My interview and hiring experience may have been different than most as I was discovered on Dribbble by a recruiting and staffing company called KForce. They reached out and and asked if I would be interested in the Stream position, which was contract to full-time. The first step was a series of phone interviews with the recruiting team about my experience, skills and interests. Once they decided to move forward with me, my info was passed on to Stream. They then set up an in-person interview with the Marketing Director and another Senior Designer where we reviewed my resume and portfolio and chatted about the way I work, previous experience, etc. Some topics that came up were how I worked with others, my process for design, and various questions relating to how I would fit in the workplace culture. They had already seen and liked my portfolio and resume, so the culture fit was the most important piece for them to figure out in the interview. Shortly after the in-person interview, I received the 90 day contract-to-hire offer and accepted it. I was then warmly welcomed and made to feel part of the team from day one. I was given some training and then dove straight in to the work with little hand-holding (which was a good thing to me). They want to hire good people and then let them do their thing, something I had been looking for in a workplace! I was also able to take on several leadership roles on various projects pretty quickly. After nearly 3 months, they checked in with me to make sure I was still liking it and wanting to continue with them full-time. I confirmed that I did and they then extended the offer. Stream has tons of great benefits and they really make it a priority to create a positive workplace culture with flexible hours, good benefits, events, meals, free snacks, giveaways, etc. The culture is very much like that of the modern startups you hear about: work hard and play hard. Overall the process was really smooth and everyone involved made me feel comfortable. At first, I had mixed feelings about the contract-to-hire model, but I quickly I realized that it's a really good way to go because you and the company get to feel out if it's a good fit. It's a great way to ensure the office culture is consistently great and that every employee isn't just getting a job, but getting to be a part of something more. :)