20 Cohesity Interview Questions and Answers

As the demand for hyperconverged secondary storage solutions continues to grow, so does the need for qualified candidates to fill these roles. If you’re interested in working for Cohesity, you’ll need to be prepared to answer some specific interview questions about the company and its products.

In this article, we’ll give you an overview of Cohesity and some sample Cohesity interview questions and answers to help you prepare for your interview.

Cohesity Interview Process

The interview process at Cohesity can vary depending on the position you are applying for. However, most positions will require at least two rounds of interviews. For some positions, like software engineering, there may be a coding assessment as part of the first round of interviews. Overall, the interview process is fairly standard, but can be lengthy, taking up to two months to complete.

1. How would you explain SaaS to a client?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of the company’s products and services. It also gives you an opportunity to show that you can clearly communicate complex ideas in simple terms.

Example: “SaaS stands for Software as a Service, which means it’s software that runs on a cloud platform. In this case, Cohesity offers SaaS secondary storage solutions that are easy to use and cost-effective. I would explain this by saying, ‘Cohesity provides a secure, scalable solution that eliminates the need for expensive hardware upgrades.'”

2. What is your experience with Java, Ruby, and Python?

These are three of the most common programming languages used in hyperconverged secondary storage. Your answer should show that you have experience with these languages and can use them to complete tasks on a daily basis.

Example: “I have worked with Java, Ruby and Python for over five years now. I started out as an entry-level developer at my last job where I was responsible for creating new code using Java. As I gained more experience, I began working with Ruby and Python to create scripts and automate processes. Now, I am comfortable writing code in all three languages.”

3. What do you know about the backup market?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of the industry and how you can apply it to Cohesity. You should be prepared to discuss what makes backup software unique, as well as some of the challenges that come with backing up data.

Example: “Backup software has become increasingly important in recent years due to the growing amount of data companies are storing. However, there are still many issues surrounding backup solutions, including high costs, long recovery times and limited scalability. I believe that hyperconverged secondary storage like Cohesity’s backup solution could help solve these problems by providing an affordable alternative to traditional backup methods.”

4. Why are you interested in working at Cohesity?

This question is your opportunity to show the interviewer that you have done some research on the company and its culture. You can use this time to highlight any specific aspects of Cohesity’s work environment or mission statement that resonate with you.

Example: “I am interested in working at Cohesity because I believe in the company’s goal to make data management easier for businesses. As someone who has worked in IT for over 10 years, I know how important it is to find solutions that are scalable and cost-effective. I’m excited about the opportunity to help develop new ways to streamline data storage.”

5. What motivates you to get up every morning?

This question is a great way to learn more about the candidate’s personality and values. It can also help you understand what motivates them professionally. When asking this question, it can be helpful to provide an example of your own motivations so that they can relate to yours.

Example: “I get up every morning because I am passionate about helping people solve problems. In my last role, I was able to work with a team of developers who were struggling to scale their application. We worked together to find solutions for their scaling issues, which helped them launch new features on time.”

6. Tell me about a time when you had to make an important decision without consulting your manager.

This question can help the interviewer understand your decision-making skills and how you handle responsibility. Use examples from previous jobs to showcase your critical thinking, problem-solving and leadership abilities.

Example: “In my last job, I was working on a project with two other team members when our manager left for vacation. One of my teammates had an urgent family matter that required her attention, so she asked me if we could work on the project without her until she returned. I told her I would do everything in my power to get the project done by the deadline, but I needed her input on some parts of the project. She agreed, and I delegated tasks between all three of us to ensure we met the deadline.”

7. Describe a professional accomplishment that you’re proud of.

This question is a great way to learn more about the candidate’s personality and values. It also helps you understand what they value in their own work.

Example: “I’m proud of my ability to solve problems creatively, especially when I have limited resources at my disposal. At my last job, we had an issue where our backup server was running out of space for backups. We were already using all of the available storage on the hyperconverged system, so I decided to use some external hard drives that we had lying around as temporary storage until we could upgrade the backup server. This solution worked well enough to get us through the next few months while we waited for the new backup server to arrive.”

8. Are there any aspects of this job that you think might be challenging for you?

This question is a great way to show your interviewer that you’re honest and willing to learn. When answering this question, be sure to highlight any skills or knowledge gaps that you can address with training or additional research.

Example: “I’ve worked in the IT industry for several years now, but I haven’t had much experience working with hyperconverged secondary storage systems. However, I’m eager to learn more about how Cohesity’s system works and what makes it unique from other solutions on the market.”

9. Describe a problem/challenge you faced and how you overcame it.

This question is a great way to assess your problem-solving skills and ability to adapt to new situations. When answering this question, it can be helpful to describe a specific situation that you encountered in the past and how you overcame it.

Example: “In my previous role as a senior systems engineer, I was tasked with implementing Cohesity for a large company. The company had several different departments that all needed access to their data. To overcome this challenge, I created separate accounts for each department and gave them access to only the data they needed.”

10. Provide an example of a conflict you’ve encountered and how you handled it.

When answering this question, it can be helpful to provide an example of a time you had to resolve a conflict with a coworker or client. This can show the interviewer that you’re able to work through disagreements and find solutions for them.

Example: “In my previous role as a systems engineer, I worked on a team where we were all responsible for different aspects of our clients’ IT infrastructure. One day, one of my coworkers was having issues with their part of the job. They asked me if I could help them fix the issue, but I didn’t have enough time in my schedule to do so. Instead, I offered to cover any other projects they needed help with until they got caught up.”

11. What are some current trends in the market that we should be aware of?

This question is a great way to see how much the candidate knows about the industry and what they think of it. It’s also an opportunity for you to share your own thoughts on current trends in the market.

Example: “I believe that hyperconverged secondary storage will continue to grow as more companies realize its benefits over traditional SANs. I also think that we’ll start seeing more enterprises move their primary storage to the cloud, which means there will be even more demand for secondary storage solutions like Cohesity.”

12. How would you describe our software to a prospect?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of the product and its features. It also shows that you have experience with selling products or services, which can be important for some positions.

Example: “Cohesity’s software is designed to make secondary storage more efficient by combining compute and storage resources into one platform. This allows businesses to reduce their overall costs while increasing performance and reliability. The software also offers enterprise-grade security and data protection.”

13. What do you find most interesting about working in sales?

This question is an opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the role and company. When answering, it can be helpful to mention a specific feature of Cohesity that you find interesting or exciting.

Example: “I love working in sales because I get to meet so many different people with unique needs. It’s rewarding to help customers discover how our products can solve their problems. In my last position, I worked with a customer who was looking for a solution to backup their data more efficiently. After learning about their business, I recommended they use Cohesity Cloud Storage as a secondary storage option. They were thrilled with the results and have been using our product ever since.”

14. What tools do you use to manage your pipeline?

This question is a great way to assess your project management skills. It’s important for the interviewer to see that you have experience with managing multiple projects at once and can prioritize tasks effectively.

Example: “I use Jira, Trello and Slack to manage my pipeline. I find these tools are effective in keeping track of all my current projects and communicating with team members about what needs to be done. In my last role, we used Jira as our primary tool for tracking our progress on projects. We also used Trello to organize our work into different categories and Slack to communicate with each other.”

15. What’s one thing you’d change about our product if you could?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of the company’s product and how you can improve it. It also shows that you’re willing to be honest about what could use improvement. When answering this question, try to think of something specific rather than generalizing.

Example: “I would change the price point for Cohesity Enterprise Edition. I understand why it’s priced as high as it is, but I believe there are many customers who would benefit from using the software if it were more affordable.”

16. Tell us about yourself and why you want to work at Cohesity.

This question is a great way to start an interview because it gives you the opportunity to introduce yourself and your background. It also allows you to explain why you are interested in working at Cohesity, which can help show that you have done some research about the company.

Example: “I am currently finishing my master’s degree in computer science from Stanford University. I chose this program because of its reputation for producing top-notch graduates who go on to work at innovative companies like Cohesity. My goal is to use my education to find a job where I can apply my knowledge and skills to create something new and exciting.”

17. Which technologies have you worked with before?

This question is a great way to see if you have experience with the technologies that Cohesity uses. If you don’t, it’s okay to say so and explain why you’re interested in working for this company.

Example: “I’ve worked with VMware vSphere before but not on a large scale like I would be at Cohesity. I’m excited to learn more about how hyperconverged secondary storage works and apply my knowledge of vSphere to work with Cohesity.”

18. How would you handle a customer who was upset by their last bill?

This question is a great way to test your customer service skills. It’s important that you can handle any issues that arise with customers, so it’s best to be prepared for this type of question.

Example: “I would first apologize and ask them what they didn’t like about the bill. I’d then explain how our billing works and why their bill was higher than usual. If they still weren’t satisfied, I would offer to lower their monthly bill until they were happy.”

19. What excites you about automation?

This question is an opportunity to show your interest in the company’s products and services. Use examples from your past experience that highlight your ability to automate processes, which can help you succeed in this role.

Example: “I’m excited about automation because it allows me to streamline my workflows and save time. In my last position, I automated a process for backing up data on our servers. Previously, we had to manually back up each server every day, but with automation, I was able to create a schedule where the backup would occur once per week. This saved us time and money.”

20. Do you have experience building applications from scratch?

This question can help the interviewer understand your experience with coding and how you might approach a project that requires building an application from scratch. Use examples of any previous projects where you built applications or worked on software development teams to showcase your skills in this area.

Example: “I have extensive experience working with existing code, but I also enjoy creating new applications when needed. In my last role as a senior developer, I helped create a new application for our company’s website by using open-source frameworks like NodeJS and AngularJS. This allowed me to build out the front end of the site while other developers focused on the back end.”