Hi! I’m Lipaz Tzitrinovich Daudi, TA Director for Taboola’s global tech team.
With over a decade in HR, talent acquisition, and tech, I’ve interviewed hundreds of engineers, read countless Glassdoor reviews, and listened closely to candidate feedback. Across all those conversations, one pattern stands out: the biggest hurdle applicants face isn’t a lack of technical skill. It’s walking into interviews with misconceptions about what the hiring team is actually looking for.
Beyond filling roles, my goal is to find great people who will thrive in Taboola’s culture and help shape it.
To help you put your best foot forward for your upcoming R&D interview at Taboola, I’m breaking down the 5 biggest myths and sharing how our process actually works behind the scenes.
Myth #1: “The HR interview is just a quick formality before the real technical test.”
Getting to know you as a person during this initial stage is crucial because it sets the foundation for your entire candidate journey. Your TA Business Partner is genuinely in your corner and wants you to succeed.
During this phase, we evaluate whether you’ll thrive in an environment defined by high autonomy and mutual accountability, and what unique perspectives you bring to our growing teams.
Our R&D culture rests on four core pillars:
- Craftsmanship: Taking smart risks, solving root causes, and keeping things simple.
- End-to-end ownership: Owning tasks from the initial “why” through design, code, testing, deployment, and monitoring.
- Knowing the business: Connecting engineering decisions to real business impact and user value.
- Alignment & collaboration: Transparent communication, empathy, and working without egos.
Tip from Talent Acquisition: “Think of your TA Partner as your advocate, not a gatekeeper. Use this conversation to share who you are beyond your resume, what drives you, and how you can help shape our culture.
Myth #2: “The home coding exercise requires a flawless ‘Big Bang’ solution on the first try.”
Nobody builds perfect software in a vacuum, and we certainly don’t expect you to either. We care much more about clean problem-solving, thoughtful trade-offs, and keeping things simple than a flawless initial draft.
Our home exercise (which you’ll have up to 5 days to complete) isn’t a pop quiz; it’s a conversation starter for our 90-minute Test Review. When we sit down together, we want to talk through your solution as real teammates. We’re curious to hear how you weigh options, respond to feedback, and break big problems into small, smart steps.
Tip from Talent Acquisition: Don’t stress about over-engineering your initial code to impress us. We would much rather see a clean, readable foundation that opens up a great collaborative discussion during our review.”
Myth #3: “If I don’t know the answer immediately during technical interviews, I won’t be considered.”
False! Your thought process is more important to us than whether or not you arrive at an instant answer. Whether you’re in the Peer Interview (with two future teammates) or the Test Review, our engineering teams want to hear you think out loud.
Your first solution doesn’t have to be the most elegant. Use it as a starting point to discuss with your interviewers, and ask clarifying questions if a problem statement is ambiguous. Be ready to walk us through a previous project where you took significant ownership, detailing the technical challenges and trade-offs you faced.
Tip from Talent Acquisition: Treat the interview like solving a puzzle out loud with a friend. It’s completely okay to say, ‘Here’s my first rough idea, but let’s talk about how we can make it better.’ How you think through a challenge together with us is more impressive than whether you get it perfect right away.
Myth #4: “Engineers at Taboola only write code; they don’t need to care about business outcomes.”
Joining our global tech team is about more than building. It’s a part of the “why” behind what we are building and the impact it has. Part of the real intrigue for tech talent at Taboola is the freedom to play, test, build, and partner closely with the business to drive impact where it matters most.
With one of our foundational values being ‘Know the business,’ we look for engineers who care deeply about Taboola’s success, communicate directly with business stakeholders (Sales, Product, Account Management), and balance technical elegance with time-to-market constraints.
Tip from Talent Acquisition: The best engineers at Taboola love connecting their work to real-world results. Show us that you enjoy having a seat at the table and collaborating directly with teams outside of engineering to solve big problems.
Taboolars across teams talk about their collaboration behind building Predictive Audiences
Myth #5: “The final VP Interview is just another technical quiz.”
The 60-minute VP interview is a vital part of the process and a two-way street designed to help you align on our long-term growth, leadership, and vision.
The final stage with an R&D VP is an opportunity to look at the big picture: your career trajectory, how you approach cross-team collaboration, and how you push for engineering excellence, not about grilling you on syntax. It’s also your chance to ask high-level questions about where Taboola’s tech stack and product roadmap are heading.
Tip from Talent Acquisition: You made it to the final round for a reason, so take a deep breath and be yourself! As the final step, come prepared with questions about our culture, team growth, or technical roadmap. Showing genuine curiosity about our long-term vision proves you’re thinking about your future at Taboola, not just passing a test.
A quick checklist for candidates
So, there you have it! I hope these busted myths help you feel more at ease and confident before your interview with us. If you need a bit more support, I’ll leave you with 3 more action items to help ace your interview:
- Explore our Engineering Blog
- Prep for your interview by using the STAR method, and be ready to talk in depth about a past project you owned end-to-end, including what went wrong and what you learned.
- Treat your interview as a collaborative discussion, not an exam. Ask us questions! We love curiosity.
To learn more about why we are consistently ranked as a great place to work, check out the Taboola Life blog. Visit our careers page and realize your potential with #TaboolaLife.
