The problem isn&#x27;t that interview questions are too simple. Sure, quick weed out questions that can easily be sent out before an onsite interview make sense. But to have someone implement a red black tree, or implement some other algorithm that has an &quot;elegant recursive solution&quot; that is so far removed from any actual work the programmer would be doing is asinine. It&#x27;s the same reason standardized testing is such a poor measure for many kinds of intelligence. It&#x27;s forced and impractical- far removed from the real world.<p>Onsite interviews should consist of working with another engineer to look at a real problem the company is dealing with (or was dealing with in the past) to see how the interviewee approaches the problem and tries to solve it. It&#x27;s not about reaching a solution per se, but rather how well the candidate works with the team and if her approach is the correct one.