> And as for the code, we included what we thought was a trivial nested for-loop problem and virtually nobody could even get started on it.
It's possible that you asked the question poorly, or the solution wasn't as obvious as you thought.
Designing interview questions is hard[1]. I'll test out new questions on my peers at least two or three times before putting them in front of a candidate. And many don't make the cut. If a good engineer who's relaxed can't solve it easily, then a stressed out candidate will have no hope.
[1] This is why I hate seeing candidates share specific questions online. As an interviewer you'll have to scrub a good question, and switch to something you're not as familiar with. This hurts good candidates.
It's possible that you asked the question poorly, or the solution wasn't as obvious as you thought.
Designing interview questions is hard[1]. I'll test out new questions on my peers at least two or three times before putting them in front of a candidate. And many don't make the cut. If a good engineer who's relaxed can't solve it easily, then a stressed out candidate will have no hope.
[1] This is why I hate seeing candidates share specific questions online. As an interviewer you'll have to scrub a good question, and switch to something you're not as familiar with. This hurts good candidates.