I followed this process:

• HR screening
• Hiring manager
• Technical/SA interview
• US VP of Sales interview
• Low-level sales person interview
• "VP" Sales interview

What started off as a bright beginning was soured at the end by an arrogant sales team. I interviewed with the SA and technical side of the team, which got me excited about potentially working for MongoDB. They seemed smart and driven, which was then compounded by meeting the US VP of Sales.

I should state that I went above and beyond most candidates by taking time out of my current job and work trip to New York City to accommodate an interview with him, as did he. He was really nice and very respectful; it's a shame the UK team doesn't take the lead from him.

What they don't tell you when interviewing for the UK office is that while they claim it's a committee decision for hiring, it's basically down to the VP of Northern Europe and Belux who decides. If he doesn't like or rate you, then all the other months of interviewing are irrelevant, which as a candidate is frustrating.

On that note, their sales team is unprofessional. Both times I interviewed, they were late. For the sixth interview, they showed up 30 minutes late. I'm sure they wouldn't have appreciated it if I showed up 30 minutes late and still expected to interview. Their disrespect for candidates was clear when they didn't even apologize for their tardiness.

Beware if you are interviewing towards the fifth and sixth interviews. They ask illegal questions, such as age and personal questions about your background that are irrelevant to your ability to perform a job. Also, their interview technique is basically intimidating you and then claiming it's about pressure-based assessment, when the reality is that their questions are subjective, and the answers they are looking for are purely based off them thinking their opinion is the only correct one.

Overall, it's a shame, as MongoDB is a decent product with a bright future. But on some thorough reflection, I actually feel like I've dodged a bullet due to having to work with an uncharismatic sales team with zero humility and an SA manager with no backbone to fight for what he wants, due to being scared of the sales team.

Oh, the last thing to note: expect to talk about your CV, as not a single one of them made an effort to pre-read it before the interview and then had the audacity to tell me off for not researching the CEO. Let me be clear on the last part: the CEO, not the company, the CEO. While I agree it's important to do full research, which I personally didn't get to do, knowing what the CEO writes on the MongoDB blog has no bearing on one's ability to do a job.

As someone who conducts interviews myself, I just found the sales team's overall technique odd. It's like they've been taught a specific way to conduct interviews, and if the answer isn't on that approved list, then it's wrong in their eyes.

How old are you?

What gives you character?

What university did you go to?