It started with a short call with one of the developers to get a general idea of my skills, and I was asked to provide my hourly rate, multiple code examples, and references after the call. I was then asked to complete a test project, and to invoice them for the hours I worked on it. After completing that, I was invited to talk to the company owner.
We had a good chat that lasted close to an hour. He was friendly and very clear about what the position was, and what it wasn't. I left it feeling positive. I had another offer on the table, which I made them aware of in case they were able to expedite the review process. They responded positively, saying that I was their "preferred choice", and that they would like to move forward with the contract.
Having gotten more familiar with the position and work required, I asked if I could raise the hourly rate that I initially provided them. It was a fairly aggressive raise in retrospect, but I was expecting either a "no" or a counter offer. Instead, they fell silent for 24 hours, only to finally tell me that my offer was revoked. Assuming it was due to me asking to raise the rate, I offered something much closer to my original rate, but I was told that their decision was final, with no other details as to why other than, "it's due to a confluence of issues".
I found this to be very unprofessional. The whole interview process spanned almost a month, and took hours of my time. I expected at least some explanation other than, "a confluence of issues", especially since I was their preferred choice only hours ago. At the time of writing this review (roughly 3 weeks since I send them the invoice), I have not been paid for the test project. That's not a huge deal to me, but they did ask me to invoice them, and even asked how I'd like to be paid, so it's a little disappointing.
Overall, the people at the company seem friendly, but there seems to be some internal communication issues. I'm assuming my case isn't the norm, but I would be wary about applying to any of their open positions.
