I applied through a recruiter. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Google (Mountain View, CA) in Sep 2017
Interview
Got a call from the recruiter (who knew me from another role I applied for last year) about the opening. I wasn't really looking, but hey- it's Google! (Plus she's a wonderful recruiter) Within 48 hours I was moved on to the hiring manager screen. 48 hours after that I was informed that I was going to be moving on site. Both times interviewing at Google, the communication has been fantastic.
On site interviews were typical for non-tech roles at Google- they tend to be based around situational hypotheticals as well as a few questions of what I've done in X situation in the past. I ended up plugging in the same story in 2-3 of my interviews (despite having prepared like 5), which was just a product of nerves. (I *never* get nervous during interviews except at Google) It's easy in the moment to be thrown off by the random questions- be sure to have a different set of stories for each of your on site interviews. (Take a moment to think over the question before answering)
Sounds like another candidate popped up at the last second, so I was on hold a bit longer than expected after the on-sites. (I get the impression I was runner up) But after about 8 or 9 days I was told I wasn't moving on.
The tough thing about Google interviews is that they're more focused on you as a person than you as an expert in your job, per se. Obviously, this really works for Google (can't argue that), and there's a lot of wisdom in it. But I found myself with very little idea of what this job was going to look like day-to-day- which made it hard to get super excited. (this has been the case both times I've interviewed at Google) Though the people were great, and obviously anyone would be lucky to work at Google.
Overall though- a very positive experience.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Typical stuff- how to deal with difficult stakeholders, cool things you've done in the past, how you demonstrate leadership, etc etc All very standard interview questions.