Overall, the interview process was relatively straightforward from a structure standpoint—I met with HR, followed by the hiring manager, and then another senior leader. However, the process took more than two and a half months to complete, with interviews scheduled roughly a month apart.
Unfortunately, the communication and coordination throughout the process were disappointing. During my initial HR interview, the recruiter was not on camera for much of the conversation, and when she was, she appeared to be conducting the interview from her phone. She also seemed to be reading from a list of questions and was unable to answer basic questions about the role.
During that conversation, I was informed that the position had evolved and would support a different function than originally posted. I asked several questions to better understand the changes and was told someone would follow up with answers. That never happened. When my second interview was scheduled, I reached back out to HR to follow up and was instead asked to resend my questions, even though I had already discussed them during our initial conversation.
My interview with the hiring manager was excellent. We had a great discussion, and she mentioned wanting to schedule a follow-up conversation and potentially include the business leader. Nearly a month later, my third interview was scheduled with a different interviewer. Despite reaching out to HR multiple times to understand who I would be meeting with and what to expect, I received no response. I only learned the interviewer's identity two days before the interview after they were added to the calendar invitation.
I also expected the hiring manager to join that final interview based on our previous conversation, but she never did. While I believe the discussion itself went reasonably well, the overall experience felt very different from the previous interview.
Following the final interview, HR informed me that I was one of two finalists and even commented that I would make a great addition to the company. A few days later, I was notified that another candidate had been selected. The feedback I received was that I lacked experience in certain areas. However, those capabilities were never mentioned in the job description or explored during any of the interviews. Had those expectations been communicated earlier, I would have highlighted the relevant experience I do have.
What made the experience even more confusing was that shortly after being informed the position had been filled, I saw the role reposted (so the role wasnt filled) which is totally fine and I understand, but that role still reflects the old job description and doesnt reflect the updated role that I was told during my interview process. Given the amount of time invested by everyone involved, I would have expected greater transparency around the hiring process and the company's hiring needs.
While I appreciate the opportunity to interview, the overall candidate experience was impacted by the lengthy timeline, inconsistent communication, and lack of clarity around both the role and the evaluation criteria. Better communication and greater transparency throughout the process would significantly improve the experience for future candidates.