Interview Pipeline Stages

Cloud architecture interviews follow a predictable pipeline. Understanding each stage helps you allocate preparation time effectively.

Stage 1: Application & Screening

Resume Screening (Automated + Human)

What Gets Past ATS:

• Cloud certifications (AWS SAP, Azure Solutions, GCP Pro)
• Quantified achievements ("reduced costs by 40%", "designed system for 10M users")
• Technology keywords matching the job description
• Architecture-specific terminology

Human Screener Focus:

• Career progression (IC → Architect trajectory)
• Company caliber and project scope
• Education (less important for senior roles)

Recruiter Phone Screen (20-30 min)

Questions to Expect:

• "Walk me through your background"
• "Why are you interested in this role?"
• "What's your timeline and salary expectations?"
• "Tell me about a complex architecture you designed"

Success Criteria:

• Clear, concise communication
• Genuine interest in the company
• Reasonable compensation expectations
• Relevant technical background

Stage 2: Technical Phone Screen (45-60 min)

Format

A senior architect or hiring manager evaluates your technical foundation.

Common Topics

Architecture Fundamentals:

• "How would you design a highly available web application?"
• "Explain the differences between horizontal and vertical scaling"
• "When would you use a message queue vs. direct API calls?"

Cloud Service Knowledge:

• "Compare S3, EBS, and EFS for different use cases"
• "How does VPC peering differ from Transit Gateway?"
• "Explain the purpose of AWS Organizations"

Past Experience:

• "Describe the most complex architecture you've designed"
• "Tell me about a time you had to make a significant technology trade-off"

Evaluation Criteria

• Technical accuracy and depth
• Structured thinking (problem → solution → trade-offs)
• Communication clarity
• Real-world experience signals

Stage 3: System Design / Architecture Session (60 min)

Format

Whiteboard (or virtual equivalent) design of a large-scale system.

Common Problems

Classic System Design:

• Design a video streaming platform (Netflix-like)
• Design a real-time analytics dashboard
• Design a multi-region e-commerce platform

Cloud-Specific:

• Migrate a monolith to microservices on AWS
• Design a data lake architecture on GCP
• Build a hybrid cloud solution connecting on-premises to Azure

Evaluation Framework

Criterion	Weight	What Interviewers Look For
Requirements Gathering	15%	Asking clarifying questions
High-Level Design	25%	Clear component breakdown
Deep Dive	25%	Service selection and rationale
Scalability	15%	Horizontal scaling, caching, CDN
Trade-offs	20%	Articulating pros/cons of choices

Stage 4: Behavioral / Leadership Interview (45-60 min)

Format

Structured behavioral questions using STAR method expectations.

Common Themes

Customer/Stakeholder Focus:

• "Tell me about a time you had to push back on customer requirements"
• "Describe a situation where you had to explain a complex technical concept to non-technical stakeholders"

Technical Leadership:

• "Describe a time you influenced a major architectural decision"
• "Tell me about a project where you mentored junior architects"

Conflict and Challenges:

• "Describe a time when you disagreed with your manager's technical direction"
• "Tell me about an architecture decision that didn't work out"

Stage 5: Final Round / Bar Raiser

Purpose

• Calibrate candidate against company-wide standards
• Cross-functional perspective (different team, different role)
• Final culture and values alignment check

What to Expect

• Mix of behavioral and situational questions
• May include a mini design problem
• Focus on long-term thinking and company fit

Pipeline Timeline

Stage	Typical Duration	Gap Between Stages
Application → Recruiter	1-2 weeks	-
Recruiter → Tech Screen	3-5 days	-
Tech Screen → Onsite	1-2 weeks	-
Onsite → Decision	1-2 weeks	-
Total	4-8 weeks	-

Pro Tip: Ask your recruiter for the interview structure upfront. Most will share the format, topics, and sometimes even interviewer names.

Next, we'll build a comprehensive 90-day study plan. :::