1. What is a QA Engineer at Workiva?

A Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer at Workiva plays a pivotal role in ensuring the integrity and reliability of the company’s cloud-based solutions. Workiva is known for its complex platform, Wdesk, which is used by thousands of enterprises for financial reporting, ESG, and audit risk management. Because this data is mission-critical and often subject to strict regulatory compliance, the margin for error is virtually zero.

In this role, you are not simply a bug hunter; you are a guardian of data accuracy and user trust. You will work embedded within cross-functional teams—alongside developers, product managers, and Scrum masters—to advocate for quality at every stage of the software development lifecycle. The role demands a blend of technical acumen to build automated tests and the critical thinking skills to devise creative, rigorous test strategies for complex workflows.

You can expect to work in a highly collaborative environment where your input on product design and user experience is valued just as much as your code. Workiva fosters a culture where "people fit" is paramount, meaning your ability to communicate and problem-solve with a team is as important as your technical resume.

2. Getting Ready for Your Interviews

Preparation for Workiva requires a shift in mindset. While technical skills are non-negotiable, the company places a massive emphasis on personality, critical thinking, and cultural alignment. You should view the interview not just as a test of what you know, but as a demonstration of how you think and how you work with others.

You will be evaluated primarily on the following criteria:

Creative Problem Solving – Workiva interviewers love to test your logic outside of standard coding syntax. You must demonstrate how you approach abstract problems (e.g., logic puzzles or troubleshooting hypothetical objects) and how you break down complex scenarios into testable components.

Cultural Alignment & Soft Skills – This is heavily weighted. Interviewers assess whether you are collaborative, friendly, and adaptable. You need to show that you can maintain a positive attitude during a long interview process and that you are genuinely interested in the people you will be working with.

Technical Proficiency – You will be evaluated on your ability to write test plans, understand the software development lifecycle (SDLC), and potentially write code for automation. You must demonstrate a solid grasp of QA methodologies and how to apply them to modern web applications.

Resilience and Stamina – The interview loop can be extensive, often involving a "round-robin" style with many interviewers. Your ability to maintain energy, focus, and enthusiasm throughout a long day of back-to-back conversations is a key indicator of your professional maturity.

3. Interview Process Overview

The interview process at Workiva is known for being thorough and interaction-heavy. It typically begins with a phone screen from HR or a recruiter to assess your general background and interest. If you pass this stage, you may move to a second phone screen with a QA Manager or a technical assessment. This technical portion often involves a take-home assignment or a specific challenge designed to test your testing logic and attention to detail.

The most distinctive part of the Workiva process is the onsite (or virtual onsite) stage. Candidates often describe this as a "round-robin" event. You should expect to meet with a large number of potential colleagues—sometimes up to 6 or 8 different people—in a series of 30-minute interviews. These sessions are often split between behavioral questions, logic puzzles, and technical deep dives. It is common to interview with team members from different office locations via video conference, reflecting the company's distributed workforce.

Workiva’s philosophy is to ensure a 360-degree fit. They want the team to choose you as much as a manager chooses you. While the process can feel long, it is designed to give you a comprehensive view of the company culture. Be prepared for a mix of relaxed "get to know you" chats and rigorous logic tests.

This timeline illustrates the progression from the initial behavioral screens to the intensive final rounds. You should plan for the "Onsite / Final Round" to be a significant time commitment, potentially lasting half a day. Use the time between the technical screen and the final round to practice explaining your thought process out loud, as this will be critical for the multiple 1:1 sessions you will face.

4. Deep Dive into Evaluation Areas

Your interviews will cover several distinct areas. Unlike some companies that focus strictly on LeetCode-style algorithms, Workiva balances technical execution with pure logic and personality.

Logical Reasoning & Troubleshooting

This is a favorite area for Workiva interviewers. They want to see how you troubleshoot issues when you don't have all the answers. You are not just checking code; you are checking systems.

Be ready to go over:

• Abstract Object Testing – How would you test a physical object (like a toaster, a pen, or a vending machine)?
• Constraint-Based Logic – Solving riddles where resources are limited (e.g., weighing objects with limited scale usage).
• Root Cause Analysis – How you isolate variables to find the source of a bug.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "How would you test a brand new toaster?"
• "You have 5 objects and need to find the heaviest one, but you can only use the scale twice. How do you do it?"
• "Troubleshoot a scenario where a webpage is loading slowly for only one user."

Cultural Fit & Behavioral Competencies

Because you will speak with so many different employees, your personality is under a microscope. They are looking for colleagues who are humble, curious, and fun to work with.

Be ready to go over:

• Team Dynamics – How you handle conflict or disagreement with developers.
• Personal Motivation – What you do for fun and what drives your career goals.
• Adaptability – How you handle vague requirements or changing priorities.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Tell me about a time you had to learn a new tool quickly."
• "What do you like to do for fun outside of work?"
• "Describe a situation where you disagreed with a developer about a bug. How did you resolve it?"

Technical QA Knowledge

You must demonstrate that you have the skills to do the job. This includes both manual testing strategies and automated testing capabilities.

Be ready to go over:

• Test Planning – Creating comprehensive test cases from user stories.
• Automation Tools – Familiarity with tools like Selenium, Cypress, or specific languages (Java, Python, Dart).
• SDLC Integration – Understanding where QA fits in an Agile/Scrum environment.

Example questions or scenarios:

• "Walk me through your process for writing a test plan for a login page."
• "How do you decide what to automate versus what to test manually?"
• "Explain a complex bug you found and how you ensured it was fixed."

5. Key Responsibilities

As a QA Engineer at Workiva, your day-to-day work revolves around ensuring the quality of features within the Wdesk platform. You will likely be assigned to a specific product team operating under Agile methodologies. Your primary responsibility is to analyze requirements, identify potential risk areas, and design test plans that cover happy paths, edge cases, and negative testing scenarios.

Collaboration is central to the role. You will attend daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives. You are expected to work closely with developers to reproduce bugs and verify fixes. In many cases, you will act as the "voice of the customer," ensuring that new features not only work technically but also make sense from a user experience perspective.

Beyond manual testing, you will contribute to the automation framework. This involves writing scripts to automate regression tests, ensuring that new code doesn't break existing functionality. You may also participate in release management, helping to greenlight builds for deployment. The role requires a proactive approach; you aren't just waiting for code to break, you are actively preventing defects through early involvement in the design process.

6. Role Requirements & Qualifications

Candidates who succeed in landing this role generally possess a mix of solid engineering fundamentals and a tester's mindset.

Must-have skills:

• QA Methodologies: Deep understanding of black-box vs. white-box testing, regression testing, and functional testing.
• Critical Thinking: The ability to solve logic puzzles and troubleshoot without a script.
• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills to articulate bugs and collaborate with remote teams.
• Scripting/Coding: Proficiency in a language often used for automation (Java, Python, or similar) is frequently required for "Engineer" titled roles.

Nice-to-have skills:

• Cloud Experience: Familiarity with testing SaaS applications or cloud platforms (AWS, Google Cloud).
• Specific Tooling: Experience with Selenium, JIRA, or specific continuous integration (CI) tools.
• Agile Experience: Previous work in a Scrum or Kanban environment.

7. Common Interview Questions

The following questions are representative of what candidates have faced at Workiva. While specific technical questions change, the types of questions—specifically the logic puzzles and behavioral probes—remain consistent. Do not memorize answers; instead, practice the structure of your response.

Logic & Problem Solving

These questions test your innate intelligence and ability to think under pressure.

• "How would you test a toaster? (Consider safety, functionality, misuse, and environment)."
• "You have 8 balls. One is slightly heavier than the rest. You have a balance scale. What is the minimum number of weighs to find the heavy ball?"
• "How would you determine which of 5 objects is the heaviest if you can only use the scale twice?"

Behavioral & Culture

These questions assess whether you will add to the team's positive culture.

• "What do you like to do for fun?"
• "Tell me about a time you had a conflict with a team member. How did you handle it?"
• "Why do you want to work at Workiva specifically?"
• "What are your long-term career goals?"

QA Technical & Process

These questions verify your professional competence.

• "Describe the difference between verification and validation."
• "How do you prioritize which bugs to fix first?"
• "If you receive a build that crashes immediately, what do you do?"
• "Walk me through how you would automate a test case for a shopping cart."

These questions are based on real interview experiences from candidates who interviewed at this company. You can practice answering them interactively on Dataford to better prepare for your interview.

8. Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How difficult is the interview process? The difficulty is generally rated as "Medium" to "Hard," but often due to the length and the mental stamina required rather than impossibly difficult coding questions. The logic puzzles can be tricky if you aren't prepared for them.

Q: Is there a coding test? Yes, typically. Candidates often report a technical assessment, which might be a take-home assignment involving writing test cases or simple automation scripts, or an onsite technical interview focusing on logic and troubleshooting.

Q: How long does the process take? The timeline can vary, but the onsite portion is intensive. Expect to spend several hours (sometimes up to 4-5 hours) meeting with multiple team members. Feedback is usually provided relatively quickly, often within a few days to a week.

Q: Will I be interviewing with people from my local office only? Likely not. Workiva is very distributed. You should expect to interview with team members from other offices (e.g., Ames, Amsterdam, Denver, or remote) via video conference, even if you are interviewing for a specific location.

Q: What if I run out of questions to ask? This is a common challenge due to the high number of interviewers. Prepare a long list of questions in advance. It is acceptable to ask different people the same question to get multiple perspectives on the company culture.

9. Other General Tips

Prepare for the "Round Robin": You will likely repeat your "tell me about yourself" story 5 or 6 times. Keep your energy high every single time. Treat the last interviewer with the same enthusiasm as the first.

Embrace the Logic Puzzles: Do not get frustrated if you don't know the answer to a riddle immediately. Talk through your thought process out loud. Interviewers want to see how you attack the problem, not just if you get the right answer instantly.

Charge Your Devices: If you are doing a virtual onsite or using a provided laptop, ensure everything is charged and ready. Technical difficulties during a long interview block can add unnecessary stress.

Research the Culture: Workiva prides itself on a supportive, non-toxic environment. Highlight your ability to mentor others, share knowledge, and contribute to a positive workplace.

10. Summary & Next Steps

Interviewing for a QA Engineer position at Workiva is a comprehensive experience that tests your technical skills, your logic, and your personality in equal measure. The company is looking for individuals who are not only capable of ensuring high-quality software but who are also delightful to work with. The "round-robin" format is a testament to how much they value team consensus and cultural fit.

To succeed, focus your preparation on troubleshooting methodologies and logic puzzles. Be ready to explain your testing philosophy clearly and demonstrate how you handle complex, ambiguous problems. Most importantly, bring your authentic self to the interview. The data shows that friendly, engaging candidates who treat the interview as a two-way conversation tend to perform best.

The salary data provided gives you a baseline for negotiation. Workiva offers competitive compensation, but remember that the total package often includes significant benefits and equity components. Use this data to frame your expectations, but remain flexible based on the specific level and location of the role.

You have the roadmap—now it’s time to prepare. Approach the process with curiosity and stamina, and you will be well-positioned to join the team. Good luck!