“Basically, Google does not care about your current skills, what you have done or even who you are. They have some sort of a glass shoe and try to see if your foot fit into it.”

Peter Norvig also said a few years ago that “we decide which candidates are above the hiring threshold, and then we decide what projects they can best contribute to.”

That’s a recipe for monoculture, and monoculture is at the heart of every Google misstep. Too many geeks spoil the broth.

Because that kind of Procrustean, software engineer-centric process is going to bite Google on the arse, and arguably already has on multiple occasions. I bet the guy(s) who came up with Buzz’s auto opt-in passed those tests with flying colours.

It’s becoming really hard not to talk about Google’s corporate culture without throwing out terms like “insular”, “blinkered”, “devoid of empathy” or “socially dysfunctional”, and while I’m uncomfortable with some of Joe Clark’s characterisations, you can go back to a post of his from 2006 where he points out that putting candidates for an accessibility position through the standard algorithmic or programmatic challenges basically neglects and disrespects the skills for which they ought to be hired.

He doesn’t seem to have been bothered by the process, why are you?

That said, personally I find these hoop jumping interviews to be pointless and ridiculous. But if you have a policy, stick to it. Even for the geek-famous.