The Lampo Group's hiring process is designed to ensure you are a good fit for the company and the company is a good fit for you. Think of it as a long exploratory expedition for Lampo and you will not be disappointed by any timelines. It was interesting and I felt like I had a firm grasp on what my position would have been about and how the company operated, so extended time lines are not necessarily bad.
They used phone calls, video chat, in person interviews, a DISC profile assessment (which I appreciated), a written exam, a practical exam, and my written monthly budget as part of this process that spanned about two months. Between all the activities and interviews, I did something for this application twice a week for its duration. Through the whole process, I talked to 16 different people who were all very kind. The typical difficult interview questions could be asked no matter how far into the process we were.
One of the early tasks in the process was to fill out the DISC profile assessment, which gives a nice report of your personality. Lampo takes this report to heart. When I was on site touring their facility, every employee had part of this report printed out next to their picture. Also, the hiring manager and head of HR were reportedly discussing my profile heavily on my last call.
After two video chat sessions with the technical manager and team, I took a timed 9-question exam to evaluate my skills. Next, the practical exam was a simple AWS web server cluster I had to configure and document the process.
After that, they invited me on site for some in-person interviews. It was great to meet the teams I might be working for and see the facilities. Everything in the building I saw was well-kept and clean. The people in the halls smiled and were courteous, although the tie I was wearing tipped them off that I was interviewing. The in-person interview culminated with dinner with the hiring manager, CIO, and their spouses along with my spouse to interview her about the prospective new position. This is getting into the part of the process Lampo uses to see if the company is a good fit for you.
When they initially explained that part of the process, I assumed they meant they wanted to be completely transparent so that I could make the most informed decision. That was not it at all. Lampo makes this determination for you. After the on-site portion was over, I got a call from the head of HR and the hiring manager. They needed to make a choice of whether this was a good position for me. Based on a gut feeling, he said that it would be unkind for them to offer me a position at Lampo because I am not ready to make the move. It seemed odd to me because I felt like I was in a better position to make that call. They mentioned some unarticulated reservations they had, too, so maybe they did have a better reason they did not want to share with me. In the end, they wanted me to reapply after a few years when I am actually ready to move.