Strava has become the go-to platform for athletes and fitness enthusiasts to track activities, analyze performance, and connect with a global community. With millions of users sharing their passion for running, cycling, swimming and more, Strava has redefined the world of social fitness.
As Strava continues to grow, competition for jobs is increasing To stand out, you’ll need to demonstrate both your technical skills and your alignment with Strava’s motivated, achievement-driven culture. In this article, we break down the top 15 questions you’re likely to encounter during a Strava interview along with sample answers to help you prepare
1. Tell me about your experience writing scalable, maintainable code for high-traffic web applications.
With millions of active users, scalability and performance are paramount at Strava. Interviewers want to know that you can develop resilient, future-proof systems to support their rapid growth.
In your response, highlight your experience with coding standards, frameworks, and architectural patterns that promote scalability Discuss how you optimize algorithms, leverage caching, shard databases, and design modular components to efficiently handle high traffic loads. Emphasize practices like comprehensive testing and thorough documentation that enhance long-term maintainability Share specific examples where your code implementations directly improved the scalability or sustainability of a rapidly growing product.
2. How do you prioritize tasks when working on multiple projects with tight deadlines?
Strava employees often juggle multiple projects at once, This question tests your time management skills and how you stay focused on the highest priorities
In your answer, explain prioritization frameworks you use, such as the Eisenhower Matrix or weighted scoring models. Discuss how you collaborate with stakeholders and communicate timeline changes. Share examples of how you’ve successfully adapted to shifting priorities. Emphasize being goal-oriented, yet flexible to meet tight deadlines in a dynamic environment.
3. Tell me about a feature you implemented that really improved the user experience.
Strava thrives on innovation that delights users and deepens engagement. This question reveals your ability to understand user needs and transform insights into impactful product enhancements.
In your response, walk through a specific feature you brought to life to solve a user pain point. Discuss how you identified the opportunity, designed the solution, and collaborated cross-functionally to implement it. Use metrics to quantify the improvement like increased retention or engagement. Demonstrate how you apply user empathy and data analysis to create features that users love.
4. How do you balance reducing technical debt and building new features at the same time?
Technical debt is a necessary evil, especially for continuously evolving products like Strava’s. This question tests how you balance maintenance with innovation.
In your response, acknowledge the importance of allocating resources to pay down technical debt. Discuss strategies like dedicating sprints to refactoring, establishing quantitative thresholds to trigger debt repayment, and advocating for architectural redesigns when necessary. Share examples of how you’ve aligned feature development with ongoing debt reduction, enabling sustainable innovation.
5. What is your process for ensuring your code or designs work across all relevant platforms and devices?
With apps for iOS, Android, and the web, seamless cross-platform experiences are vital for Strava. This question evaluates your technical breadth and attention to detail.
In your answer, emphasize responsive design principles and leveraging cross-platform libraries where possible. Discuss your approach to extensive testing across operating systems, browsers, and devices. Share examples of how you resolve platform-specific bugs and quirks while maintaining consistency. Demonstrate familiarity with web standards and enthusiasm for staying up-to-date as new platforms emerge.
6. Tell me about a time you led a team through a difficult development cycle. What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?
Strava leaders need technical expertise paired with resilience and team leadership skills. This behavioral question reveals how you lead under pressure.
Reflect on a specific project where your team navigated significant obstacles. Outline the challenges such as tight deadlines, technical debt, or resource constraints. Discuss how you maintained transparency, motivated the team, and facilitated collaboration to drive progress. Share lessons you learned about leading with flexibility and focus even amid setbacks. Demonstrate humble, accountable leadership focused on shared team success.
7. How do you stay updated on the latest technologies and design trends relevant to Strava?
Continuous learning is essential for staying competitive in Strava’s fast-paced industry. This question reveals your commitment to professional development.
In your response, summarize how you stay in tune with industry advancements. This may include reading blogs, attending conferences, following thought leaders on social media, or participating in online courses and communities. Share examples of how you put new knowledge into practice, such as implementing a new API or design technique. Demonstrate proactivity and genuine enthusiasm for learning, rather than just passively receiving information.
8. Walk me through your troubleshooting process when debugging a complex issue with no clear cause.
Strava engineers routinely tackle perplexing bugs and performance issues. This question tests your structured problem-solving abilities.
In your response, demonstrate a methodical, step-by-step approach. Start with gathering information by reproducing the issue and checking logs. Discuss using debuggers and diagnostic tools to isolate components and narrow variables. Share how you prioritize the highest impact issues and determine when to pull in help from colleagues. Conclude by emphasizing the importance of documenting errors and solutions for future reference.
9. How would you assess the business and technical feasibility of a proposed new product feature?
Strava must balance innovation with pragmatic analysis. This question reveals how you incorporate business and technical considerations into product recommendations.
In your response, describe how you would research market demand and competitor offerings to gauge the feature’s business opportunity. Discuss working with engineers to estimate technical scope, complexity, and execution risks. Share how you would present recommendations by articulating business benefits, technical requirements, timelines, and costs. Demonstrate synthesizing insights from diverse perspectives to provide balanced, actionable guidance.
10. How would you design a brand identity that aligns with Strava’s strategic goals?
Strava’s brand must resonate visually and emotionally with their athletic, motivated user base. This question evaluates your strategic design thinking.
In your response, discuss researching the target users and competitive landscape to inform your approach. Share how you would distill Strava’s mission and values into visual representations through color, typography, imagery and more. Provide examples of aligning design elements like a logo or graphics with specific company goals like driving engagement. Demonstrate your strategic sensibility and ability to translate complex brand positioning into memorable yet meaningful designs.
11. Tell me about your experience with test automation frameworks. How have they helped improve code quality?
Automated testing is indispensable for maintaining Strava’s high-quality apps. This question reveals your hands-on expertise and appreciation of testing best practices.
In your response, summarize your experience using frameworks like Selenium, JUnit, or TestNG to automate UI, API, unit or integration testing. Discuss how automated testing improves coverage, frees up manual testing resources, and enables continuous delivery workflows. Share a specific example where adding test automation allowed your team to ship with confidence. Demonstrate passion for using testing to enhance development velocity, stability and overall engineering excellence.
12. Walk me through how you handle design feedback, especially when it conflicts with your own ideas.
Strava’s design process requires aligning diverse perspectives. This question tests your flexibility and collaboration skills.
In your response, explain your approach to actively listening to understand underlying concerns or needs behind feedback. Discuss how you distinguish between subjective preferences versus objective improvements and make reasoned data-driven decisions. Share examples of incorporating constructive feedback to improve designs without compromising your vision or integrity as a designer. Demonstrate commitment to achieving design excellence through collaborative iteration.
13. How do you explain complex technical issues or requirements to non-technical stakeholders?
Strava fosters close collaboration between technical and non-technical teams. This question evaluates your ability to communicate complex topics simply.
In your response, share techniques you use like avoiding jargon, adding visuals, and using analogies or metaphors. Discuss asking questions to tailor explanations to stakeholders’ interests and levels of understanding. Provide examples such as explaining API usage limits, security concerns, or scaling challenges. Demonstrate empathy and recognition of diverse perspectives beyond your own.
14. Tell me about a successful technical project you led. What factors made it successful?
This behavioral question reveals your ability to deliver complex projects using both technical and soft skills.
Provide an overview of a project you are proud of. Discuss the business goals and your technical approach. Share how you built an effective team, overcame obstacles, and leveraged user feedback. Use metrics to quantify success such as system performance, business impact, or user adoption. Demonstrate solid project methodology as well as soft skills like communication, motivation, and stakeholder management.
15. Walk me through a time you had to modify your design due to unexpected technical constraints. How did you adapt?
Strava designers routinely navigate complex technical landscapes. This question tests your flexibility when faced with real-world trade-offs.
Reflect on a specific instance where you had to revise your design plans mid-stream due to technical limitations
Mark Gainey, Co-founder & Chairman, Strava
FAQ
What is the recruitment process for Strava?
