This was one of the worst interviewing experiences I've ever had. I wouldn't accept a role here if offered.

Referred by a former colleague, I spoke to an internal recruiter who forgot what company she works at and didn't seem to listen to what I said – she was just going through the motions. I spoke to one hiring manager, then was asked if I was interested in another role. After a systems design, I was invited for a virtual onsite (I'm not sure why they don't do in-person, given they actually are in-person).

The onsite consisted of four interviews, all one-on-one. All three engineers/EMs I met demonstrated no interest in me or in being there. One could not have been more full of himself. At that point, it was clear this was not a group of people I would want to work with.

After the onsite, I heard nothing from the recruiter – over a month later, still nothing. I heard from the person who referred me that it was a "no". The lack of professionalism from the recruiters is embarrassing. I also never spoke to the hiring manager for the role I was interviewing for, and yet presumably they would be ready to make a decision (and assume I would be as well).

Standard systems design was straightforward. Other EM questions were what you would expect – describe working style, what you enjoy, advocating for change, making tradeoffs, working cross-functionally, etc.

The ridiculous interview is a role-play, where the interviewer plays someone else (e.g., an IC reporting to you) and you play the manager. In theory, they give you the facts upfront, but the reality is that the interviewer has secret information they don't tell you, and you're supposed to guess that information. The reality is that this interview tests your acting skills, not your management skills, and anyone who thinks it's a valuable evaluation of management talent has deluded themselves.