually gets less difficult if you think about it as just a regular team meeting.

Remember, that you've earned some credibility by getting yourself this far, but this is not the right time to relax, for the battle isn't over yet.

Have a cup of strong coffee before the interview starts.

Good luck!