How I "cracked" Meta

The most frequent question that people ask me at events in India is

• How did you crack Meta
• Or, How did you get selected at Meta out of India
  This question has a nuanced answer which deserves a video. There are 3 reasons that make recruiters reach out to you, based on my experience.

1. The Economy

This is the most important factor for any job role. The economy dictates how quickly companies are trying to fill their roles. You need to be in the right place at the right time. When the recruiters Meta reached out, I was in India, positioned as a Senior Frontend Engineer with a good online presence during the peak hiring period of 2021. This made me the ideal candidate in their eyes.

2. The team's requirements

Even if the economy is doing great, the requirements of the team itself matter a lot. If you have the right background and proof of work, it makes you a valuable hire for the team. They will try their best to pull you in, as long as the interview goes well.

I experienced this first-hand at 2 FAANGs. The team looked at my profile, which fit well into their tech stack and what they were trying to build. Even if my answers to Leetcode-style interviews and Behavioral interviews weren't perfect - they still tried to guide me in the right direction. This was true across multiple interviewers from the same team!!

3. Your Presentation Skills

If a team is hiring someone across borders - a basic requirement is that we speak their language well. A lot of nuance and subtleties are lost if the other party isn't able to understand us. Apart from language, there are other things like how you show up for the interview, how you speak - and of course how well you're able to convey that you're the right fit for the role.

So, these are the things you should know to understand why someone was hired - the market conditions at the time, the team's requirements and what made them stand out as a candidate. I hope you found this helpful, follow for more career advice!