I came across a job posting on LinkedIn and applied for the position by submitting my resume and cover letter. Subsequently, I received an invitation to participate in the initial stage of the interview process. Surprisingly, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) conducted the first-round interviews, which struck me as unusual since I expected to interact with the hiring manager, the person I would potentially be reporting to. Upon joining the Zoom waiting room, I experienced a delay of nearly 10 minutes. Concerned about a potential technical issue on my end, I reached out to the COO via email and discovered that she had forgotten about our scheduled meeting. During the actual interview, I noticed the COO eating lunch in a rather impolite manner, and she appeared to be somewhat inattentive. This initial impression threw me off my usual interview game, and the COO's fast-paced, rapid-fire questioning further contributed to my difficulty in maintaining clear thinking. I must admit that I did not perform at my best during the interview due to the challenging start. However, upon reading the only employee review available, I now realize that I may have been fortunate to avoid working at a company with such apparent issues.

Unpleasant and sporadic. Looks like they're making their first internal recruiting hire which makes sense as the current process is a disaster. Didn't take about performance or how to approach strategy around time-to-fill, pedigree of talent, only spoke about DEI efforts. Which is obviously great and should be integral part of the interview process but cannot be the only barometer for success in a high-growth start-up. Again, I know the individual recruiting for this role isn't a recruiter themself so you can't expect this process to be a magical experience but I'm hoping they find someone fast so they can avoid a damaged reputation from a talent perspective.