To put it simply, this was the most unprofessional & unnecessarily drawn out interview process I have ever taken part in. I would highly discourage any experienced professional from wasting their time. After a stressful 3+ weeks, I was offered the job but ultimately turned it down due to being offered a salary 26% below the median rate given my level of experience, their unwillingness to negotiate, & my overall experiences with them during this process.
My poor experience began with the phone call to setup my first interview. I missed the call & didn't notice until 30min later. There was no voicemail left & the number directs to the help desk, so getting to the person who called was more of a challenge than it should have been. Who doesn't leave a voicemail when calling candidates? This should have been my first red flag.
First interview was poorly planned, poorly executed, & lasted barely 15min. They started 15min late - not a big deal, but nobody even acknowledged it. Intrvwr 1 seemed to have little to no experience in interviewing. It felt like she had no idea what to ask or what she was looking for in an answer & Intrvwr 2 had to prompt her several times on questions or info she was forgetting. While I understand being new to interviewing, it felt completely unprofessional to be giving her pointers & prompts during my interview. Save that for after when you review your notes.
Intrvwr 2 seemed like he wanted to be anywhere but in this interview. He hardly looked up from his clipboard to acknowledge me when I arrived & read through other candidates resumes while I was speaking. At one point he even asked me about my experience at a job listed on another candidates resume. Intrvwr 1 had to remind him which person/resume I was (the one on the top). He also gave a long-winded speech on the importance of communication which felt out of place & wasted a large portion of the interview.
I walked away feeling unsure of how it went. I felt confident in how I presented myself, my experience/skills, & what I could contribute, but their lack of organization & inability to conduct an interview left me feeling confused as to what to expect going forward.
Over a week later Intrvwr 1 called me to come in immediately & fill out an application to progress to the second interview with Intrvwr 3 & 4. I was confused why I wasn't asked to do this during my first interview or why I couldn't do it during the next one, but I went in right away. While filling out the application she explained which desk would be mine & how much work she had ready for me, insinuating the job was already mine, & warned me to "be prepared" because the second interview would be "harder". 20min after I left, she called to schedule the second interview, once again warning me to "be prepared". This seemed disorganized & the off-putting candidness felt really bizarre.
Two hours prior to my second interview, Intrvwr 1 called to reschedule for the following day citing Intrvwr 3 was too busy. I was annoyed at this last minute change, but agreed & shifted a couple things around to make it work. I showed up the next day for my rescheduled interview & about 15min past the scheduled meeting time, an employee let me know Intrvwr 3 was too busy, to go get a coffee, & come back in 30min. Given that my first interview started late & that I already reschedule this second interview, I was beginning to understand that my time was of no value here. But I came back in 30min as requested.
Second interview with Intrvwr 3 & Intrvwr 4 went more smoothly than the first interview. Intrvwr 3 was pleasant, though slightly antagonistic in her line of questioning & eventually left halfway through the interview because she had "so much to do". Intrvwr 4 asked standard interview questions throughout &, once alone, asked how well I liked Intrvwr 1 from our brief interactions stressing how important it was that we could get along with each other. It felt like an odd thing to ask, but given what I've later seen in company reviews, it makes sense now.
The following afternoon Intrvwr 4 called & offered me the position. I was excited to start and felt this was a great fit given my experience & their needs, however she made me aware their salary offer was 26% below the rate for comparable positions in NYC given my level of experience. I was shocked at the number & asked for 24hrs to consider. The following afternoon I reiterated how excited I was to join the team, but made her aware the offer was disappointing given my experience & attempted to negotiate a better salary. Instead, she simply replied "Well, it is what it is" & made me aware they felt it was fair & that it wouldn’t be changing. I declined the offer.
My time & experience was obviously of no value to Zabars. The entire process was a lot of hoop jumping & game playing that left me exhausted & demoralized. Again, I would highly discourage any experienced professional from wasting their time.
