The first two stages were great — the HR call and video interview with the co-founders both felt thoughtful, friendly, and focused on culture fit. It really came across that they were looking for someone who aligns with the team and is eager to grow with the company, not just someone with the most experience. That part was refreshing and left a good impression. The final round, however, was a bit of a shift. It was a three-hour, in-person interview in a very remote location, which was quite difficult to reach. This final stage was far more technical and could have easily been done virtually, before finalists were asked to spend a lot of money to travel long distances. Which, in this current economic and job market climate is very difficult to do. The structure of the final interview itself made it tricky to perform well. Multiple questions were asked in one go - the problem here is that each question required detail so it was difficult to even remember all of the questions that were asked. That kind of format might suit an older, more senior-level hire with 8+ years of theoretical knowledge, but for younger technical candidates with 4–5 years worth of experience who have grown up in different circumstances, it didn’t seem the best way to bring out the strengths of the demographic that is being targeted for this role. There were also some moments that felt a bit off. Certain responses didn’t seem well received from the external marketing manager, despite being correct, and the atmosphere occasionally felt more formal, intense and distracting rather than collaborative, which was a major shift from the initial couple of calls. All in all it felt like there was a disconnect between the advertised role, the initial couple of calls and the actual ideal candidate. There’s clearly a lot of potential at the company, and the people seem genuine in wanting to build a strong team. But the final stage of the process could benefit from being a bit more balanced, shorter, more structured, and more focused on collaboration over interrogation. That would probably help bring out the best in the kind of candidates they’re hoping to attract.