I was contacted by HR and asked if I was interested in a potential opportunity. I wasn't necessarily looking for a new job, but I'm open to hearing about potential opportunities. I completed a phone interview, a coding test, a live (go-to-meeting) tech demo, and they decided to fly my out to their headquarters for an in-person interview. Halfway through the interview they asked if I would be up for taking the role of a Solutions Architect instead of the System Engineer role that I was there interviewing for - I said yes, as that is what I do at my current job. They then told me, during the interview, that instead of the initial remote position, this would be an on-site job. That hit me by surprise, but again, given the right opportunity, I was open to discussing the possibility of relocating. We finished the interview and I flew home. I got an offer about a week later and learned that they wanted me to do a hybrid role, to do the work of both a Systems Engineer and a Solutions Architect. I was excited by this prospect, but saw that what they were offering me ended up being about $1,000 less per year than I currently make. They wanted me to do a dual role, but only wanted to pay me as an entry-level developer. I declined but they reached out to me and told me to think of a number and we could discuss further. I gave them a number, which was well under the average Solutions Architect salary for a tech company their size, and was told "we are going to go another direction", which honestly was probably the best thing that could've happened in that scenario as the whole thing (also I was never reimbursed for my hotel and rental car - which I was told I would be) left me with a sour taste in my mouth. The people seemed very nice and accepting, but it wasn't as transparent of an experience as I would've expected or would’ve liked from them.