It seems that Glassdoor removes all the indentation from my feedback, sorry
Interview Experience at Fastned – Senior Frontend Developer
I’m writing this review for myself—well, for the version of me from a parallel universe who’s thinking about applying for this position. If that’s you, listen up.
1. First Contact
The first conversation with HR was nice and friendly. Nothing to worry about here. Smooth start.
2. The Assessment
After the HR call, they sent me a take-home assessment. I can’t share details (they specifically ask candidates not to), but here’s what you need to know: they expect you to complete it in approximately 8 hours.
It’s not possible. No, trust me, it’s not possible. At first, I thought maybe they meant, "Spend 8 hours, then submit whatever you have." But nope—8 hours isn’t even enough to get to a point where I’d feel comfortable showing my work. I ended up spending multiple evenings on it.
That said, the assessment itself was enjoyable, and they liked my submission enough to invite me for an in-office interview.
3. The Interview Process
The interview was a 60-minute session at their office. A few key things to know:
Assessment Presentation:
According to the README, “During the assessment presentation, you are free to deliver your presentation in any form, but we expect you to cover:
The overall approach you took to the assignment.
The architecture and tools of the solution delivered.
Your solution for each of the user stories.”
Sounds serious, right? Well, don’t waste your time creating slides or diagrams. There was simply no space in the interview to actually present anything. At some point, they mentioned, “We have already checked your app before.” Later, their feedback confirmed that the README alone was enough.
So… why require a presentation at all? Your guess is as good as mine.
Office Logistics:
Arrive a bit earlier. My interview was at 14:00, and I got there at 13:55, but they forgot to add me to the guest list. I had to wait for someone to pick me up, wasting time that could’ve been used for actual interview questions. Also, there are no visitor parking spots, and they won’t reimburse any travel costs. Not a dealbreaker, just something to keep in mind.
Interview Structure & Questions:
Two developers interviewed me—one more experienced than the other. The questions they asked were… interesting. Both of them focused on basic topics like my general experience, state managers, and what I enjoy about my job. I got the impression that they weren’t sure how to structure an interview for a Senior Frontend Developer. As another review on Glassdoor pointed out, “The interviewers lacked the expertise to select a senior developer.”
My assessment was built using the latest versions of all required libraries and Next.js. However, they didn’t ask me any questions about architecture or deep technical topics. Instead, they focused on very basic things, like how const a = data?.b || '' might break the code.
4. The Feedback
After the interview, they told me they weren’t sure about my seniority level and that I lacked experience with modern frameworks—which is strange, since they never asked me about any frameworks during the interview. They also said I spent too much time (around 5 minutes) on the assessment presentation… the same presentation they specifically required.
Final Thoughts
Not a bad experience overall, but I think Fastned really needs to refine its interview process for senior-level candidates. If you apply, just be aware of the time commitment for the assessment, don’t overprepare for the presentation (even though they insist on it), and don’t expect in-depth technical discussions.
Also, a good practice would be to provide a clear plan for the interview at the beginning—something like 10 minutes introduction, 20 minutes technical questions about your assessment, etc. This would help candidates know what to expect and avoid confusion.
Good luck, other version of me! 🚀
