"A company cannot 'buy a pig in a poke'". Why do Ukrainian IT employers give candidates test tasks, how long do they take, and are they willing to pay for the tasks at EPAM, Ciklum, SoftServe, Sigma Software and other companies

Why are tests needed?

Test tasks, if approached wisely, are not a pain, but a tool for mutual selection. This is the opinion of Daryna Kuzmyk, Talent & Culture Lead at Railsware. «We use a test task for every position. It clearly corresponds to the expectations regarding the role and level of the candidate and performs an important function: it helps to weed out irrelevant applicants even before the interview stage. This is not just our assessment — it is a chance for the candidate to show themselves, their skills, approach to work and interest us in cooperation,» she says.

According to the specialist, the task in the company is always calculated to take no more than four hours. «We understand that everyone’s time is important, so we consciously formulate it as practical and applied as possible. Depending on the role, it may include some research or modeling real work cases,» says Kuzmyk. Railsware, she notes, has a structured approach to assessment — a grading system of dozens of criteria with their own weight and a clear threshold for moving on to the next stage. «We often also ask for a short video — not as „homework,“ but as another signal of involvement, the ability to communicate and explain your ideas,» adds Daria.

Olga Makarova, manager of the talent search department at ERAM Ukraine, explains: test tasks are not always provided for in the hiring process — they are an additional stage that is used for certain areas, such as Machine Learning, Data Science, etc., or at the request of a specific project.

«Such tasks are given to candidates only in cases where it is really necessary to check technical skills before the interview. In fact, the purpose of the test task is twofold. This is the obvious part — checking the technical level of the specialist. But no less important is checking his motivation: is this person ready to invest in completing a task that takes time, is he motivated enough for this,» Makarova notes.

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Ciklum said they use test tasks as a tool for objectively assessing candidates' skills during interviews. «We usually offer technical specialists to take a test on the HackerRank platform. In the case of non-technical roles, the format of the tests depends on the specifics of the vacancy. If the client provides their own test, we may refuse ours to avoid overloading candidates,» the company notes.

Svitlana Maidan, HRD at Pingle Studio, says that the company gives test tasks not to get free work, but to better understand the candidate’s practical skills and approach to the tasks they will encounter in the job. «A test task helps to see these things in action. It gives both parties more transparency than just a resume or portfolio,» she notes.

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Senior Talent Operations Manager at SoftServe Oleksandra Tolokh says that candidates do not always receive test tasks when applying to the company. «To assess the candidate’s level of knowledge and compliance with specific project requirements, we most often conduct a technical interview, and then a project interview with the hiring manager and a technical expert. We can combine these two stages into one, for efficiency and time saving for both the candidate and the project representatives. Also, sometimes, at the client’s request, a test task is added to the technical and project interview, when it is necessary to solve a certain problem through code. This practice is used for specialists regardless of their level — beginner or senior+,» she says.

According to Olga Sulik, Head of Recruiting at Sigma Software, in the current recruiting process, the technical task is becoming an integral part of the selection. «This approach is quite common in the European market and not only. There are cases when the TOR requires more time than 4 hours. This depends on the requirements of the customer, the level of the vacancy, the type of task, and of course the position itself,» she admits. Sulik says that at Sigma Software, test tasks can be one of the stages of the recruitment process.

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Do candidates get paid for testing?

Recently, according to Sulik, there has been a trend towards an increase in the number of test tasks. At the same time, the recruiter adds, test tasks at Sigma Software do not require more than 4 hours to complete and are not paid.

EPAM sometimes practices test tasks that require an adequate level of skills and a moderate amount of time to complete — about an hour or an hour and a half, which a person who is looking for a job and is motivated to do so can afford to spend. «A test task is the same selection stage as, say, an interview, and it is also unpaid,» says Olga Makarova, manager of the talent search department at EPAM Ukraine.

Ciklum also does not pay for tests, citing the fact that they are part of the assessment, not a separate project. «At the same time, we respect the candidates’ time — all tasks take no more than 60 minutes, are relevant to the position level, and focus on key skills that will really be needed in the job,» Ciklum states.

Maidan assures that Pingle tries to make tasks as compact as possible — ones that take a few hours, not days. «Currently, we do not pay for test tasks, as we believe that this is part of the process of getting to know each other. But at the same time, we understand the discussion around this issue. I believe that payment may be appropriate in cases where we are talking about complex or rather long tasks, or about high-level specialists, where every hour of their time is valued,» notes HRD.

SoftServe did not introduce additional payment for the test either. «The deadlines for completing the task are discussed individually, but we give a task that should not take up much time for the candidate. You can also optimize such stages as searching for information for the test through the use of AI. The main thing is not to abuse it, but to focus on showing your own approach to the solution,» the recruiter suggests.

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Kuzmyk says that compensation for completing the test in Railware is also not provided, because, according to Daryna, this is a full-fledged selection stage, similar to an interview. «At the same time, we always provide clear instructions, context, expectations — and do not limit creativity: if you want — make it concise and structured, if you want — non-standard, in the form of a presentation or even a video. This is also part of the test — how the candidate thinks, structures information, works with the format and communicates,» the specialist says.

According to Daryna, a test is not a mechanical check, but a dialogue between the company and the candidate. «The company cannot ‘buy a pig in a poke’, and the candidate cannot come without understanding where he is going. It’s like choosing furniture without measuring the room — it’s inefficient and unlikely to lead to good results. We value the contribution of everyone who applies to us, and we believe that real cooperation begins even before the offer,» explains Daryna.

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To pay or not. Product Manager told about a case where a candidate passed the test with 3 out of 5 and he wants money for the revision. And what do the IT community think?

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