I'm a US citizen. Having recently completed my Masters in the UK, I've been searching for jobs in the UK/Europe, as I have an interest in gaining some international work experience. I was so excited when I found out I had landed an interview with Google in Dublin (I think Google is an awesome company). I really wanted to make sure that I nailed this interview, so even though it was just the first phone interview, I spent a lot of time preparing and researching. I had been in touch with the Recruiter/HR employee from the Dublin Google office for nearly 2 weeks, and we had both agreed on a time for her to call me for the interview. On the day we had scheduled, my interview time came around and I received no call from her. I waited 30 minutes without hearing from her before I finally called her and sent her an email. She informed me that she was in a meeting and would have to reschedule. To be honest, it really felt like she had just forgotten about the interview she had scheduled with me. She rescheduled the interview for 5 PM that day, and for me to take part in the interview, I had to rearrange my own schedule for the day. When she did call me at 5PM that day, the first question she asked me was about my citizenship/visa situation, but the way that she asked the question implied that she was fully aware of the fact that I was a US citizen. When I mentioned that I would eventually require an employment visa to work for Google in Dublin, she informed me that she could not process my application any further, as Google was not able to sponsor visas for this role.
Naturally, I was quite disappointed by the whole process, as the Google employee I was speaking with was not apologetic whatsoever, not even for having missed/having to have reschedule my interview at the last minute. Additionally, she was not apologetic for any inconveniences she may have caused (which was a lot, considering the amount of preparation I had done for this interview, and also given the fact that NOWHERE on the job description was it mentioned that a permanent right to live/work in Ireland was required). The general feeling I got from her was that it was the end of the day, and she just wanted to rush through this conversation with me so that she could go home.
While I still really admire Google as a company, I admit that I was turned off by this particular hiring experience. I am aware that all companies are not willing to sponsor employment visas, and the reasons for which they are not willing to do so. I just would have expected more from a Google employee.