I was approached by Bolt’s recruiters but was ultimately not extended an offer.

From a technical and experience perspective, I was a strong fit. I have years of hands-on experience in both mobile and web testing, and the QA team itself recognized me as a senior-level candidate. My home assignment was highly praised, and I was excited about the opportunity to join.

The overall process, however, left me with mixed impressions. I went through about seven interview rounds in total, investing roughly 1.5 workdays (the technical interview alone was three hours). While the QA team’s feedback was very positive, the later team interviews raised concerns.

Many of the questions asked by the teams overlapped heavily with those I had already addressed during the technical rounds. Since I assumed the teams had access to my prior answers, I kept my responses more concise, only to later discover that most hiring managers did not review the home task or technical interview notes before meeting candidates. This created unnecessary repetition and, in my opinion, a poor candidate experience given the significant time commitment by that stage of the process. Team interviews should ideally focus on personal fit and collaboration, not rehashing what has already been covered in depth.

Bolt also emphasized the use of the STAR method during interviews, which felt overly corporate and somewhat out of place for a company that positions itself as a startup. Even the interviewers acknowledged that this framework was rarely used in day-to-day work. As a candidate, it felt unnatural to shoehorn structured STAR responses into conversations that didn’t flow that way.

In the end, I was told that while I was considered senior and capable, the teams decided to move forward with internal support from QAs already at Bolt.

I wish Bolt the best moving forward, but I sincerely hope they refine their interview process to respect candidates’ time and to ensure teams are aligned and better prepared.

Describe an issue or a project, using the STAR method, that you tackled and were involved in as a QA.