I applied for this position through direct referral from a Greenhouse employee. After Greenhouse received my resume through my referral, they fortunately found me to be a suitable candidate and began the interview process with me. I would break down my interview process into four distinct stages.
The first stage was a phone interview with a Customer Support Specialist. This phone interview lasted roughly 35 minutes. My interviewer asked questions that delved deeply into my previous work experience. These questions went beyond asking me about what I did. These questions were framed in a way that allowed me to discuss my personality and skill set in revealing and thorough ways. The interviewer left some time at the end of the phone call to answer my questions. I poured a lot of time and energy into researching Greenhouse before my interview, so I had a myriad of questions. The interviewer answered all my questions patiently and candidly. After the phone interview, I moved forward with the second stage of the interview process.
The second stage was a project/assignment to be completed at home. The assignment required me to think creatively about conveying a nuanced topic of my choice. The most difficult part was deciding on a topic. As I was working on the project, I felt like I was accomplishing something useful. I never once thought, "Why am I doing this?" which is something I've asked myself during various projects I’ve had to complete for other interview processes. The project instructions were clear except for the deadline. The instructions stated that the assignment should be submitted within two to four days, instead of giving an exact due date and time. I presumed they meant business days. However, I later found out that my project was considered late, which stressed me out a bit. I received the assignment on Friday. I tackled the assignment on Monday and submitted it on Wednesday. I wish the deadline was presented more definitively. Luckily, the overall feedback on my project was positive, so I moved onto the next stage of the interview process.
The third stage involved another phone interview with another Customer Support Specialist. This interview lasted roughly 45 minutes. My interview asked specific questions that required me to give detailed accounts of how I handled everything from challenging decisions to conveying complex ideas. These questions pushed me to discuss my approach to scenarios that were relevant to the Customer Support Specialist role. After answering each question, the interviewer made a sincere effort to provide feedback on how my answers related to the CS role. I ended the interview feeling like each question served a significant purpose. I couldn't imagine a more productive phone interview. Afterward, I was invited to an on-site interview.
The fourth stage of the interview was located at their new office in Manhattan. This was scheduled to go for two and a half hours, but my interview went to a full three hours. The first part of the on-site interview consisted of a role-playing activity to assess whether or not I could actually perform one of the duties required of a Customer Support Specialist. Afterward, there was a Q&A session, where we both asked and answered questions. Once that was done, another interviewer walked in. We immediately launched into a casual engaging conversation. I felt like I was distracting him from the interview process, so I apologized and insisted we “get back on track.” To my surprise, he said that we were on track. This part of the interview was to assess how I’d fit into the company culture. I was thrilled to see that Greenhouse wanted to get to know me as an actual person. This experience was so refreshing. I have taken so many personality tests during my other interview processes and I never felt like any of them gave accurate portrayals of who I was as an individual. As soon as our conversation ended, the Director of the CS Department interviewed me. I went through another role-playing process. Similar to the first role-playing activity, it was intimidating, but worthwhile. She asked me a few questions after and allowed me to ask some more questions, too. She answered all my questions with such honesty. The final part of my interview was a meeting with my recruiter. We discussed typical HR logistics, but we also opened up to each other. We gave each other immediate feedback about both ends of the whole interview process. Greenhouse valued my perspective. I wasn’t just some lowly desperate candidate – I was a real human being with meaningful constructive insights. I have never ever felt that way interviewing for another company.
Leaving the interview, I thought this was, hands down, the most positive and genuine interview experience I have ever gone through. (But it was by no means, "easy.") Two days later, I received an offer. I accepted and I could not be happier with my decision.
