Olyv

Role: SDE 2

College: Not Specified

Interview Date: October 17, 2025

Interview Type: Full-Time

Result: Rejected

Difficulty: Medium to Hard (inferred from questions and candidate's strong performance)

Rounds: At least 2-3 technical rounds, followed by further discussions.

Topics Asked: Data Structures, Algorithms, Low-Level Design (LLD), Greedy Strategy, Dynamic Programming, Binary Search, College Projects, Past Job Switches, Salary Expectations.

Experience:

This candidate had an interview experience with Olyv|Smartcoin for an SDE 2 position in Bangalore, which was ultimately disappointing due to non-technical reasons despite strong technical performance.

Round 1: Virtual Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA)

• Format: Conducted virtually.
• Key Question: Given an array representing building heights, along with a certain number of bricks (x) and ladders (y), determine the farthest building reachable. Rules: move for free if the next building is lower or same height; if higher, use a ladder or bricks equal to the height difference.
• Approach: The candidate proposed dynamic programming and binary search initially, then refined the solution to an optimized greedy strategy.
• Feedback: Received excellent feedback for this round.

Round 2: In-person Low-Level Design (LLD)

• Format: Conducted in-person.
• Key Questions:
  • Design an LLD for a 'Book My Show'-like application, specifically focusing on saving seat information and displaying a seat map within the app.
  • Questions about college projects.
• Approach: The candidate designed the full database schema, explained necessary joins, and proposed using rectangle objects to represent seats along with other hall-related data.
• Feedback: This round also went well, and the candidate was told to proceed to the next stage.

Further Rounds/Outcome:

The company required the candidate to come into the office for later rounds. Despite a strong performance in the technical rounds, the candidate was ultimately not selected due to internal budget issues and concerns regarding their past job switches and salary expectations. The candidate felt this was unprofessional, especially after being asked to come into the office.