DevOps interview preparation is the key to acing the DevOps interview and landing your dream job. It merges software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to shorten the development lifecycle and increase the deployment frequency.
As the demand for DevOps professionals is increasing, preparing for a DevOps interview needs a robust understanding of the various theoretical concepts and practical skills. You need to have a deep understanding of DevOps principles and the ability to apply technical knowledge.
In this guide, we explain the do’s and don’ts for DevOps interview preparation. We also share the top tips that will help you ace the interview and give a kickstart to your career, in addition to some sample questions asked during the interview.
By reading this article, you will also be able to understand the different types of skills you need to become a DevOps engineer in 2024.
Also read: What Does a DevOps Engineer Do
The Do’s and Dont’s of DevOps Interview Preparation
There are certain do’s and dont’s that you must keep in mind during DevOps interview preparation. These will help you understand the things that you should and shouldn’t do during the interview.
Let’s look at them from the following table
Tips for DevOps Interview Preparation
Now it’s time to look at the top 5 tips that will help you in DevOps interview preparation.
Understand the DevOps Fundamentals
Alt tag: Learn the DevOps fundaments to prepare better for DevOps interview
As a DevOps professional, having an in-depth knowledge of the fundamentals of DevOps is crucial. Depending on the position you apply for, you will be asked several questions about its fundamentals and other such aspects.
Typically, employers want individuals who understand the basic philosophy behind DevOps and can understand its advantages and challenges. A solid foundation will help you discuss more advanced topics with the interviewer and give satisfactory answers.
The following are some of the key tools and concepts that you should understand during your DevOps interview preparation.
Also read: DevOps Roadmap: How to become a DevOps Engineer
Gain the Technical Skills and Knowledge
Alt tag: Gain technical knowledge to ace DevOps interview preparation
DevOps is a very technical profession and therefore, you must possess the right set of skills and knowledge. With the right technical skills, you can prepare well for the interview and crack it while leaving a strong and positive impression on the interviewer.
The following are the key technical skills you must possess or learn during the DevOps interview prep.
Learn the Soft Skills
Soft skills for a DevOps professional are important. They have to interact with different individuals at different levels. The following are some of the key soft skills important for DevOps interview prep.
- Communication
- Collaboration
- Humility
- Customer understanding
- Adaptability
- Time management
- Critical thinking
- Attention to detail
- Conflict resolution
- Curiosity
Gain Hands-on Experience
Alt tag: Projects to get practical experience for DevOps interview
Your DevOps interview preparation will go smoother if you have any prior experience. Typically hiring managers seek individuals who have past work experience. However, if you are starting afresh for this role, then having prior experience can be difficult. The following are some ways through which you can gain hands-on experience for the role:
- Personal projects: It is the best way to gain some practical experience in DevOps. You can focus on creating your portfolio on different DevOps projects on platforms like GitHub, GitLab, etc.Â
This will help you showcase your skills, knowledge, and expertise to potential employers. Remember to include a detailed README file explaining the purpose of the project, the technologies used, and how you set it up.Â
Writing a blog can also be a way to display your experience and knowledge of different DevOps projects. You can share your knowledge, experiences, and steps through a blog and project your understanding of different DevOps concepts. You can use platforms like Medium, Dev.to, etc. to reach a wider audience.
- Labs & simulations: Another way to gain hands-on experience is through labs and simulations.
You can engage in labs like Katacoda, AWS Free Tier, and others. These labs will give you guided exercises that will help you learn and practice with different DevOps tools and concepts in real-world scenarios.
Also read: DevOps Engineer Salary
Types of DevOps Interview Questions
Now that you have understood the DevOps interview preparation tips, you should look at and learn the different types of questions asked during the interview. These questions can broadly be classified into hard skills, behavioral, and soft skills.
Let’s look at a few of them and understand why they are important and what the employers look for by asking such questions:
Hard Skills
In these DevOps interview questions, the employer looks for evidence that the candidate knows the common web and cloud technologies and automation. The employers also test whether you understand the specific DevOps tools and why they are useful.
These questions are important because they test your knowledge of programming languages, cloud architecture, automation, etc.
The following are some of the questions asked during the DevOps interview:
- Tell me about your experience with DevOps or software development
- What automation tools you have worked with in the past?
Soft Skills
The employer with the soft skill-based DevOps interview questions wants to see how you develop and maintain relations with your teammates and other stakeholders. The hiring managers also want to look at your vision and how you see the future in this domain.
Let’s look at some questions asked during the DevOps interview::
- How would your coworkers describe you?
- How would you use your DevOps skills to help our company achieve its goals?
- What attracted you to DevOps and what do you enjoy the most about your work?
Behavioral
Behavioral questions are a key part of the DevOps interview process. With these questions, interviewers want to check how you organize and juggle multiple tasks at once while maintaining quality. These questions are also aimed at checking how you behave and act in different situations.
Let’s look at some of the behavioral questions asked during the DevOps interview:
- Describe a situation where you had to explain a complex process to someone with limited technical knowledge.
- Discuss a time when your listening skills proved to be an asset to your work.
How Interview Kickstart can help you with DevOps Interview Preparation?
DevOps is a highly technical and competitive domain. With the world becoming digital and an increase in the use of different software and technologies, the role of DevOps professionals is important. Interview Kickstart is a pioneer when it comes to helping professionals prepare for interviews and get their dream job.
IK’s Site Reliability Engineering Interview Masterclass is designed and taught by FAANG+ engineers and is aimed at helping you prepare well for the interviews.
Our instructors are highly experienced DevOps and SRE professionals who will guide you through every step of the course. They will also help you crack even the toughest SRE and DevOps interviews at FAANG+ companies.
In this course, you will learn everything from DSA to system design to SRE and DevOps concepts about Linux and Networking, Containerization and Orchestration, Deployment & Configuration Management, and more. Our expert instructors will also help you create ATS-clearing resumes, optimize your LinkedIn profile, and build a personal brand.
Read the different success stories and experiences of our past learners to understand how we have helped them get their dream jobs.
FAQs: DevOps Interview Preparation
What are the Most Important DevOps Tools to Learn for an Interview?
The most important DevOps tools to learn include Git for version control, Jenkins for CI/CD, Docker for containerization, Kubernetes for container orchestration, Ansible for configuration management, and Terraform for infrastructure as code.
How can I Demonstrate my DevOps Skills During an Interview?
You can demonstrate your DevOps skills by discussing your hands-on experience with various tools, sharing examples of past projects, explaining your problem-solving approaches, and showcasing your understanding of DevOps concepts through detailed answers.
What is the Significance of Soft Skills in a DevOps Role?
Soft skills are significant in a DevOps role because they enable effective collaboration and communication among team members, help in resolving conflicts, and ensure smooth coordination between development and operations teams.
How do I Prepare for Scenario-Based DevOps Interview Questions?
To prepare for scenario-based questions, review your past experiences, understand common challenges in DevOps, and practice explaining your thought process and actions in resolving specific issues. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your responses.
What should I Include in my DevOps Project Portfolio?
Your DevOps project portfolio should include a variety of projects showcasing your skills with different tools and technologies. Each project should have a detailed README file explaining its purpose, the technologies used, setup instructions, and any notable challenges you overcame.
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