MockQuestions

Site Reliability Engineer Mock Interview

30 Questions Created By

To help you prepare for your Site Reliability Engineer interview, here are 30 interview questions and answer examples.

First Question

30 Site Reliability Engineer Interview Questions

15 Interview Questions With Sample Answers

1.   Tell me about some of the process improvements you have implemented in the past.

How to Answer

Organizations hire site reliability engineers to save the company money and time by improving the systems and processes used to develop and implement software applications. During an interview, you will be asked how you accomplished this in the past. When preparing for the interview, you should have some very specific examples of process improvements you've implemented in your previous roles. You can describe these using the STAR framework. Describe the Situation, talk about the Task you were trying to complete, discuss the Actions you took, and finish with the Results you attained.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"In my last job, it became apparent that the time to implement a software application exceeded the organization's expectations. I was assigned to analyze and reduce the start-up time for a new app. I examined the workflow and found that there was a lot of interchange between the DevOps Group and the operations team when a new app was released. I determined that this was due to a lack of proper documentation concerning the app from the DevOps team. I collaborated with both groups to determine what information was needed to expedite the implementation of a new piece of software. We then established metrics around this information. Once the new system was implemented, the start-up time for a new application was reduced by 50%."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

2.   What is your strategy for staying up to date with industry trends and resources?

How to Answer

Site reliability engineers work in an industry that is constantly changing and evolving. The rapid pace of this change, combined with the numerous sources of information and developments, makes it challenging to stay on top of recent updates. Every competent site reliability engineer will have a strategy to keep their knowledge of this profession up to date and learn about new practices, tools, methodologies. You should be able to easily describe this to the interviewer.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"I have found that one of the biggest challenges in this job is staying on top of new developments in the industry. I recognize the importance of this and have developed a system that enables me to accomplish it. I start by allocating both work and leisure time towards learning new SRE practices. Specific activities include reviewing industry publications, reading technical blogs, attending industry conferences, and networking with my peers in my organization and others in the field. I also have developed strong relationships with the manufacture representatives to learn about what they are working on."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

3.   How would you describe cloud computing to someone who doesn't have a technical background?

How to Answer

When an interviewer asks this question, they are less interested in your understanding of cloud computing and more interested in your communication skills. As a site reliability engineer, you will need to communicate with key stakeholders across the organization. Many of these stakeholders will not have a technical background, so you will need to use non-technical, easy-to-understand language. When answering this question, you should avoid complex phrases, jargon, or other terminology that the interviewer may not know.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"Cloud computing is very similar to traditional onsite computing, which you may be familiar with. The difference is that the computing resources, including hardware and software applications, reside at a different location. These may be owned by the organization or be provided as services by a third party such as Amazon, Microsoft, or Google. Computing assets dedicated to the organization are known as a private cloud. Resources shared by several organizations are called a public cloud. Organizations may utilize both of these along with their traditional in-house technology infrastructure. You can also purchase computing resources as services, such as software as a service, infrastructure as a service, or simple processing as a service."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

4.   What are some of the basic issues a site reliability engineer addresses in their daily activities?

How to Answer

As an experienced site reliability engineer, you should be intimately familiar with the issues related to this job. When describing these, you may want to include issues the organization with whom you are interviewing is currently encountering. You can discover these by researching the organization's website, industry periodicals, news blogs, and other sources of information.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"There are some fundamental issues related to site reliability engineering, or SRE, which I encounter nearly every day. These include how SRE supports the DevOps organization, service level objectives, service level indicators, error budgets, ways to reduce toil, some of the technologies and automation used by an SRE, and the concept of anti-fragility."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

5.   What are some of the databases you've used in your previous roles? How do you manage database query times?

How to Answer

Since site reliability engineers deal with a lot of data in their measurements and analysis, you need to be able to work effectively with database tools. Each organization has a preference for which databases and tools they use, so the SRE needs to be flexible and able to adapt to new environments. When answering this question, you should provide the interviewer with the names of the databases you've worked with. If they do not correspond to the databases used by the organization, you should discuss your ability to apply your existing knowledge to rapidly learn the features of the new database.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"During my career, I've worked with several different databases. These include Oracle Database, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, and dbase. While each of these is unique in its features, commands, and structure, they are all fundamentally the same. I can quickly transition between database tools by applying the knowledge I already have and using guides and manuals to learn the new commands and database structures. There are several ways to improve database query times. These include avoiding wild card queries, choosing the appropriate data types, avoiding NULL in fixed-length fields, and other techniques to reduce the scope of queries."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

6.   When analyzing a software development pipeline, how do you identify ways to improve its efficiency?

How to Answer

The key skill of a competent site reliability engineer is the ability to observe and analyze systems and operations within the organization. This is the essence of this job. Organizations hire people who can help them improve processes and procedures to save the organization both time and money. Describing how you go about doing this will be fundamental in convincing the interviewer that you are the right person for this role.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"I am constantly looking for opportunities to improve the processes and procedures used by my organization. When it comes to the software development pipeline, there are several ways you can improve its efficiency. One is to examine the resources required for each development project and allocate them effectively. I also look for individual development projects that are bottlenecks, which results in delays throughout the pipeline. Finally, I always keep in mind the needs and resources of the operations deployment teams to ensure that they are neither over-scheduled nor under-resourced with new applications."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

7.   How do you integrate the customer experience into your SRE strategy?

How to Answer

The most important stakeholder for any project is the organization's customers. The actions of the individual teams and projects should contribute to the organization's objectives. These goals often involve customer revenues and customer satisfaction. Therefore, you need to consider these when developing your strategies. Communicating this to the interviewer will demonstrate your qualifications for this position and improve your chances of being selected for the role.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"The customer experience is one of my top considerations whenever I'm planning or developing a new project. I always keep in mind how completing the project will contribute to the organization's ability to drive revenues or provide an excellent customer experience. This serves as the context for structuring the project, the resources I allocate to it, and other parameters. In my experience, addressing the customer's needs effectively allows the entire organization to succeed and grow."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

8.   Describe to me how you balance the interests of different stakeholders in the organization.

How to Answer

This question may appear to be similar to one that the interviewer has already asked. It is common to be asked several questions about the same topic in an interview. One reason for this is that the interviewer has a specific interest in this area and wants to explore it in great detail. Another reason is to ensure that you are being consistent throughout the interview. This should not be an issue as long as you answer the questions honestly. Keeping your answers brief and to the point will also help you to be consistent throughout the interview.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"A large part of my job is mediating between two or more teams within the organization. Most of my work involves coordinating the output of the DevOps team with the needs and availability of the operations team. I often find that these groups have conflicting objectives. I've learned how to mediate between them by listening to both sides, understanding their issues and challenges, determining what their individual and mutual objectives are, and negotiating compromises that will help the organization attain the best outcome possible."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

9.   How do you establish SLOs and SLIs, and are you open to making adjustments to these when warranted?

How to Answer

Service level objectives and service level indicators are the keystones of the work SREs perform. Interviewers will be interested to learn how you go about establishing these and whether you are open to changes once the project is underway. They're looking for a balance between commitment to the metrics used by SREs as well as the flexibility to change when circumstances demand it. Your answer should demonstrate a systematic approach to establishing the criteria used to measure the success of a project while also showing that you can adjust projects as they move forward to optimize them.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"When scoping and planning a new project, the first thing I do is understand the service level agreements project stakeholders are looking for. This helps me establish the service level objectives which will result in the SLA being met. Once I have SLOs set up, it is relatively easy to build a list of service level indicators that will tell the project stakeholders how the project is progressing and if the SLOs and SLI days are being met. I've found that a top-down approach works best. I'm also open to adjusting the SLOs and SLIs if it is determined that they are either too liberal or too strict and will not result in a predetermined SLA."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

10.   Walk me through the process of determining if a development team should work on new features or pay down technical debt.

How to Answer

Site reliability engineers need to ensure that DevOps works towards improvements to the applications, resulting in the organization achieving its business objectives. You're constantly asked to choose between adding new features or solidifying and improving the ones already developed. One way these conflicts can be resolved is through objective analysis and defined metrics. However, the most talented SREs can also use subjective judgment when choosing between developing new features or paying down technical debt. Interviewers are looking for candidates who demonstrate skills in both of these methodologies.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"When asked to choose between developing new features or paying down technical debt, my first approach is to look at the metrics and see which activities will provide the greater return on investment. This objective analysis is easy to complete when the right metrics are available. However, my experience has taught me that I can also look at this issue subjectively to determine which effort would generate the best results, lead to future developments, and keep the DevOps team engaged. I try to balance the objective and subjective analysis to determine the right course of action."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

11.   What steps have you taken to improve collaboration between operations and IT teams?

How to Answer

Site reliability engineers collaborate with teams from across the organization. Your key contacts are in DevOps or software development teams and the operations group. To be effective in this role, you need to work with organizations with conflicting objectives. Your ability to negotiate, persuade, and compromise is necessary to move the organization's objectives forward. The interviewer will ask you several questions to determine if you can work effectively with people outside your organization.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"I recognize that I will be working with individuals and teams from outside of my organization and with whom I have no direct authority. I have developed and refined my communication skills so that I can collaborate with these individuals to achieve common objectives. The skill most useful in this is active listening. I take time to hear what the other stakeholders are saying, learn their concerns, and understand what they're trying to accomplish. This provides me with the information I need to promote my ideas, compromise when necessary, and negotiate agreements that move the stakeholders in the same direction."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

12.   What are the fundamental stages of DevOps, and what tools do you use for each of these?

How to Answer

Even though you don't work directly for DevOps in your role as a site reliability engineer, you interface with them daily and therefore need to be familiar with their process and the tools they use. The interviewer will ask you this question to confirm your knowledge and determine if your perception of the process and tools is similar to the ones they use in their organization. You can align your answer with the processes of the interviewing organization by carefully researching their operations. Sources for this include their website, the job description, and both current and former employees.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"The typical stages for a DevOps project include planning, programming, verifying, packaging, and configuring. Some of the tools an SRE uses include Pivotal Tracker and other task management tools during the planning stage, GitHub and other source control tools when programming, CI/CD tools like Jenkins to verify, and packaging tools such as Kubernetes and Terraform for configuration. Based on my research, your organization uses similar tools."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

13.   In your opinion, what are some of the key functions performed by an ideal DevOps team?

How to Answer

You may assume that the key function provided by the DevOps team is to develop applications and other types of software. By asking this question, the interviewer is trying to understand some of the other functions you deem critical from your perspective as a site reliability engineer. These other functions will help you manage the interaction between the DevOps team, the IT infrastructure group, and the rest of the organization. The interviewer will use your answer to determine if you can function within their environment effectively.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"The most obvious function performed by the DevOps team is to create applications and other software used in the operation of the organization's IT infrastructure. However, there are several other actions they need to perform to be effective. These include constant communication with the information technology organization and collaboration with the functional departments of the organization to understand their needs and develop applications that will help them attain their business objectives. A DevOps team must also act as a consultant to the organization, recommending changes, upgrades, and alternative solutions to the company's technology challenges."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

14.   What are some of the common data structures you work with in this role?

How to Answer

As a site reliability engineer, you are expected to have in-depth knowledge about databases and data structures. The interviewer will ask you a technical question like this to explore your knowledge and determine if you're qualified for this role. Since you work with data structures daily in this job, you should be able to easily answer this question.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"I work with a wide variety of data structures in my role. These can be grouped into four main categories: linear, tree, graphs, or hash structures. Examples include arrays, lists, heaps, decision, and hash trees."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

15.   What are some of the steps you can take to reduce toil in a process?

How to Answer

One of the major responsibilities of a site reliability engineer is to reduce toil in processes. Toil is defined as the amount of manual work or effort required by individuals on a specific project or process. By reducing toil, site reliability engineers increase the efficiency of a project while preserving human resources to address issues or processes that cannot be automated or standardized. Your answer should include the main ways you accomplish this.

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

Answer Example

"You can reduce toil within a process by creating internal or external automation or minimizing the amount of maintenance and other interventions required by the process. Making the process more automated and requiring fewer interventions lowers the amount of toil necessary for that process."

Written by William Swansen on October 30th, 2021

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