I applied through a recruiter. The process took 2 months.

Review: The interviewers themselves were professional, and the conversations were pleasant. The interview loop was also fairly standard:

• HR screen
• Refactoring exercise
• Coding interview
• System design
• Behavioral interview

Unfortunately, the overall candidate experience was undermined by poor coordination and weak follow-through from the recruiting side. Communication was inconsistent throughout the process, and I had to chase updates multiple times myself. At one point, I was told the next steps would be explained to me, but that conversation was postponed twice and then cancelled.

What made the process particularly frustrating is that, after nearly two months and after being told I had passed all the interviews, I was informed that there was no longer an open position due to budget constraints and/or lack of visibility in the roadmap. That is difficult to reconcile with the amount of time and preparation expected from candidates. The bar for candidates was high; the bar for process ownership seemed much lower.

Pros:

• Professional interviewers
• Pleasant discussions
• Reasonably standard interview structure

Cons:

• Poor coordination
• Inconsistent communication
• Lack of ownership from recruiting
• Role no longer available after completion of the process

Coding exercise: Gilded Rose Refactor Kata