The epitome of a bad interview process. 6 total rounds which is masked by saying "we value finding the perfect fit." All went well enough, then a surprise final round came with a new director. I made it to the references stage and they reached out to at least one of my references, I did a self-review, and they even contacted me to discuss something on my self-review. Two days later, a generic email template rejection. I asked for feedback and none was given. almost 5 weeks plus at least 12 hours of hard prep for nothing. Everyone was really nice during the process. The recruiter was great, but the candidate experience couldn't have been worse.

The interview process took over 6 weeks start to finish, which was excessive. I assumed 3 rounds, but there were 5-6 different interviews with different people and departments. After the last interview, I believed an offer was coming. I had built a slide deck, shown my worth, everyone seemed thoroughly impressed. "We need you. We really need you," was the last thing the hiring manager said to me. After a week with no notice, I got a generic "sorry but" email. This company takes itself SO seriously. It doesn't take 6 weeks and 6 rounds to determine if someone is a fit. When I asked why the role was empty, I was given some statements about "exponential growth," but I really think it's just the culture of the organization. Hard work, long hours, high turnover.