Software Development Engineer I (SDE I)

Given how connector- and API-heavy this role is, your resume should work hard to surface any project where you've consumed or built a REST API — even a small one. Don't just say "built a project using an API"; mention specifics: which API, how you handled authentication, how you parsed and stored the response data.

If you've worked with any form of data pipeline, ETL script, or scheduled job — even something as simple as a Python script that pulls data on a cron job and writes it to a database — include it. It directly mirrors what this role does.

Highlight OOP fundamentals through your project descriptions rather than as a bullet-listed skill. "Designed a modular class structure to support multiple payment gateways" says more than "know OOP."

Avoid the common fresher mistake of listing every language and framework you've briefly touched. Hevo is explicit that they want proficiency in Java, TypeScript, or Python — pick the one you're strongest in and let your projects prove it, rather than diluting your resume with a long, shallow skills list.

Technical topics to revise: core data structures (arrays, hash maps, trees, graphs) and their time complexity, basic OOP design (interfaces, inheritance, composition), how HTTP works (methods, status codes, headers), JSON parsing, and basic authentication schemes like API keys, OAuth, and basic auth.

Practical preparation: try building a tiny "connector" yourself — pick any public API (GitHub, OpenWeather, a public REST sandbox), authenticate, fetch data, handle pagination or rate limits if the API has them, and store the result somewhere. This mirrors the actual job closely enough that you'll have real, specific things to talk about in an interview.

HR round questions: be ready to explain why you're interested in backend/data infrastructure specifically, how you handle being stuck on a bug for a long time, and how you'd approach a task where the requirements are unclear — this last one connects directly to the "feature breakdown" responsibility mentioned in the JD.

Role-specific concepts: it's worth understanding, at a basic level, what a "data pipeline" actually does end-to-end (extract, transform/normalize, load) and why rate limiting and retry logic matter when talking to third-party APIs. You don't need deep expertise, but showing you understand why these problems exist will stand out.

Hevo's own public messaging emphasizes that the company sees itself as early in solving the data infrastructure problem, which tends to translate into a culture where individual engineers, including junior ones, get real ownership over specific pieces of the product (like a set of connectors) rather than being confined to narrow, tightly scoped tickets. The mentorship structure explicitly built into this role's description also suggests a team environment where senior engineers are expected to actively guide newer hires rather than leave them to figure things out alone. As with any company, candidates should validate their own read on culture through the interview process itself.