Looking for perspective from people who’ve been on either side of this.

I recently went through a 3-round process for a post-sales technical consultant role:

1. Recruiter screen: standard, went fine.
2. Hiring manager interview: honestly didn’t feel great walking out of this one. Not a disaster, but I knew it wasn’t my strongest.
3. Technical interview: a take-home where I had to show how I’d solve a problem through code and diagrams, then walk the team through it. I felt I really clicked with the panel here. Good back-and-forth, they engaged with my approach, and I left feeling good about it.

A week later I got this:

“While the team agreed you have a relevant technical background, we’re going a different direction with the candidate we’re looking to hire at this time.”

That’s all. Nothing about the hiring manager round, the technical, or anything I could work on.

I emailed the recruiter asking if the team could share anything more specific and got no reply. I messaged the hiring manager on LinkedIn and heard nothing there either. Two days later I followed up with the recruiter again, and I have a feeling it’s going to get ignored too. To be fair to everyone, this recruiter seemed to do the bare minimum the whole way through. He was even slow to pass my technical deliverable to the team before the interview.

To be clear, I don’t think I’m owed detailed feedback. I know companies don’t have to give it, and plenty have legal reasons not to. But after three rounds and a take-home project, a one-line form response feels pretty cold. You put real hours into this, and you walk away with no idea whether it was your skills, your interview style, or just that someone else had a better fit.

So, genuine questions:

• How far have you gone to get real feedback? Did it ever work?
• Is messaging the hiring manager directly normal, or does it cross a line?
• Hiring managers and recruiters: what actually makes you willing to share honest feedback with a rejected candidate?
• At what point do you just let it go?

I had an interview this morning for a position that I truly want and I was so nervous I caught myself rambling more than once. I even apologized to the interviewer and said I am sorry but I feel like I rambling a bit because I am so excited about this opportunity and I am quite nervous! He laughed and said he understood, but I am worried I may have blown the interview because of it.

At the end he said I could reach out if I had any more questions etc while he finished up doing 1st round interviews. I said, please feel free to do the same. I said if you feel like I didn't explain an answer or provide enough information, feel free to reach out to me and we can either chat again or I can answer by email if you prefer. I apologized again and said its just that it isn't often a position comes along that you feel you are perfect for and you could make an immediate impact and I think that made me even more nervous.

I talk fast anyways and when I am nervous, yikes, even moreso!

I rehearsed and had my answers all prepped but feel like I made a mess of the interview :-( How do I stop myself from rambling?

Tomorrow I have an interview for Sainsbury’s and McDonald’s. I need a job desperately but I am bad at interviews. I also haven’t got much experience with them as I’m only 17. I’m really not sure how to prepare, what questions they may ask etc. Does anyone have any tips?

Exactly as the title says, I moved on in the process for a position I thought I flunked in the recorded interview stage and will now be completing a 6-hour-long assessment on PowerPoint. Has anyone ever encountered something like this? I'm hoping it won't take the whole time but I really want this job.

I was fired from my previous position for using Claude Code. The company was way behind in technology so I took matters into my own hands to produce and innovate for the company. Not trying to defend my actions, its just frustrating.

So now I'm searching for jobs and am having a hard time explaining to the HR screener why I don't have a job. I was in Data Science and am upskilling and looking for jobs in the AI Engineering field. So every position I am applying for will use some sort of AI coding assistant. Once I get to further rounds in the interview process it will be easier to be more open because the technical people might understand my frustration at my past position. However, the HR screener will just hear that I was non-compliant and that is a red flag. What do I say here? Do I lie and say I quit?

TLDR

1. Non-Discretionary Bonus: Is it realistic or a red flag to ask an employer to make my performance bonus non-discretionary in my initial offer letter?

2. Prorated Bonus on Layoff: Is it unheard of to request a clause that prorates my bonus if I get laid off prior to the payout date through no fault of my own?

3. Guaranteed Severance: Has anyone successfully negotiated a standard minimum severance (like 4 to 8 weeks) directly into their initial job offer letter for an IC / mid-level ($80k–$100k) remote role?

Context
I'm Gen Z in corporate, and I was laid off about three weeks ago. This marks my 4th layoff in under 4 years, and none of them were performance-related. At my latest role, my manager actually got laid off a month before I did.

Because of this, I've completely stopped drinking the corporate Kool-Aid. I've dealt with companies artificially inflating total comp during offer stages by dangling a "discretionary bonus" to justify a base salary below what I asked for, only to change goalposts or lay people off right before bonus season. At my second-to-last role, I was laid off right before performance reviews while essentially doing the work of two people, and I had to fight like hell just to get the bonus I earned. At my last layoff, I tried pushing for the same thing and couldn't get it, though I managed to negotiate one extra week of severance (looking back, I still feel like I could have gotten more).

I'm currently deep in interviews and expecting an offer soon (possibly late this week or early next month). I was making six figures at my last role, but I'm looking at $80k roles now because they're remote and that's best for my family right now. Given how burnt I've been, I'm considering asking for these three things in my next offer letter:

1. Non-Discretionary Bonus: Categorize my bonus as non-discretionary, meaning it's treated as part of my total comp rather than just a discretionary policy.

2. Prorated Bonus Protection: If there's a no-fault layoff before the bonus payout, the company must prorate what I've earned.

3. Pre-Negotiated Severance: In the event of a layoff, the company is obligated to pay 4 to 8 weeks of severance (4 weeks minimum).

I'm expecting some pushback, but frankly, given what I've been through, I don't feel like I'm asking for a lot, especially for an $80k remote job.
Am I doing the most by asking for these three things, or is this reasonable risk mitigation? Has anyone actually gotten clauses like this added to an IC offer?

I was invited to a super day for an internship at a bulge bracket firm for a math heavy role. I was interviewing at the same time as 2 other candidates and had time to speak to them in between interviews and afterwards. They were both asked maths and coding questions, whilst mine were entirely about my projects and behavioural / situational questions. During my second interview, the interviewer talked about his role for 20 minutes and didn’t ask any questions, and ended the interview a little early.
Is there any chance they were just happy with my math credentials from my CV and were just looking to see if I was a good fit? Or am I cooked?

So recently I had an interview . I performed well in the technical round.

My final round was going pretty well & the interviewer was impressed too until her last question ... Where when she asked if you are interested in exploring a new domain or want to continue with the domain you are still working on because you have expertise in that?

& I said the latter.

After rejection i realised what blunder I said, as the former could have added a significant advantage to my resume.

What the heck was going on in my mind that time that I didn't understand that she was interested in taking me maybe placing in some other project if not in the project she was hiring for .

All she wanted was a yes from me.

I know it's not the end, but 😭

Hi everyone! I'd appreciate some outside perspectives on my recruitment process, as I'm getting increasingly anxious about the lack of an update.

Here's my timeline so far:

• September 8 – Initial interview: Went well, and I progressed to the next stage.
• September 21 – Practical assessment: The team was really happy with my performance and contacted me immediately afterwards to progress me. We also discussed potential start dates and the possibility of me joining in December and attending the company's Christmas event if I were to start then.
• September 29 – Coffee chat with the hiring manager and a senior team member: This went well, and the recruiter later told me the team loved me and that I was roughly 90% of the way there, pending the final interview.
• October 13 – Final interview with the MD: The interview lasted around 30 minutes. The conversation flowed naturally, we got along well, and we both asked each other personal questions alongside discussing my background, current role, experience, motivations, and future goals. I came away feeling positive about it.

Since then, I've been waiting for a final decision. The recruiter initially said they were discussing things internally and that it sounded like the interview went well, so they were hopeful it would be good news.

More recently, the recruiter explained that the team had been extremely busy over the past couple of weeks because it's their financial year-end. They said they hoped to provide an update ASAP and specifically reassured me that the delay wasn't for a negative reason.

It's now October 28, and I still haven't received a final decision.

I was previously told I was the only candidate at Stage 3, but I don't know whether there were other candidates at the final MD stage.

I'm trying to work out whether this kind of delay is normal at a large firm, particularly around year-end, or whether I should be concerned that they're considering other candidates or may not intend to make an offer.

The role is also in a different city but i have expressed that i am willing to relocate and excited about the possibility.

Has anyone experienced a similar wait after a final interview? How did it turn out? I'd really appreciate honest opinions!

Hi OPs! I’d like to ask for your opinions or insights regarding my application.

Here’s my timeline so far:

October 19 – HR Interview: It lasted around 15 minutes and was pretty chill. HR mainly reconfirmed my work experience, background, and salary expectations, with a few technical questions.

October 20 – Hiring Manager Interview: The interview was also conversational and focused mostly on my experience. There were a few technical questions, but I actually asked more questions about the company’s processes and controls.

October 22 (Morning) – Senior Manager Interview: I consider this my final interview. She asked about my management capabilities and some technical questions related to the company. I felt that the interview went smoothly, and I was endorsed to HR right after the interview.

October 22 (Afternoon) – HR Email: HR contacted me and asked me to accomplish a Compensation and Benefits form via email, which I submitted.

As of today, October 28, I haven’t received any updates from HR. It’s been three banking days since I submitted the requested information. SHOULD I BE WORRIED IF I GOT THE JOB OR NOT? HUHU

I recieved an offer for a job recently but the pay is extremely low and the "full time" hours are misleading as they only want offer 30 hours "until the business grows"... I am accepting the offer because I need some sort of income and they are the only offer so I have continued to apply for other opportunities in the meantime.

I applied on Indeed for a Assistant Manager position at a Yoga Studio where their salary range aligns with my expections. The job listing stated that it's primarily an Operations role with some sales. I have a lot of experience in Operations and sales but I want to completely divorce myself from sales jobs. I don't mind being responsible for some sales and keeping up with metrics an the ASSISTANT manager.

I get a message from the recruiter who I believe is a Regional Manager, she ask a bunch of questions through messages (this is via Indeed). I was little annoyed with all of these questions and it is not a formal interview. They want to set up a phone interview. Ok cool.

I had to follow up with lady THREE TIMES to solidify an interview and I am convinced she forgot about my application.

The first round is a phone interview with the Regional Manager that is somewhat informal at first. They asked about my professional history and why you would want to work for the company and where you would see yourself professionally years from now. She then explains that the job is primarily / heavily sales focused.

The expectation of multiple sales every single shift with NO COMMISION STRUCTURE, which is bonkers to me. She asked how I would deal with staff that aren't performing well and added they struggle with retention and I would have to fire staff that don't meet their goals. I roll my eyes over the phone. It's like she is trying to deter applicants from this job.

You mean to tell me that the only motivation for a staff to put effort into sales they don't get commision for is by threatening their job??? It's no wonder the turnover is abysmal.

I addressed that the job listing stated that the role is primarily "operations" focused just for her to tell me "Sales is a big part of operstions in this role". I wanted to end the interview right there but I stuck around.

Next, she wanted to go into a sales role play and I somewhat entertained it. Mind you, I have no information on the specifics of the services and no background for her character other than a difficult sale with so many objections which essentially made it not possible to immediately sell "this person" she was posing as. My best sales approach is actually getting to know the prospect and having clear knowledge on the services to best serve their needs. I have enough experience in customer service and sales to recognize that the prospect she was posing as in not realistic nor common. She just wanted to push how far I can work through objections.

Right as she was about to "critique" my roleplay I stopped the interview and told her:

"I'm sorry but I have to stop the interview right here. This position is NOT for me. I don't feel comfortable with the structure of this role and it's apparent there is no real care into the customer service and client experience aspect of operating a HEALTH and WELLNESS facility. I understand money / sales are needed to operate but from what I am hearing it seems exploitive of entry level employees who actually want to grow. Having such a ruthless sales structure in THIS ECONOMY where people are not investing in expensive luxury health and wellness services is a recipe for disaster as a business. Thank you for the consideration but I can't continue to entertain a role like this. My application can be withdrawn."

She attempted to give me this generic response like "Thank you for your transparancy, this is why we have the phone interview and roleplay..."

I cut her off told her thank you for your time and godspeed on the search and hung up. Since I have accepted an offer, luckily I am not desperate. Onward with my search!

I was given a hireviu due the same week of a round of a live behavioral and live case interview. I got moved to the final round but recently found in my spam folder a hireviu invitation due about a week ago. Should I bring up to recruiter or drop it?

Just want to share a success story for those who need a little motivation!! I spent like every day scrolling this sub between my final (third) interview on Sept 18 and this week—so over a month. The interviews went super well, the hiring manager loved me from the start, and overall just had really positive phrasing about everything. But then my final interview came and went, weeks passed, I got I think one email check in that was like a week and a half after the final interview and then crickets after that……. I was fully convinced that they were “keeping me warm” while waiting to hear back from their top choice, because that’s what everyone in this sub says (for good reason—it’s definitely probably the most common occurrence) and was disappointed because I really felt like I would be the top choice, but figured they probably just talked positively from everyone.

Well I’m happy to share that yesterday, 5 weeks and 3 days after my last interview, I received an offer. And it turned out that the reason it took so long was because the hiring manager was advocating for me with higher-ups to be able to offer me a senior analyst role, even though the open position I applied for was just a standard analyst level. She was also able to get me in the salary range I had mentioned I was looking for—even though I did make it clear I was motivated to leave my job and would have accepted the slightly lower range they were initially advertising the job as.

I was literally in tears because I had really kinda given up on this opportunity. So I just want to encourage everyone that’s still waiting to hear back—yes the job market is an absolute hellscape right now, and obviously if you’re not hearing back you should always keep applying and keep interviewing, BUT it’s not always as hopeless as it feels!!💛 You never know what’s happening behind closed doors. Hang in there!!! You guys got this!!! 👏🏼🥳

EDIT TO ADD: no idea if it actually made a difference, but this was for a HRIS role at a moderately-sized healthcare system (they have I believe one hospital, a surgery center, and three clinics). My hours of desperate internet research told me that hiring processes can take longer at healthcare facilities because there’s typically more approvals/red tape, even for non-clinical positions. Again no idea if that actually had anything to do with it, but may be worth noting!

I had an interview yesterday 10/26. The job starts on 11/9. Orientation is 11/5. Given how soon the job starts, if I didn’t hear back today, does that mean I didn’t get the job? Or could there still be a chance? Should I follow up tomorrow? I know it’s only been a short while but I just assumed that a decision would be made already considering how soon the start date is (literally next Thursday) and they said they’d be doing background checks as well which I know can take time.

When I was asking one of my questions at the end, the more senior person said “ohh the typical question” like excuse me?? I had asked what does success look like in 90 days, which I didn’t realize was a bad thing to ask. It was a Zoom panel interview and the other man was talking to me like I already got the job and he loved all my answers (they all did but especially him), and a woman was saying “good” and “awesome” and nodding at my responses. It was just the senior person who was the one who invited me to interview that was offputting. He even mentioned a possible second interview when the job is paying a measly $19 an hour😵‍💫😵‍💫 this is for an internship btw

I've been interviewing for a new job recently. Was messaged by they're internal recruiter on LinkedIn to see if I was interested in leading a new function in EMEA. The role would have doubled my salary and my company is doing layoffs, so worth a shot.

I had:

Recruiter screen

Hiring manager interview

Case study

5 person panel interview (30 minute individual interviews)

Final interview with senior exec

The final interview was last Monday. They said they'd get back to me last week, even sending a holding email on Thursday.

Hear back today that after a load of discussions, they've decided to 'focus on US priority' instead. All of that time and effort on both sides, wasted, and they're not even going through with hiring for the role.

Absolute farce.

Hello!
I have my first interview tomorrow (like a legit interview) for a job as clientèle service.

I'm really stressed about the type of questions they're going to ask.

Can someone sort of give me an example of what type of questions will be asked ? Will they focus primarily on what I did at my last job or more questions about ME as a person? Or are they going to throw a curveball?

Thank you in advance! :)

As the title says.
I get so anxious in interviews and find my voice wavering or faltering when it comes to talking about myself. Never do I have issues talking with strangers. I work in healthcare and have no issue talking with patients. It is literally just interviews and when I have to talk about myself or WHY I want something or WHY me?

What can I do? I have watched so many videos on interviewing and I have practiced questions and have answers prepared. I tell myself to imagine they’re patients. I take a moment before answering. But to no avail.

I think it’s that I hate being perceived, I hate feeling and knowing they’re judging my every move and answer. I want it so bad and I have good answers and thoughts, but my mind goes blank and or I start to feel like I’m saying the wrong thing.

In the past, I have kept it to a point of just nerves and my voice wavering. Today, one of the interviewers asked me “question, are you super nervous right now?” And for some reason tears started to fall.

I am SO embarrassed, I currently work at this hospital in the department and I feel like I can’t even come back lmao. They were incredibly nice, said I’m not the first and I won’t be the last, that’s why tissues are on the table etc. They said I had the heart for it. Idk, I’m hoping I didn’t totally blow it, I know I had good answers when I got them out.

Just suuuuucks. Advice?

I have been in sales for a few years and recently lost my job. I’ve been taking about 2-3 interviews a week for nearly entry level SDR or BDR jobs with over a year as a SaaS SDR and a year in full cycle consultative sales.

I am not sure what I am doing or saying (if anything) that is not even getting me to the 3rd round of interviews. I can do these jobs with my eyes closed yet I am sitting here unemployed and feeling defeated that some kid fresh outta college with zero experience is getting a job over me.

I’ve redone my resume, LinkedIn, and research the company a decent amount to know the product enough for the initial interview but still no dice.

I’ve gone as far as to reach out to the hiring manager directly to show initiative, and even had reached out to someone in seat and offered to put in a good word for me. I seriously don’t understand.

The only worry I had was I was fired from my last job for some politics and guidelines to what I said. I cleaned up and fixed how I worded that and don’t see it as big of a problem as I initially thought.

Is anyone else experiencing this? Any and all advice is welcomed as I am exhausted at the moment and feeling ultimately defeated by the situation.

I had an interview last week. It went so well that when I asked at the end if they had any reservations they said no. And the whole process was full of green flags.

But this morning, I got the email from them, the HM that I didn't get moved on to the next step.

Second rejection after interview since I've looked for a new job a few months ago.

I had a contract end after 2 years (budget cuts etc. on good terms). Then I took a perm job I found to survive - not ideal (pay etc) but thought would be ok for bit. Week 2 all work was frozen (I never got work), learned they just had layoffs, the work was not even close to job description or interview (not using skills). It’s like bait and switch, rest of my team seems miserable and also say have no work or nothing meaningful and also are not doing work they expected or using their skills. And are worried about their jobs.

Then we just had a big reorg - still don’t have work- and have offered to do things. And now I’m assigned to a different company (giant corporation)and no longer in the specialty I interviewed for.

So I’ve been there a month and did not put it on my resume yet as I’ve done nothing and not sure won’t be more layoffs. I had a few just HR interviews for jobs I applied for earlier and obviously when they asked about my contract I said it ended etc. If they ask what I’m doing now I’ll be honest but …. do I need to offer info about the hot mess job I’m at if they don’t ask are you working, where are you now etc.? I may never add it to my resume at this rate.

I’ve heard HR folks on both sides. Some say you don’t need to add to your resume yet or mention unless it comes up in an offer background check or relevant question. Others say just put it on your resume going forward but try to explain right away.

It sucks as I don’t want it to influence finding a better, ideally somewhat stable job that's in my field, but it’s messy. I’m not a job hopper. Please be kind. Thx.

Genuinely, how do you maintain a full time job and interview? I left my corporate job a few months ago for a very small company making more money, thought I would’ve been living the dream.

Well, I’m living a nightmare. The money is good, but I’ve never been so anxious and miserable somewhere before. I’ve already had a mental breakdown and had to go home half way through the day and lie about why I was crying and had to leave. There is only 3 of us, there’s no team, I work beside my hostile employer all day and I’d take back corporate bullshit any day to get away from this!

Anyways, I’m determined to leave ASAP. When I was at my previous job and wanted to leave, I applied to over 100 jobs and heard back from 2, one phone interview that ghosted me and the one I have now.

Since applying for jobs this time around, I’ve had 1 in person interview last week and 3 more coming up within the next week. I’m still waiting to hear back from the interview already had and if I got it, none of this would matter.

I’ve genuinely never had this many interviews before in such a small period of time, what do you even tell your employer? At my previous job, I had personal days to use that I could use by the hour, I never had to stress about it! Here, I don’t have any. Though my employer has been flexible and allows me to work from home or do half days etc, at some point they’re going to either catch on, or get annoyed and start becoming even worse.

Some of these places don’t even give you a choice.. 2 of them have given me a time and place and it’s either show up or F off. They’re good government jobs that I’d never want to pass up so moving on from them isn’t an option.

I’m at the point where I’m asking myself if I should just quit and hope I land one of them even though I know that’s the absolute worst thing I could ever do to my family. Both me and my partner work full time and I do have savings so I would be okay but that’s only on the assumption I land one. I’m so so so beyond done with this place that it sounds more and more tempting everyday. Why does all this have to be so hard?😅😅

Hello everyone! I wanted to make my first post here as tomorrow I have an interview. I’m a 22 year old out of high school with just a high school grad. While it’s not my first interview I haven’t worked before and my previous interviews haven’t landed me a job so I wanted to be extra prepared for this one. I’ve noticed in my previous interviews they asked questions more specific to the job but I think that was mainly due to them being in animal care so they needed to know certain things like if I understood canine body language so I’m not sure if it’s the same for this job. The interview is for a restaurant photographer. I’d love some help on knowing what they are likely to ask and how to respond especially with no job experience.

So I did a phone screening interview then an in person interview and then I had a final the person told me that this last interview is an informal interview so we talked and she asked some role play questions asked what I expected for pay so on and so forth.

Never have had a final interview that was informal. Is this a good sign? Do I have a good chance?

The last two jobs I applied for both responded to me either same day or next day informing me that they are closing the position and not moving forward with interviews. They then stopped accepting applications on LinkedIn. Is anyone this becoming more widespread? I assume it is the sign of a bad economy they companies are deciding not to fill positions but curious if anyone had other takes.