I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Zenefits in Jul 2015
Interview
Submitted my resume online and was contacted by recruiter via email within the next week or so. Interview process consisted of a phone interview with the recruiter, after that I had an in person interview with three people, approximately 30 minutes interviewing with each person. I received a tour of the office which was pretty nice, everyone was friendly.
I applied through an employee referral. The process took 1 week. I interviewed at Zenefits (San Francisco, CA) in Oct 2015
Interview
Discombobulated... Had a total of 5 interviews. First was on the phone with a recruiter that had no insurance knowledge. Then 4 interviews back to back in the office. 3 in person and one via High Five. Of the 3 that interviewed me, only 1 had am insurance background. Each lasted about 25 min or less.
I applied through a recruiter. The process took 1 week. I interviewed at Zenefits (Scottsdale, AZ) in Jun 2015
Interview
I was approached by a recruiter through Linked In. I responded to the recruiter's email that I would be interested in discussing employment at Zenefits. It was about a 20 minute call, very generic topics, and she set up a 2nd phone interview with another recruiter. This recruiter called me abut 10 minutes late and didn't apologize. Again the conversation was very general and at the end she said she'd like to set up an in person interview. I was told the interview would last 1-2 hours. I arrived and was first given a tour of the building (2-3 minutes). It was a very open space - a call center environment. I was surprised at how little space each employee had - they were packed in like sardines. I also noticed that they were all very young. The recruiter explained that this location housed sales but that Account Managers and Benefits Advisers were housed in a different area.
My first interview was a video call. The person I was speaking with looked like she had not showered in weeks and was very disinterested. She never smiled and said "like", about every 5 words and even said "super cool" three times - it was tough to take her seriously. She asked me what my process was with renewals and how long a renewal took. I found it difficult to quantify this answer because each is different and I am not in the habit of logging time spent.
My second interview was in person. She was friendly and gave me her background, then asked for mine. We talked about the job and how work was coordinated within the teams. She had me respond to 2 emails - one was a complaint about service expectations and the other was about cancelled coverage due to non-payment. I've answered emails like this many times and had no problem answering but felt that this was a little premature because I don't know the client or Zenefits' protocol, but I answered in a professional way and have no doubt that my response was professional and would have assisted in resolving the issues.
My third interview was another in-person interview. The conversation was still pretty general. I wasn't given any new insights into the job or why I should want to work at Zenefits. At the end he walked me out and explained that someone would be in touch within the next couple of days.
I knew from the moment I walked in that this company was not a good fit for me and the interview process cemented that belief. I I never felt that Zenefits was looking for skill or experience, they were more interested in youth and energy. I understand it's a start-up but still think you need experience in filling in the gaps that were present in the company. It was an easy interview in that they never really asked me any typical interview questions - it felt like more of a conversation.
I expected to receive an email rejection the next day, because I didn't see myself there and figured they saw it too. I think it was a good interview in that I presented myself well and could "rock" the position but in my short time I saw a company and staff that was unprofessional - maybe due in part to it's start-up culture but I didn't see myself fitting in. I haven't heard anything and at this point am not expecting to - I think they are disorganized, growing too fast and just don't have an attention to detail.
The process was quick - from the time the recruiter contacted me to the time I interviewed. They also mentioned that if they offered me the position they would want me to start in two weeks. I would have said it was a positive experience, except that they failed to let me know that they were not offering me a position.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Each person asked me why "I was excited to work at Zenefits" I wanted to respond that I wasn't sure that I was excited to work for Zenefits. They never really gave me anything to be excited about. Yes, free snacks and beverages are cool but if that's all you have to offer, then I wonder how long you'll last.
How do you handle a difficult client?