I went through a 4 week interview process with for a mid-level/AD role and while I appreciated the initial interest and timely communication, the overall experience left a lot to be desired. The process began with a recruiter outreach on LinkedIn followed by a 45 min screening video call with the hiring manager that seemed aligned and straightforward. Things quickly became more intense with a "Candidate Skills Assessment" at home assignment that was supposed to take about 2 hours but in reality required over 3.5 hours of UNPAID work. They gave a week to complete and it consisted of answering a managerial behavior scenario and a technical reconciliation assignment. I received no feedback on the assignment, but was moved forward to a finalist round after submission. The final interview was a 4 hour in-person panel interview with 7 (!) staffers across multiple rounds— no lunch, no compensation, just 30+ rapid-fire behavioral questions (think S.T.A.R. method over and over again). The interview panels were professional, kind, and thoughtful but made little connection/eye contact just looked at paper and asked questions. By the end, I was repeating myself and mentally exhausted after hours of the same questions with no real human conversations. This kind of high-pressure interview format (especially without any accommodations or signs of basic hospitality) was a huge red flag. Also during the final panel, I was told (for the first time) that the role is “extremely fast-paced, high-pressure, and high-volume with constant shifting priorities.” It was made very clear that work/life balance was not the norm and people were 'drowning' in work. Red flags galore!! It’s also worth noting that this is a VERY homogenous organization with minimal visible diversity across staff or leadership. That alone doesn’t define a workplace, but it’s important context (especially when combined with the high-pressure culture). Ultimately, I walked away from this interview experience with serious reservations, not just about the role itself, but about the work environment and values this process seemed to reflect.