CNC Programmer I
Posted Sep 2, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
Tell me about a Kaizen event or continuous improvement activity you were part of, like 5S or value stream mapping. What was your role and what changed afterward?
What they are checking: genuine lean manufacturing participation versus just having heard the vocabulary
Tell me about a time you had to influence a team member or operator to do something your way, without having authority over them. How did it go?
What they are checking: ability to lead through credibility rather than title, since the posting calls this out directly
Describe the most complex part geometry you've programmed. What made it hard and how did you break the problem down?
What they are checking: depth of real machining experience and how they explain technical reasoning to someone outside the process
What would you do
Describe a time a part came off the machine out of tolerance and you had to figure out whether it was the program, the setup, or the tooling. What did you do?
What they are checking: troubleshooting logic and whether they isolate root cause instead of guessing
A machine operator on the floor comes to you saying the program you wrote is cutting inconsistently between parts. How do you handle that conversation and the fix?
What they are checking: how they collaborate with shop floor associates and respond to pressure without getting defensive
You're working with minimal supervision on the 6am shift and a program you're running into a deadline needs revision. How do you prioritize and manage your time?
What they are checking: self-direction and time management under the fast-paced, low-supervision conditions described
About the work
Walk me through how you'd program a complex part with multiple axes to hold very tight tolerances on a 5 axis machining center. What's your process from print to first cut?
What they are checking: whether they actually understand multi-axis programming workflow or are just reciting terms
Tell me about your experience with macro and sub-program variable style programming. Can you give a specific example where you used it to solve a problem?
What they are checking: real hands-on depth versus surface familiarity with the controls listed in the posting
Which controllers have you worked with directly, Fanuc, Okuma, Mori, Mitsubishi, or CELOS, and how did programming or editing differ between them?
What they are checking: breadth of actual machine exposure since the role spans several controller types
This role touches AS9100 and NADCAP requirements, especially around program libraries and revision control. What's your experience keeping documentation and revisions audit-ready?
What they are checking: whether they grasp the compliance discipline aerospace manufacturing demands, not just the machining itself
Which CAD/CAM software have you used, Esprit, SolidWorks, or others, and what did you rely on it for versus manual G and M code editing?
What they are checking: whether their software experience matches the tools this shop actually runs
How do you go about extracting and analyzing shop floor data, like cycle times or scrap rates, to decide whether a program needs to change?
What they are checking: data-driven decision making versus relying purely on gut feel
Practice this interview out loud.
Offer builds a real interview for this exact role at Regal Rexnord from your resume and this job description, asks the questions one at a time, and tells you what landed. The first one is free.
Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Regal Rexnord.