2024-11-28 · Caroline Berg

Portfolio Reviews: What Hiring Managers Actually Open

Last month we ran a panel with engineers who hire for protocol and infrastructure roles in Japan and Singapore. We expected divergent opinions; instead, README structure and test coverage rose to the top across all five.

Managers open the README before the code tree. They want a one-paragraph problem statement, setup steps that work on a fresh clone, and an honest limitations section. Fancy landing pages for repos rarely help.

For smart contract repos, they search for test files next. Fuzzing is a plus but not mandatory; missing tests are a fast filter. Frontend repos get checked for wallet error states — silent failures are a red flag.

Our Interview Prep Intensive now includes a README rubric derived from this panel. Students who adopt it report shorter feedback loops even before mock interviews begin.

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