I recently interviewed for a design role at a startup, where I encountered several highly unprofessional and exploitative practices.
The interview process involved an on-site assignment requiring the creation of 25 social media graphics and a fully edited video. When I challenged the scale of this request noting it equated to a month's worth of content the founder reduced it to 6 graphics. However, she also stated her expectation for a single designer to produce 40 creatives per day, a volume that disregards standard creative processes like research and strategy.
Furthermore, the receptionist disclosed that this has been a recurring tactic for months: the company uses this assignment to extract free work from numerous candidates, all of whom are subsequently rejected.
This experience suggests the company is not conducting interviews in good faith. I am sharing this to caution other professionals about these unethical practices.