Second chance? Not this time 🙂 About a year ago, I applied to Global Relay for a Senior Java Developer role. The screening call with the recruiter was excellent - clear, professional, and left me genuinely excited. Then came the technical interview… which, let’s say, didn’t quite go as planned: The interviewer didn’t turn on the camera (I did), which immediately made it feel like a one-sided conversation. The audio quality was poor, and due to a strong accent, I struggled to catch parts of the conversation. I was interrupted mid-answer several times, as the interviewer seemed more focused on a checklist than on truly understanding my approach. The final verdict? “CRUD developer.” That was unexpected - especially after 12+ years of experience with Java, leading backend teams, designing scalable systems, and optimizing cloud infrastructure. This includes projects at Airbnb and Pinterest, where I worked on large-scale architecture and helped reduce infrastructure costs by millions annually. Some time later, I learned that the manager who interviewed me was no longer with the company. Recently, a friend encouraged me to apply again. The new hiring manager seemed genuinely enthusiastic - strong tech match, relevant experience, and great initial feedback. But then… the old interview report resurfaced. And based on that alone, my application was rejected - no second conversation, no fresh look. For context - even Google re-invites candidates for another interview after a year. Maybe that openness to fresh perspectives is part of what makes Google… Google. And to make things more ironic - just in the past month, I was contacted by three different agency recruiters about roles at Global Relay. Apparently, the market still sees a strong fit. Lesson learned: Sometimes, your first tag in the ATS sticks around longer than it should. Live and learn — and on to the next opportunity 🙂