I applied for this position because its description suited me and the company had a seemingly great atmosphere. I did some networking and got to know that the job was still available although it had been open for 5 months already. A friend of a friend recommended me, so basically I was in a pretty good position to get the job. The whole process lasted for 1 month, and it consisted of a phone interview, although the HR told me that it was just a "checkmark" phone call. Then the HR asked me to write an article and gave me the data and the example of their analysts' usual articles. As I got it on Friday, I had to do it by Monday 8 AM. After having sent the article, I waited for the response, and I was then reassured by the HR that I was on the top-list and that she would contact me to get the Skype interview with my future manager. It never happened, as the HR never called me back. I waited for 3 weeks and then I got to know via my "insider" friend that the HR and the manager decided to give the job to someone else (probably internally). He was surprised that I was not informed, and he told me that he would have a talk with the HR and ask her to provide feedback. The same day I got a call from the HR in the alleged presence of her superior, where she apologized for everything and promised to call me back for another role. To justify herself she started our conversation with a lie, saying that she had told me that if I got no answer from my potential manager in 5-7 working days, then the answer would be negative. This statement didn't make a good impression because in reality she was reassuring me of my chances and promised to call as soon as my future manager was available. Conclusion: the HR adopted a very unprofessional approach. She would promise to call me back on a specific day numerous times, but would never call. She would even tell me that she called and I didn't pick up the phone, etc. There is no transparency, and the whole "recruitment process" was a mere formality, as the company had already someone for this job. Nevertheless, they kept me waiting and reassuring that I was definitely going to have it. I consider it as a disrespectful attitude towards the applicants. The HR confirmed that it was the company's policy not to provide feedback, when she finally called me back under the pressure of her manager and my friend.