I was already employed with the company when the position came open. The job was posted internally and I applied by submitting a resume to HR, which forwarded it to my manager and had an informal conversation with my manager. (I already worked for the manager who would make final decision). There was an outside candidate also who had been referred by another employee. I had worked with the Regional Sales Manager before and he recommended me without an interview, just a brief phone conversation. And later had an in-person interview with the Regional VP. About a week later, I was told I had the job. I know that for the initial hire, there is a pretty detailed background check that can take several weeks.