I applied through an employee referral. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at PayMongo (Manila, Manila)
Interview
I had two video calls, first with HR to get an overview of my past work experience, skills, and personality/attitude. That was short and pleasant.
I was then sent instructions via email on what sort of take-home exercise they expect from me for the next interview step. The instructions were clear enough, and I appreciated that they let you choose whatever language you're comfy with. And lastly, this is also important: a full-stack solution or database connection was NOT required. I thought the exam difficulty was just right and it probably would boil down to code and how I could talk about my solution to my interviewers. I proceeded to the next step (code presentation) after a review, however, I apparently flopped it. It was very frustrating to me that they asked me why I didn't have a database connection even though they specifically stated on their email that it wasn't required. Didn't really live up to their initial email statement about having the freedom to work on a solution that fits your skills. They also didn't send me feedback even though they said they would, and I had to contact them back after two weeks to ask how my application was going. HR responded fast with a rejection email, haha.
TL;DR:
HR interview is short and sweet. Take-home exam is average but can be improved way more with a narrower scope IMO. Choose your own language/tech stack, but probably best to connect to a database if you're applying for a senior position (or asking for 100K minimum salary). Though honestly, I never understood how it shows "skillz" when you can easily look at a database's documentation to see how it can be connected to your app.
PayMongo, if you are expecting something specific from your exam-takers, then narrow down your scope and expectations in your email, please.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
They mostly just tested the small webpage I made with different test cases. Other generic questions:
Q: What feature are you most proud of implementing?
Q: How long did it take you to work on this?
Q: Why didn't you implement X?
Q: What could you improve with this solution?
the technical assessment is fair. The interviewers were also kind, and the different stages were pretty standard. downside is if you don't get selected, they won't inform you of your results.