I applied for the Partner Manager (US) role and was asked to build a full strategic growth plan a few rounds in — research, development, and presentation of a partner expansion strategy for the University of Arizona, focused on adoption, stakeholder engagement, renewal, and event leverage. UA is a current partner of FeedbackFruits. During the interview, the team mentioned sharing one of my slides — the community forum concept — with their new community manager. When I later raised concern about how those ideas were being used, I was told it was “part of our standard hiring procedure, not a paid consulting engagement.” A few days later, the U.S. posting closed and a week later, a new Amsterdam-based Partner Manager role appeared with phrasing and structure similar to what I’d presented. The process came across as extractive — unpaid consulting framed as recruitment. Leading with “our average age is 28” on every call said plenty: not inclusive, and repeating it like a badge of honor came off smug — unity built on a shared resume gap isn’t culture.