The interview process took a very long time and involved a lot of different people. The initial interview cycle moved quickly--first a phone screening, then a timed writing assessment, a phone interview (30 min behavioral/30 min case), and finally an in-person interview in DC with two team members (both a combination of behavioral and case). The night before my in-person interview, the HR person I'd dealt with initially (but not the person I had worked with to schedule the interview) wrote to tell me they were no longer hiring for the specific role for which I had originally applied, but that I'd be interviewing for a general Consultant position the following day. This threw me a bit, as I'd prepared answers and questions related to the initial position (which was fairly specific within a new-ish team at EAB). The behavioral interviews went well, but the cases were trickier for me, coming from a research/policy background. I didn't feel like I performed exceptionally well on the cases, or that I was able to get a sense of what it would be like to work there based solely on the two 30 minute conversations I had. There was no tour, just a nearly empty white marble waiting area and a small conference room. No HR people came to greet me. I dealt exclusively with a receptionist and the two interviewers. These are not complaints, necessarily, but it definitely did not make me feel like anyone was excited about my candidacy, or interested in "selling" how great it was to work at EAB. It felt very corporate--like they probably had 50 other people sitting elsewhere in the bldg. going through the same motions. EAB is a larger organization than I've worked for recently, so this may be really standard. (Although I have interviewed at other big consulting firms in DC in the last 6 mos and not felt quite the same way...) Two interviewers were senior members of teams on which I could potentially have been placed (again, at this point I didn't know which specific teams I was being considered for...). One of the interviewers gave me the same case that I'd done on my phone interview. I felt this gave me an unfair advantage (and I worried it was a test!), so I let her know, and then immediately regretted it because the 2nd case she gave me was much more complicated. Anyhow, I felt the first case went decently, but this one not as much--again, neither felt great, but they were not a total flop either, and the interviewers seemed positive. A few weeks later, HR wrote to say they wanted me to interview for a third position, but that I was no longer being considered for either the initial position I'd applied for, or the one for which I'd interviewed in person. I appreciated that EAB's HR was frank with me about why I was not a good fit for the role for which I'd interviewed. Overall, I found the HR people to be responsive and enthusiastic. However, they seemed to always be passing me off to someone else "on the team" and I never knew to whom I should be addressing follow ups--especially when a week or more went by without hearing from someone. There were also a lot of typos and errors with dates over the course of the 10 weeks or so corresponded with EAB HR's team over email (from multiple people). Individually, none of the errors was egregious, but eventually there were enough tiny mistakes for me to feel like it was a sloppy process (including the repeat case incident). In the end, I took a job elsewhere and withdrew myself from consideration (I don't think I was a good fit for the 3rd position, anyhow). I received a kind note from HR to conclude the process.

I applied online and was almost instantly responded to by Career Management. We set up a phone interview, which she then cancelled 3 minutes before the scheduled call. We rescheduled for the same time the following day. This interview was more akin to a phone screen. I was asked about a potential opportunity in DC (almost identical position, but working with HED instead of Health Care). After the screening, which like many other reviews state, was very formulaic, in-genuine and scripted, I followed up about the posting in DC, where I was set up with a one-on-one Skype interview. The interviewer was 15 minutes late (for a 30 minute call). It went well. I was moved on for an in-person interview in DC. This was generally really inconvenient (mostly because I was still employed and using PTO to accommodate), but to be expected, and I understood that. For whatever reason they stuck with Friday dates starting at 2 pm, making it next to impossible to complete same day travel. The travel representative even suggested telling them that Friday @ 2 was a bad idea based on flights AUS-DC with their preferred airlines and within their budget. I had four b/f calls with the travel agent to coordinate flights within the budget. I digress...everything is great. I get to my interview and I am set up to meet with three people, separately. The first interview was probably one of the best interviews I've been on. He did start though, by telling me my resume looked like a better fit for another position. I didn't agree but I understood why. The interviewer was easy to talk to and we developed a rapport that was helpful in truly understanding my skills and my fit. We ended with a case study. The case study was more or less collaborative critical thinking. The next interview was pretty scattered. I didn't feel like there was a clear objective from her and for someone who would be my supervisor, was slightly taken aback by some of her answers to my questions . . . like not necessarily understanding/agreeing with the purpose of the product. We finished early, and that is never a good sign. Then, the final interviewer came in - I've been in a room for 2 hours now - 20 minutes late. He was nice, and I enjoyed our conversation. I got this "it's Friday at 5" feeling from him though. He was easy to talk to and I learned a lot about the position and background. All three interviewers started with having me walk them through my resume. We could have saved an hour or so by having all the interviewers together, perhaps that is strategic, but it definitely felt like wasted time. Ultimately I think I was surprised. The Advisory Board is considered a fantastic company to work with and for. I was underwhelmed. I read a bit about there being a young sorority/fraternity feel...and though I don't 100% agree, I can see why people would think that. I followed up with each interviewer with a thank you. A week later, on a Sunday morning I received a form regret letter. Two weeks later I received my reimbursement check for my meals and transportation. Overall: I was bamboozled (haha) about HOW I was rejected. I really thought a company regarded so highly, one that paid for your flight, hotel and food would offer a little more feedback, especially when the process "touched" 6 people and took over a month. I suppose I simply expected more.