In the rapidly evolving tech landscape, inclusion and belonging have become essential elements of successful engineering teams. Inclusion and belonging in engineering refers to creating environments where diverse engineers feel valued, respected, and empowered to contribute their unique perspectives and talents to technical problem-solving and innovation. This competency involves both awareness of different identities and experiences and the active creation of equitable systems and practices within engineering teams.

The importance of assessing inclusion and belonging in engineering candidates cannot be overstated. Engineers who demonstrate competency in this area help build more innovative products that serve broader audiences, create psychologically safe environments that increase team productivity, and reduce costly turnover by ensuring all team members feel they truly belong. According to research from McKinsey, companies with diverse teams outperform their less diverse counterparts by 36% in profitability, highlighting the business impact of inclusive engineering teams.

As you evaluate candidates for this competency, look for evidence of self-awareness around inclusion issues, concrete actions they've taken to foster belonging, and their ability to recognize and address structural barriers or biases in engineering contexts. The best engineers don't just acknowledge the importance of diversity—they actively work to create inclusive technical environments through their code reviews, system design considerations, documentation practices, and interpersonal interactions. Structured behavioral interviews are particularly effective at uncovering these competencies.

When conducting interviews focused on inclusion and belonging, listen carefully for specific examples rather than general statements of belief, probe into the challenges candidates faced when advocating for inclusion, and assess how they've incorporated inclusive thinking into their technical work. The most valuable insights often come from follow-up questions that explore the details and impact of their actions.

Interview Questions

Tell me about a time when you recognized that a technical solution, system, or product you were working on might not be inclusive or accessible to all potential users. What did you do?

Areas to Cover:

• How they identified the inclusivity gap
• Specific technical or product elements that needed improvement
• Steps taken to address the issue
• How they advocated for more inclusive solutions
• Stakeholders they engaged in the process
• Outcome of their intervention
• Lessons learned about inclusive design

Follow-Up Questions:

• What specific aspects of diversity or accessibility were at risk of being overlooked?
• How did you balance inclusivity considerations with other project constraints like timelines or resources?
• What resistance, if any, did you encounter when advocating for more inclusive solutions?
• How did this experience change your approach to future engineering projects?

Describe a situation where you had to collaborate effectively with team members who had very different backgrounds, perspectives, or working styles from your own. How did you ensure successful collaboration?

Areas to Cover:

• The nature of the differences within the team
• Specific challenges these differences presented
• Adaptations the candidate made to their communication or work style
• How they created space for different perspectives
• Specific strategies they used to build trust across differences
• Results of their collaborative efforts
• How they measured success in this diverse collaboration

Follow-Up Questions:

• What did you learn about yourself through this collaboration?
• How did the diversity of the team ultimately impact the quality of the work?
• What specific techniques did you find most effective when communicating across differences?
• How have you applied what you learned from this experience to subsequent team situations?

Tell me about a time when you observed or experienced exclusion or bias in a technical setting (like code reviews, technical discussions, or project assignments). How did you respond?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific situation and type of bias or exclusion observed
• Their initial recognition and assessment of the issue
• Actions taken to address the situation
• How they balanced addressing the issue while maintaining team cohesion
• Support they sought or provided
• Impact of their intervention
• Systems or practices they may have suggested to prevent similar issues

Follow-Up Questions:

• What made you recognize this as a case of exclusion or bias?
• What considerations went into deciding how to respond?
• How did others react to your intervention?
• What would you do differently if you encountered a similar situation in the future?

Describe a time when you helped create or improve an engineering process, policy, or practice to make it more inclusive. What was your approach?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific process or practice that needed improvement
• How they identified the inclusivity gap
• Research or input they gathered to inform their approach
• Specific changes they implemented or advocated for
• How they measured the effectiveness of the changes
• Resistance or challenges they encountered
• Long-term impact of the improvements

Follow-Up Questions:

• What motivated you to address this particular process or practice?
• How did you gain buy-in from relevant stakeholders?
• What data or metrics did you use to demonstrate the need for change?
• How did these changes affect team dynamics or output quality?

Tell me about a time when you had to give feedback to a colleague whose behavior or technical approach was unintentionally excluding others. How did you handle the situation?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific situation and impact of the exclusionary behavior
• Their assessment of whether the exclusion was intentional or not
• How they prepared for the conversation
• Their approach to delivering constructive feedback
• How they maintained the relationship while addressing the issue
• The colleague's response and subsequent actions
• The ultimate resolution and what they learned

Follow-Up Questions:

• What signals helped you decide this was worth addressing?
• How did you frame the feedback to be constructive rather than accusatory?
• What was most challenging about this conversation?
• How did this experience affect your approach to giving feedback about inclusion issues in the future?

Share an example of when you advocated for or amplified the voice of an underrepresented colleague in an engineering context. What was the situation and what actions did you take?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific context in which they recognized the need for advocacy
• How they identified the opportunity to amplify someone else's voice
• Actions taken to create space or recognition for the colleague
• How they balanced advocacy while not speaking over the person
• Any risks or challenges they faced in taking this action
• Impact of their advocacy
• Relationship with the colleague before and after

Follow-Up Questions:

• What prompted you to take action in this situation?
• How did you ensure your advocacy was welcome and appropriate?
• What was the response from others on the team?
• How has this experience shaped your approach to allyship in technical environments?

Describe a time when you needed to learn about an unfamiliar cultural perspective or accessibility need to make your engineering work more inclusive. How did you approach this learning process?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific knowledge gap they identified
• Why this learning was necessary for their work
• Resources they utilized to educate themselves
• People they consulted or learned from
• How they applied this new understanding to their technical work
• Challenges they faced in the learning process
• Long-term impact on their technical approach

Follow-Up Questions:

• How did you ensure you were getting accurate and representative information?
• What surprised you most during this learning process?
• How did you balance the need to learn with not burdening others to educate you?
• How has this experience changed your approach to inclusive engineering?

Tell me about a time when you had to navigate a disagreement or conflict that arose from different perspectives or working styles within your engineering team. How did you approach it?

Areas to Cover:

• The nature of the disagreement and different perspectives involved
• Their assessment of the underlying causes of the conflict
• Steps they took to understand various viewpoints
• Communication strategies they employed
• How they worked toward resolution while respecting differences
• The ultimate outcome
• What they learned about managing diversity of thought

Follow-Up Questions:

• How did you ensure all perspectives were heard and considered?
• What was most challenging about navigating this conflict?
• How did you check your own biases during this process?
• How did this experience affect team dynamics moving forward?

Share an example of when you contributed to making onboarding or knowledge-sharing more inclusive for engineers with different backgrounds or learning styles.

Areas to Cover:

• The specific challenges or gaps they identified in existing processes
• How they recognized the need for more inclusive approaches
• Changes or improvements they implemented
• Consideration of different learning needs or backgrounds
• Feedback they gathered on their approach
• Impact on team members' experience and effectiveness
• Lessons learned about inclusive knowledge transfer

Follow-Up Questions:

• What specific barriers to inclusion did you identify in the existing process?
• How did you account for different knowledge backgrounds or learning preferences?
• What feedback did you receive about your approach?
• How have you refined your approach to knowledge-sharing based on this experience?

Describe a time when you questioned or challenged a technical decision because it didn't consider the needs of a diverse user base. What was your approach and what was the outcome?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific technical decision and its potential exclusionary impact
• How they identified the inclusivity gap
• Research or evidence they gathered
• How they framed their challenge constructively
• Technical alternatives they proposed
• How they navigated potential resistance
• The ultimate decision and its impact

Follow-Up Questions:

• How did you balance technical requirements with inclusivity concerns?
• What data or examples did you use to strengthen your case?
• How did others on the team respond to your challenge?
• What would you do differently if you encountered a similar situation again?

Tell me about a time when you helped build a sense of belonging for someone who was new or different in some way from the majority of your engineering team.

Areas to Cover:

• Their recognition of the belonging challenge
• Specific actions they took to create inclusion
• How they adapted their approach to the individual's needs
• Ways they created psychological safety
• How they balanced providing support without singling the person out
• Impact of their efforts on the individual and team
• Long-term changes to team dynamics

Follow-Up Questions:

• How did you determine what would help this person feel they belonged?
• What challenges did you face in this process?
• How did you know your efforts were successful?
• What did you learn about creating belonging that you've applied elsewhere?

Share an example of how you've adapted your communication or leadership style to be more inclusive of different personalities, cultural backgrounds, or work styles within an engineering team.

Areas to Cover:

• Specific differences they recognized needed accommodation
• Their self-awareness about their default style
• Changes they made to their approach
• Feedback they sought or received
• Challenges they faced in adapting their style
• Impact on team effectiveness and inclusion
• Continued growth in their adaptive communication

Follow-Up Questions:

• What prompted you to recognize the need to adapt your style?
• What aspects of adaptation were most challenging for you?
• How did you measure the effectiveness of these changes?
• What have you learned about inclusive communication that you'd share with other engineering leaders?

Describe a situation where you identified and addressed biased or non-inclusive language in technical documentation, code, or team communications.

Areas to Cover:

• The specific issue they identified
• How they recognized it as problematic
• Their approach to addressing it
• How they framed the issue when discussing it with others
• Alternatives they proposed
• How they implemented or advocated for change
• The reception from the team and the ultimate outcome

Follow-Up Questions:

• What made you notice this particular issue?
• How did you approach the conversation in a way that was educational rather than accusatory?
• What resistance, if any, did you encounter and how did you handle it?
• How has this experience influenced how you review technical content now?

Tell me about a time when you had to balance conflicting accessibility needs or diverse user requirements in an engineering project. How did you approach this challenge?

Areas to Cover:

• The specific conflicting needs or requirements they faced
• Their process for understanding the different perspectives
• How they evaluated trade-offs
• Stakeholders they consulted
• Creative solutions they developed
• How they communicated decisions to affected parties
• The outcome and what they learned

Follow-Up Questions:

• How did you prioritize between competing inclusive design needs?
• What research or consultation did you do to better understand the requirements?
• What creative compromises or solutions did you develop?
• How has this experience shaped your approach to inclusive design trade-offs?

Share an example of when you recognized and addressed an architectural or system design decision that might have disparate impacts on different user groups.

Areas to Cover:

• The specific design decision and its potential disparate impacts
• How they identified this potential issue
• Technical considerations they balanced
• Stakeholders they involved in the discussion
• Alternative approaches they suggested
• How they advocated for more equitable design
• The final decision and its implementation

Follow-Up Questions:

• What helped you recognize the potential for disparate impact?
• What data or examples did you use to illustrate the potential issue?
• How did you balance technical constraints with equity considerations?
• What principles would you suggest for evaluating system design decisions for potential disparate impacts?

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is assessing inclusion and belonging important specifically for engineering roles?

Engineering teams build products and systems that impact diverse users, so inclusive thinking directly affects product quality and market reach. Additionally, engineering has historically struggled with diversity, making inclusive behaviors crucial for retaining talent and fostering innovation. Engineers with strong inclusion competencies help create psychologically safe environments where all team members can contribute their best work, leading to better technical solutions.

How can I distinguish between candidates who genuinely value inclusion versus those who simply know the right things to say?

Look for specific, detailed examples rather than general statements. Authentic candidates typically describe both successful and challenging situations, acknowledge their learning journey, and can articulate specific actions they've taken. Ask probing follow-up questions about impacts, challenges faced, and lessons learned. Genuine candidates can usually provide nuanced reflections that demonstrate how their thinking about inclusion has evolved over time.

Should I assess inclusion and belonging differently for junior versus senior engineering candidates?

Yes. For junior candidates, focus more on awareness, openness to learning, and basic collaborative skills. For mid-level engineers, look for concrete examples of inclusive behaviors and technical decisions. For senior and leadership roles, assess strategic thinking about inclusion, examples of changing systems or processes to be more inclusive, and their approach to developing inclusive teams. The core competency remains the same, but the expected depth and scope of impact should align with experience level.

How many inclusion-focused questions should I include in an engineering interview?

For most roles, dedicate 1-2 behavioral questions specifically to inclusion and belonging within a broader interview. However, you can also evaluate inclusive thinking through technical questions by observing how candidates consider different user needs in their solutions. The key is quality over quantity—a few well-crafted questions with thoughtful follow-ups yield better insights than many surface-level questions.

How can I create a more inclusive interview experience when assessing this competency?

Ensure all candidates receive the same core questions, allow flexibility in the types of examples they can share (not just workplace examples), and recognize that inclusion experiences may manifest differently across cultures. Be aware of your own biases when evaluating responses, and use a structured scoring approach that focuses on specific behaviors rather than "cultural fit." Consider providing questions in advance to candidates who might benefit from processing time.

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