⚡️ asmbld · Issue #008
Written for engineers on the job search, EMs building teams, and founders hiring them.
01 · STAND-UP
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said.” — Peter Drucker
Most candidates answer “tell me about yourself” by narrating their resume.
The interviewer already has the resume.
What they’re actually listening for is whether you understand your own work well enough to explain it to a stranger in ninety seconds.
Here’s the framework I developed over ten years working with Engineering Managers.
02 · SPRINT
I’ve sat across from a lot of engineers in the first ten minutes of an interview.
Not as the interviewer. As the recruiter who prepped them, wished them luck the day of, and debriefed them when they wrapped up.
And I can tell you, within the first thirty seconds of “tell me about yourself,” whether the rest of the conversation is going to go well.
Not only because I’m reading body language or looking for confidence.
Because I’m listening for three things.
And most engineers aren’t aware of what these three things are.
Here’s what I usually hear:
“So I’m a senior backend engineer with about seven years of experience. I’ve worked at a couple of startups and one larger company. I’m really passionate about scalable systems and I’m looking for my next opportunity.”
That’s a résumé read aloud.
It tells me titles. It tells me years. It tells the engineering manager a whole lot of nothing.
The turn happened for me after my first year at Crunchyroll, early in my career where I worked with Engineering, Product, and Design teams.
We’d just put through three strong candidates. All of them cleared the technical screen. One of them felt strong but we couldn't agree on extending an offer.
The interviewing panel said: “We still don’t know what he actually did. Or who he did it with. Or why it mattered.”
That was it.
Three questions. None of them technical.
And that’s when I started coaching every candidate I worked with around the same three words.
People. Purpose. Product.
People — who were you, and who were you responsible for?
Not just your title. Your actual role in the room.
“I was the lead backend engineer on a team of three.”
Now I know your scope. I know you weren’t solo, and I know you weren’t managing twenty. I know where you sat.
Purpose — why did your team exist?
Not the company mission. Your team’s job.
“We owned the database layer for a platform serving five million monthly active users.”
Now I know the stakes. Now I understand the pressure. Now the technical decisions you’re about to describe have weight behind them.
Product — what did you actually build?
Specific. One thing. The most important thing.
“We designed and shipped HIPAA-compliant architecture for patient records — from schema design through to audit logging.”
Now I can picture it.
Now I know you worked in health tech. I know you understand compliance. I know you’ve made decisions that had legal and clinical consequences.
That’s ninety seconds.
People. Purpose. Product.
And in those ninety seconds, you’ve told me who you are, what you were trusted with, and why it mattered.
Every word after that lands differently and increases your chances of moving to the next interviewing round.
Because now the recruiter and engineering manager aren’t trying to figure out who’s sitting across from them.
They already know.
And when these two stakeholders are aligned on who you are as a candidate, there’s excitement in the air.
We want to hire you as much as you want to be hired.
The first ninety seconds are all you need.
People. Purpose. Product.
03 · RETROSPECTIVE
✅ What went well
The three-part framework is simple enough to remember in and interview and easy to rehearse.
🔧 What could be improved
I didn’t get into how to sequence this if you’ve had five jobs in eight years — that version is harder and deserves its own issue
⚡ One action item before next week
Write your own People / Purpose / Product answer right now. Not for an interview. Just to see if you can do it in under a hundred words.
❓ Open question for readers
What part of “tell me about yourself” still trips you up — even when you’ve prepared?
Have a burning question about engineering hiring?
Hit reply.
Send me what you’re thinking and we’ll solve it in the next sprint.
Author’s Note:
I love meeting people, networking, and sharing my experience.
When you’re ready, here are three ways I can help:
30 Minute Strategy Session ($64)
This is a 30 minute Strategy Call for Software Engineers where I answer questions about your resume, LinkedIn Profile, and job search.
Resume + LinkedIn Update ($256)
This is a foundational service for individuals that want their documents updated, but don’t have the time to do so. Resume, LinkedIn, comp benchmark —> delivered to you in 5 business days.
60 Minute Working Session ($512)
This is a 60 minute Working Session for Software Engineers where I walk you through how to use Claude as your AI Job Search Assistant.
I deliver 7 updated documents - Resume, LinkedIn Profile, Comp Benchmark, Interview Plan, Outreach to Hiring Managers, Offer Letter Analysis, 90 Day Onboarding Plan.
⚡️ asmbld · Issue #008
Written for engineers on the job search, EMs building teams, and founders hiring them.
