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CIBC·Software Engineer·Take-home Assignment·Junior

Junior
May 2026

Summary

CIBC software engineering interview that included a take-home case study sent two days before a live presentation. You had to draw on your internship experience to pitch an improvement area, then defend it in real time. Pretty open-ended for a SWE role.

Questions Asked (1)

Q1

Using your internship experience as a lens, identify an area where CIBC could improve. Frame the problem, connect it to something you actually worked on, propose a concrete improvement direction, outline how you'd measure success, and discuss feasibility, risks, and stakeholders. Then present and defend it live.

Product StrategyProduct Analytics & MetricsStakeholder Management
Author's notes

Two days is not a lot of time when the prompt is this open.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Choose a specific, relatable problem from your internship that aligns with CIBC's strategic priorities, such as developer productivity or client onboarding. Structure your answer using a clear problem-solution-impact narrative, and be ready to defend your assumptions and trade-offs with data and stakeholder considerations.

Pro tip: Anchor your improvement in a measurable business outcome (e.g., reduced cycle time, increased conversion) and acknowledge that any change requires cross-functional buy-in—showing you understand CIBC's matrixed environment.

1. Frame the Problem

Clearly define the problem you observed during your internship, using specific examples and data to illustrate its impact on the team or business.

2. Connect to Your Experience

Explain how you personally encountered this problem, what you did to work around it, and why it matters to CIBC.

3. Propose a Concrete Improvement

Outline a specific, actionable solution that addresses the root cause, and describe how it would work in practice.

4. Define Success Metrics

Identify quantitative and qualitative metrics to measure the improvement's success, such as time saved, error reduction, or user satisfaction.

5. Discuss Feasibility, Risks, and Stakeholders

Analyze the resources required, potential obstacles, and key stakeholders who would need to be involved or convinced.

Key Points to Mention

  • Specific internship project or task that exposed the problem
  • Quantifiable impact of the problem (e.g., hours lost, error rates)
  • Alignment with CIBC's strategic goals (e.g., digital transformation, client experience)
  • Proposed solution's technical and operational feasibility
  • Metrics for success (leading and lagging indicators)
  • Key stakeholders (e.g., developers, product managers, compliance) and how to engage them

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.