Which GitLab interview questions to prepare?

Preparing for a GitLab interview involves covering a mix of technical, behavioral, and role-specific questions. Here’s a guide on what to prepare for different roles:

1. General Behavioral Questions

GitLab emphasizes its values, so be ready to align your answers with them.

• How do you adapt to working in a fully remote environment?
• Can you describe a time when you demonstrated transparency or ownership in your work?
• How do you ensure effective communication and collaboration with team members in different time zones?
• How do you handle disagreements or conflicts within a team?

2. Technical Questions for Engineers

GitLab’s technical interviews focus on Git, CI/CD pipelines, and DevOps concepts.

• Git and GitLab Basics:
  • What is the difference between Git and GitLab?
  • How do you resolve merge conflicts in GitLab?
  • Explain the steps to create and merge a Merge Request in GitLab.
• CI/CD Pipelines:
  • How would you configure a CI/CD pipeline in GitLab using .gitlab-ci.yml?
  • What is a GitLab Runner, and how is it used?
  • Explain how you would set up a deployment pipeline for a containerized application.
• DevOps and Infrastructure:
  • How do you integrate GitLab with Kubernetes or Docker?
  • What are some best practices for securing CI/CD pipelines?
  • How would you handle monitoring and logging in a GitLab project?

3. Product Management Questions

For product managers, focus on your ability to align GitLab’s features with customer needs.

• Product Understanding:
  • What do you know about GitLab’s DevSecOps platform?
  • How would you prioritize features for a new GitLab release?
  • How do you gather and incorporate customer feedback into product decisions?
• Agile and Team Collaboration:
  • How do you manage cross-functional teams in a remote-first environment?
  • Describe your approach to roadmap planning in an agile setup.

4. Customer Support and Solutions Architect Questions

• Customer Interaction:
  • How would you assist a customer unable to push changes to a GitLab repository?
  • Can you explain how you’d troubleshoot a failed CI/CD pipeline?
  • How do you handle a frustrated client while resolving a technical issue?
• Technical Knowledge:
  • What are GitLab Runners, and how would you troubleshoot their connection issues?
  • How would you guide a team in setting up role-based access controls for a project?

5. Leadership and Strategic Questions for Senior Roles

• Team Management:
  • How do you foster innovation in a remote team?
  • Describe your approach to managing technical debt in a long-term project.
• Strategic Planning:
  • How would you align GitLab’s features with emerging trends in DevSecOps?
  • What is your strategy for scaling a CI/CD pipeline to support thousands of daily deployments?

6. Common Questions Across All Roles

• Why do you want to work at GitLab?
• How do your values align with GitLab’s principles of transparency, iteration, and collaboration?
• What experience do you have with remote work or distributed teams?

How to Prepare

• Study GitLab’s values and align your answers accordingly.
• Get hands-on experience with GitLab’s platform, including repositories, CI/CD, and project management tools.
• Review GitLab’s handbook to understand its work culture and processes.
• Practice technical questions and mock interviews with a focus on GitLab-specific scenarios.

By preparing for these questions, you’ll showcase your technical expertise, alignment with GitLab’s values, and readiness to contribute to their team.