Process Guide · Hiring

How to Run a Technical Interview
Without Being Technical

You don't need to know how to code to evaluate a developer. You need the right questions, the right framework, and to know what good communication looks like.

🕐 7 min read
👤 Founder / PM
🎯 3-round framework
ShareLinkedInX

The biggest mistake non-technical founders make in interviews is trying to evaluate technical skills they can't assess — and completely ignoring the things they can evaluate better than anyone: communication, ownership, problem-solving clarity, and culture fit.

Here's the truth: a senior engineer who can't explain their work clearly to a non-technical person will fail on a remote team. Communication is a technical skill. The ability to scope, document, and surface blockers proactively is what separates a 10x engineer from a 1x one on a distributed team.

This guide gives you a 3-round framework, specific questions for each round, and the red flags that matter — regardless of your technical background.

The Framework

3 rounds. Each one evaluates something different.

Most founders do one long interview that evaluates nothing well. Three focused rounds — each with a clear goal — are faster and more predictive.

Round 1The intro call30 minGoal: Fit & communication

The intro call

This isn't technical — it's cultural. You're evaluating whether this person can communicate clearly, explain their thinking, and work the way your team works.

  • “Walk me through the last project you owned end to end.”Why: Tests ownership and communication. Vague answers = warning sign.
  • “What's the most complex technical problem you've solved in the last year? How did you approach it?”Why: Tests problem-solving depth and ability to communicate trade-offs.
  • “What does your ideal team setup look like?”Why: Surfaces async vs. sync preference, independence level, collaboration style.
  • “What questions do you have about how we work?”Why: Serious candidates always have questions. Lack of questions = low engagement.
Round 2The technical review45–60 minGoal: Technical depth

The technical review

You don't need to be technical to run this round — you need to ask the right questions and listen for how they explain things. Complexity of explanation ≠ quality of engineer.

  • “Here's our current architecture [describe it simply]. What would you change and why?”Why: Tests judgment, not just knowledge. Good engineers ask clarifying questions first.
  • “How do you decide when to use [technology X] vs. [alternative]?”Why: Tests decision-making and understanding of trade-offs, not memorization.
  • “Tell me about a technical decision you made that you later regretted.”Why: Self-awareness and learning mindset. No regrets = red flag.
  • “How do you keep up with changes in your stack?”Why: Tests intellectual curiosity and professional development habits.
Round 3The work sampleTake-home or asyncGoal: Real output

The work sample

A small, time-boxed task that reflects actual work. Not a LeetCode puzzle — something real. Respect their time: 2–3 hours maximum, scoped and paid if the role is senior.

  • “Ask them to review a simplified version of your codebase and leave comments in a PR.”Why: Shows how they communicate feedback and what they notice first.
  • “Give them a real bug you had in the past (already fixed) and see how they debug it.”Why: Tests methodical thinking, not performance under artificial pressure.
  • “Ask them to write a brief technical doc for a feature you're building.”Why: Shows communication skills, system thinking, and how they structure ideas.

What to Watch For

6 red flags that don't require technical knowledge

These patterns appear regardless of stack or seniority level — and you don't need to write code to spot any of them.

Can't explain what they built in simple terms

Senior engineers can always explain complex work to a non-technical audience. If they can't, it often means they didn't fully understand it themselves — or they built less of it than they claim.

No opinions, or only popular opinions

Great engineers have informed opinions about trade-offs. If every answer is 'it depends' without any follow-through, or if they only advocate for whatever framework is trending — that's a signal.

They blame the team or the codebase, not the situation

'The previous team was terrible' is a pattern. Good engineers inherit bad code and make it better — they don't just criticize it. Chronic blame is a culture risk.

No questions about your product or team

Engineers who are genuinely interested in the work ask questions. If they only ask about rate, hours, and benefits — they're not interested in what they'll be building.

Vague on what they specifically did vs. the team

"We built a real-time sync engine" — did they architect it, contribute to it, or just use it? Great candidates are specific about their individual contribution.

Uncomfortable with admitting uncertainty

'I don't know but here's how I'd find out' is a great answer. 'I'd have to check' is fine. Pretending to know something they don't — that's a problem in a remote async environment.

Evaluation Tool

The post-interview scorecard

Rate each dimension 1–5 immediately after the call. Don't wait — memory degrades fast and recency bias sets in.

Interview Scorecard

Dimension
Score (1–5)
What to evaluate
Communication clarity
____ / 5
Can they explain technical decisions to a non-technical person?
Problem-solving approach
____ / 5
Do they structure their thinking before jumping to solutions?
Ownership mindset
____ / 5
Do they say 'I' or 'we' when describing their work?
Technical depth
____ / 5
Do they understand trade-offs, not just implementations?
Culture fit
____ / 5
Async-compatible? Proactive communicator? Self-directed?
Questions asked
____ / 5
Quality of their questions reflects interest and seniority.
Total
____ / 30
24+ = strong hire. 18–23 = discuss. Below 18 = pass.

Don't want to run the interview process alone?

FlyDevs pre-vets every engineer before they reach you. By the time you interview, you're choosing between 2–3 qualified candidates — not filtering 50.

Book a free call