Multiple rounds (some which came as a surprise):
1. 30-minute hiring manager screen, very conversational
2. Gave me a prompt to prepare a 40-minute presentation
3. Presented presentation to panel of leadership & cross-functional stakeholders
4. Another call with the hiring manager (...here's where it got weird)
5. A call that I requested to speak with another member of leadership
6. Rejection phone call
The interview process was poorly designed, and I'm not sure how the HM could have made an informed decision when my two phone calls with them were so informal and not to-the-point. The only feedback I received throughout the entire process from the HM was, "your presentation was polarizing". That struck me as an odd and somewhat inappropriate choice of words to use with a candidate, especially at a leadership level. It was a red flag for me, since constructive feedback can be given in more professional, actionable terms.
I had to reach out to recruiting multiple times to get an update. For a head of department/leadership level role, this is disappointing. I was not "kept on ice" or whatever they're supposed to do, so over the weeks I spent waiting for a response, I truly lost interest in the company and the role.
My presentation panel lacked diversity, so I had to request to speak to someone else in leadership -- I shouldn't have to ask for a diverse panel in 2025 (but maybe that's truly representative of their culture).
7 weeks later, I find out that they went with someone else after a 10 second call with the recruiter. They went with someone local in San Francisco (they never mentioned being in-person was a requirement of the job). Quite frankly, one of the most unorganized interview processes I've been through.
Also, it feels like the company is lagging with respect to implementation of internal and external use AI. My pitch was to keep the team small and automate where possible using AI, and they looked at me like I had three heads (re: the "polarizing" comment). You probably won't want to work here if you're someone interested in innovating and challenging the status quo.
