I applied online and had an initial 15-minute Microsoft Teams meeting with the hiring manager. It was a good conversation—straightforward and to the point.
For the second stage, I was asked to prepare a project that required significant effort (around 3–4 hours over two days). I met about 80% of their expectations. A hiring manager should recognize that if a candidate meets 100% of the requirements, they would likely lose interest within the first six months—and that was exactly my case.
During the interview, I was asked if I had direct client experience, to which I honestly said no. The manager then mentioned that they were looking for someone with that background. However, four weeks later, I saw the job reposted as a Marketing Graduate position—typically a role that wouldn’t require direct client experience or placements.
I never received any feedback or response after my interview. Hiring managers may forget how they treat candidates, but candidates will always remember their experience.
That said, I ended up securing my first-choice role elsewhere, so all worked out in the end!
