I do not know the results yet, so I think now it is a good time to write a review of the whole process before I become biased towards/against shopee because of the results.
Process Outline:
1. My first choice of application was data infrastructure engineer, but after a call with the HR in charge of data infrastructure team I was introduced to the HR in charge of the team of my second choice (machine learning engineer) because "my profile may be more suitable for other positions instead".
2. Online coding assessment with camera and mic on: solve 2 very easy algo questions in 1 hour. By easy I mean easy in coming up with solutions and easy in implementation as well.
3. HR phone call: HR asked me about my background, my interests and expected salary, told me about the areas which might be tested and scheduled my Round1 interview for me on a day of my choice (which is 1 month after the coding assessment because I told her I needed to mug for the interview).
4. Interview Round 1: a few data structure questions, 1 coding question (leetcode medium difficulty) and a few short answered ML related questions which test your understanding of ML fundamentals. I did not prepare for at least half of those ML questions but managed to think on the spot. The interview result was out the next day in the evening.
5. Interview Round 2 and Round 3 were scheduled on the same day. Round 3 would be unlocked only if I managed to pass Round 2. Round 2 was similar to Round 1, except that the data structure questions were replaced by a close examination on my past ML project details. The result was out within 15min after the interview.
6. Interview Round 3: Meeting the prospective team lead. I was tested thoroughly on probability related concepts and my mathematical understanding of ML concepts. There were communication issues which we did not manage to solve before moving on. I was told that I failed this round but the HR in charge of me managed to secure for me another round of interview with a different team lead.
7. Interview Round 4: This team lead started the interview by asking me to introduce myself and my ML project experience, and then gave me a hypothetical scenario to solve using ML methods. I think a solid mathematical understanding of the ML concepts is needed to answer the questions he asked me when digging into my solutions.
About the interviewers:
Contrary to the popular belief that all shopee interviews are conducted in Chinese, for me, except Round 3, the rest of the technical interviews were all conducted in English by default. It was clear that none of the interviewers are native English speakers, but they really tried their best in conveying their meanings and were very patient when there were misunderstandings.
I like how peaceful and satisfied they were when I asked them whether they are happy with their work, their colleagues and the culture of shopee. I think it is a good indication that shopee keeps its staff happy. Among the interviewers there are people who I personally feel can make great colleagues, mentors and leaders. It was nice talking to them.
About the HRs:
The quality of my experience with the HRs is actually way beyond my expectation, considering how fast shopee is growing i.e. a lot of new recruits for the HRs to handle. I did not expect the HR in charge of me (Lynn) to give me so much attention and follow my interview process so closely. Lynn positioned herself as someone who aids me throughout the process and cared about how I felt about the interviews and interviewers. This makes me feel that as an interviewee I am treated with respect.
I was very surprised that Lynn managed to talk to a team lead and secured for me another chance after I was eliminated at Round 3. The story I heard from both Lynn and the team lead I met for Round 4 was that they did not want to miss anyone with potential. I really appreciate such genuine effort by HR and interviewers in knowing the candidates and discovering their potentials and highlights.
Regardless of the results, I enjoyed the process. Really want to thank the HRs (Lynn, Andrea and Jia Yi) and the interviewers (sorry I cannot remember the names) for their time and effort. And all the best to whoever reading this post :)