I recently went through a five-week interview process for a basic full-cycle Account Executive position, and unfortunately, it was one of the most dysfunctional experiences I’ve had.
It began with a phone screening with the recruiter, who told me I’d be moving on to a second-round interview with the hiring manager. I promptly shared my availability, but then had to follow up twice over the span of a week just to get the interview scheduled.
After that conversation, I was asked to complete a written assignment (an example client email) and then conduct a mock cold call. Again—this was all just for an AE role. Following those tasks, I was told I’d be brought onsite and asked to provide my availability. Yet again, I had to follow up multiple times to actually get it scheduled. At this point, it felt like I was doing the recruiter’s job just to move the process forward.
The onsite consisted of interviews with the hiring manager, the VP of Sales, and two cross-functional team members. The two team members asked pre-written questions while barely looking up from their laptops—not exactly a welcoming or engaging environment.
A week after the onsite, I was informed I would not be moving forward. The reasoning? They felt I lacked an understanding of when to collaborate with team members and how to effectively communicate with leadership and stakeholders. Ironically, I was also told that my sales background and skill set demonstrated I would likely succeed in the role. Additionally, to add to the already 5 week process they told me should i receive and accept an offer that the start date would be June 2nd which would be another month out.
In short: be prepared for a long, drawn-out, and frustrating experience if you decide to interview here. You may find yourself doing most of the work just to keep the process moving.
