Just finished the Atlassian SWE loop for a mid-level backend role, Sydney team. Thought I'd write this up while it's fresh.
Round breakdown: Recruiter screen (30 min, standard): role fit, expectations, comp range (they asked for mine first, typical) Async take-home: they sent a Loom prompt and I recorded a 15-min walkthrough of a past technical project. No code, just me explaining design tradeoffs. Unusual but honestly kind of refreshing. Technical interview (90 min): system design for a rate-limiting service, then a coding problem on a shared environment. Not LeetCode hard. They care more about your reasoning out loud than hitting optimal complexity immediately. Values interview (60 min): two interviewers, very structured. One focused on collaboration and conflict. The other dug into a time I pushed back on a product decision. They had follow-up questions that went three or four layers deep.
The values round surprised me. I'd prepped for it in theory but the depth of follow-up was real. They want specifics. "What did your manager say?" "How did the other person react?" That kind of thing.
Offer came 8 days after the final round. Process was organized, feedback was timely, recruiter was responsive. Compared to some other loops I've been in this year, honestly one of the more professional experiences.