Alex Bulmer quickly rose through the ranks at Ontra after starting out as a business development associate in 2020. He is now the company’s customer operations manager. Alex might be playing the guitar, getting on a plane to a faraway place, or looking for the best burger when he’s not improving processes for the account management team.
Getting hired at a fast-growing tech startup like Ontra is no easy feat. With its innovative legal tech solutions and reputation as an employer of choice in the industry, Ontra attracts some of the best talent around. This means the interview process is rigorous, testing candidates on both their technical abilities and cultural fit.
As someone who has gone through the process and spent hours researching Ontra’s interview questions, I wanted to share the inside scoop on how to prepare for and ace your upcoming Ontra interview. Consider this your guide to crushing one of the toughest interview gauntlets out there!
Overview of Ontra’s Hiring Process
Before we dive into specific questions, it’s helpful to understand the overall flow of Ontra’s interview process. Here’s what you can expect:
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Initial phone screen – A recruiter will reach out for a 30 min call to explain the role, learn about your background, and assess your communication skills.
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Hiring manager interview – Next comes a 60 min video call with the hiring manager. Get ready for both technical and behavioral questions here.
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Project or presentation – For some roles, Ontra asks candidates to work on a case study or presentation which they’ll later present to a panel
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Team interviews – You’ll likely have a series of 60-90 min interviews with various team members and cross-functional partners.
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Follow-ups – The process concludes with reference checks, background checks, etc.before an offer is extended. It usually takes about 3 weeks from initial interview to offer.
The overall experience is described as rigorous but fair. Communication from the recruiter is clear throughout. Just be prepared to showcase your skills over multiple intensive interviews!
The Top 20 Ontra Interview Questions
Now let’s get into the meat of it – the questions themselves! Based on insider info from current employees and tons of research. here are 20 of the most common questions asked at Ontra interviews
1. How would you approach identifying and engaging potential new markets for our high-tech products?
This tests your strategic thinking and ability to expand into new markets. Ideal answers demonstrate:
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Strong market research skills
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Creativity in identifying untapped markets
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Knowledge of how to assess product-market fit
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Strategies for tailored outreach campaigns
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Examples of successfully launching products in new markets
2. Describe a strategy you might use to form strategic partnerships that can drive growth.
They want to know if you can identify win-win partnerships that align with company goals. Showcase:
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Your process for identifying potential partners
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How you evaluate partnership opportunities
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Strategies for establishing alignment and trust
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Ability to track and measure partnership success
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Examples of your past strategic partnership wins
3. Can you discuss an experience where you turned a customer success story into a repeatable sales strategy?
Here they are evaluating your analytical abilities and customer-centric mindset. Respond with:
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A specific example of identifying factors behind a customer’s success
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How you translated those factors into a repeatable strategy
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Steps taken to implement the strategy across other customer profiles
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Data showing the positive impact of your strategy on sales
4. Tell me about a complex software problem you solved and how your solution impacted the business.
Use this to highlight your technical expertise and ability to drive business results. Share details on:
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The complex technical problem and your systematic approach
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The technical solution and alternatives considered
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How you communicated and implemented the solution
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Tangible business impact such as increased efficiency or cost savings
5. Walk me through your process for setting and tracking key performance indicators for a development team.
Demonstrate your expertise in measuring team success. Discuss:
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Your approach to aligning KPIs with business objectives
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Using SMART criteria for picking metrics
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Tools and processes for monitoring KPIs
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Frequency of reporting progress to stakeholders
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How you use data to drive improvements
6. What methods have you employed to maintain a positive company culture while scaling up a tech business?
Showcase your expertise in cultural management as a business scales. Share:
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Your overall strategy and specific methods used
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Examples of initiatives like team events, open feedback channels, etc.
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How you integrate new hires and evolve traditions
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Tactics for maintaining morale and coherence
7. Explain how you would handle a situation where a customer is unhappy with our product’s performance despite it meeting all specifications.
They want to see empathy, problem-solving ability, and customer-centric thinking.
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Express understanding of the customer’s perspective
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Outline your process for investigating the issue
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Discuss educating the customer and finding a mutually acceptable solution
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Emphasize maintaining positive relationship
8. Discuss a time when you had to adapt quickly to a change in market conditions; what did you do?
Share a example highlighting your resilience, strategic thinking, and adaptability.
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Describe the change and how you identified it
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Explain your approach to addressing the change
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Share the positive outcomes and how you gained an advantage
9. Detail how you would conduct a competitive analysis in a highly technical field like ours.
Showcase your analytical skills and ability to derive strategic insights.
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Systematic approach to gathering intel on competitors
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Using tools like SWOT analysis
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Monitoring trends and innovation in the field
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Integrating customer feedback into your analysis
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Using insights to inform strategic planning
10. Describe a successful negotiation you’ve been part of and how it contributed to business growth.
Prove your experience with high-stakes negotiations. Discuss:
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The negotiation context, stakes, and opposing needs
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Your role and strategies used to find common ground
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How the agreement drove specific business growth
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Key lessons learned about negotiation
11. Share an example of how you used data analytics to inform business development strategies.
Highlight your data analysis skills and strategic mindset. Share:
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A specific example of identifying and analyzing key data
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How your insights informed strategic decision-making
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The positive business impact such as entering new markets
12. How would you prioritize feature development based on customer feedback and market trends?
Demonstrate your ability to balance different inputs. Explain:
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Your process for gathering customer feedback
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How you track market trends and developments
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Your framework for evaluating and prioritizing features
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An example of successfully balancing the two
13. Illustrate how you would manage a cross-functional project involving both engineering and marketing teams.
Show you can foster alignment across teams with different perspectives. Discuss:
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Your approach such as workshops, regular meetings, PM tools
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Facilitating clear communication and shared goals
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Mediating conflicts and respecting different teams’ expertise
14. Give an instance where you streamlined operations in a tech environment to improve efficiency.
Share a hands-on example of optimizing tech processes. Cover:
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The inefficiency identified in the tech process
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Steps taken to analyze root causes
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Specific solutions implemented
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Quantitative results such as cost savings
15. Outline your methodology for ensuring customer retention during periods of significant product updates or changes.
Demonstrate your expertise in managing change and maintaining loyalty.
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Proactive communication strategies
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Gathering customer feedback to inform transition
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Education initiatives and personalized outreach
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Examples of retaining customers through product evolutions
16. How would you approach recruiting top talent for a specialized tech role within a competitive market?
Showcase your recruiting strategies for attracting top talent. Discuss:
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Researching role requirements and company attractiveness
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Networking through events, online communities
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Targeting passive candidates
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Crafting your pitch focused on growth opportunities
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Innovative tactics such as coding challenges
17. Tell me about a time you successfully onboarded a new technical team member. What steps did you take to ensure their smooth transition and ramp up?
They want to gauge your people management skills, especially with technical talent. Share:
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How you prepared prior to their start date
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Specific training and ramp up activities
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How you provided ongoing support and check-ins
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Their feedback on the experience
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Metrics on their productivity over time
18. How would you go about debugging a complex issue with a large legacy codebase? Please walk through your systematic debugging approach.
Demonstrate your hands-on debugging skills and technical methodology. Cover:
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Your step-by-step debugging process
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Tools and commands used to reproduce the issue
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Techniques like log analysis, breakpoints, etc.
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How you isolate the root cause
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Verifying and testing the fix
19. If you were building a customer
What attracted you to Ontra and convinced you to join the company?
Before Ontra, I worked in sales at Resy. When American Express bought Resy, I looked for a way to return to a position in strategic operations. I came upon InCloudCounsel (now Ontra) and interviewed to join what was then a lean sales team.
During my first call with Elizabeth Black, VP of Talent, I was sold on Ontra’s things and people. Subsequent interviews with a range of Ontra employees confirmed the company offered the collaborative, open environment I wanted. People were honest and open, and it was clear that Ontra doesn’t have the kind of strict hierarchy that you find at many businesses. I was asked to share my ideas for making the business better even during the interview process. It wasn’t a “What can you do for us?” kind of question. It was presented as “How can we work together?”.
That initial experience illustrates my favorite Ontra company value: openness. From my work experience, I’ve learned that a workplace where everyone trusts each other is the most comfortable and productive. The openness at Ontra means employees are not afraid to ask questions, suggest improvements, and share new ideas.
You’re in your third role at Ontra. How has the company supported you in pursuing your career ambitions?
Ontra encourages you to grow and apply yourself where you think you’re best suited. I told my boss from the start that I wanted a strategic operations role, and that’s where I am now, ½ year later. All my managers have been incredibly supportive and open.
The way I manage people at Ontra and other companies is shaped by the managers I’ve worked for before. I consider what I liked and didn’t like and how I felt as a result. I then combine the best of those into my version of being an effective manager.
Blackstone partners with Ontra
FAQ
What are the best answers for interviews?
What questions are asked in a Valumart interview?
What questions are asked at the Bord Bia interview?
How do you answer a job interview question?
In your answer, you’ll want to reassure them you’d have things under control (both in what you say and how you say it), describe a specific system or method you’ve used (bonus points if you can tie it to the role you’re interviewing for), and explain how it benefited you and your team. Just make sure your answer is succinct and, well, organized.
What questions do employers ask during an interview?
While we can’t know exactly what an employer will ask, here are 10 common interview questions along with advice on how to answer them. The questions include: Could you tell me something about yourself and describe your background in brief?: Interviewers like to hear stories about candidates.
What should I know before a job interview?
: Before you walk in for your first interview, you should already know what the salary is for the position you’re applying to. Check out websites such as Glassdoor, Fishbowl, or Vault.com for salary information. You could also ask people in the field by reaching out to your community on LinkedIn. Where your work meets your life.
How do you write a good interview question?
Another seemingly innocuous interview question, this is actually a perfect opportunity to stand out and show your passion for and connection to the company. For example, if you found out about the gig through a friend or professional contact, name-drop that person, then share why you were so excited about the job.
