HardCodingCoding20 min to answer

Write code rapidly to a specification, then refactor it as new constraints are introduced.

Asked at

Anthropic

1Give yourself 20 minutes

2Answer out loud, not in your head

3Then compare with the answer below

Stuck? Show a way to structure it+

01Clarify objective, users, constraints, and failure tolerance.
02Cover specification compliance, refactoring, test discipline, adaptability in a causal structure.
03Compare at least two credible approaches.
04Specify evaluation, rollout, monitoring, and rollback.

Reference answer

strong answer

I would begin by defining the target outcome and acceptable failure boundary. For Coding under change, I would analyze specification compliance, refactoring, test discipline, adaptability, compare alternatives on quality, latency, cost, and risk, and validate on representative slices before a monitored rollout.

specification compliance
refactoring
test discipline
adaptability

Requires scenario-specific numbers
Should include relevant personal experience

alternative answer

I would start with the riskiest assumption in Coding under change, create the cheapest discriminating experiment, then use the evidence to choose an architecture and release threshold.

experimentation
risk-first sequencing
decision clarity

Needs deeper implementation detail

Grade yourself

specification compliance

weight 30%

StrongExplains specification compliance with mechanisms, trade-offs, and validation.

WeakNames specification compliance without operational implications.

refactoring

weight 25%

StrongExplains refactoring with mechanisms, trade-offs, and validation.

WeakNames refactoring without operational implications.

test discipline

weight 25%

StrongExplains test discipline with mechanisms, trade-offs, and validation.

WeakNames test discipline without operational implications.

adaptability

weight 20%

StrongExplains adaptability with mechanisms, trade-offs, and validation.

WeakNames adaptability without operational implications.

Then expect these follow-ups

Which assumption is most likely to invalidate your approach?
Tests: depth
What would you measure offline and in production?
Tests: evaluation
How would your answer change with one-tenth the data or compute?
Tests: adaptability

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