As we've continued to grow, newer team members have gained familiarity with our hiring process by shadowing longer-tenured team members through different interviews and exercises. Besides giving visibility into the process, shadowing also helps us normalize how we run and assess different exercises.

Ask candidates for permission before having a teammate shadow an interview. The pressure added by an extra person in the room may keep us from seeing a candidate at their best. We don't impose penalties (or give extra credit) for the shadow. If a candidate prefers to keep to 1:1 conversations, we'll leave the shadow for a different conversation.

Finally, shadowing an interview is an excellent opportunity to share observations and feedback with the "lead" interviewer. Take good notes! And receive them gracefully. Feedback only makes us better.