This should be illegal. Let me preface this by saying: I’ve worked for 15+ years and been through my fair share of recruitment processes—some good, some bad, and everything in between. But this one, my friends, was nothing short of traumatizing. I applied via Pinterest’s careers site in early November 2024.
A week later, I had a basic screening with a recruiter. It went fine. I was then passed along to another recruiter for a follow-up interview with the hiring manager. This recruiter failed to mention I needed to prepare a few slides on a past campaign. So I showed up to the interview unprepared. Not ideal—but I’m a pro and didn’t let it throw me. The interview went well, and I agreed to send the requested slides afterward, which I did promptly. Shortly after, I was told the hiring manager liked both the interview and the slides, and I was invited to move forward. Next step: four interviews with people from different functions, each with specific themes to prep. I prepared diligently. Those went well, too.
Then came the final round: a business case presentation in front of five people. I was excited and all-in. I received the brief on a Tuesday morning for a presentation scheduled Friday morning. That gave me three days—on top of my full-time job—to research, build a strategy, create a deck, rehearse, and deliver. I barely slept, but I got it done. On the day, I was exhausted and nervous, but held it together. The presentation went fine. I got thoughtful questions, gave solid answers, and left it all on the (virtual) table. This happened right before the winter break. I was told I’d hear back early January. So I spent the holidays in a fog of stress, trying not to spiral. Then, at 6:30PM on the day everyone got back to work, I received a cold, impersonal email from a recruiter I’d barely spoken to. It said they were not moving forward with my application and that another candidate’s experience “more closely matched the needs of the role.” No call. No thoughtful wrap-up. Just that.
The email included a throwaway line that my presentation “received good feedback and featured impressive ideas.” So… why wasn’t I chosen? Who knows. I wrote back to thank them and ask for any additional feedback.
I never heard from them again. But it gets worse. Two weeks later, I saw the exact same role reposted on LinkedIn and their website. Same title. Same description. Same team.
Despite how deeply demoralized I felt, I swallowed my pride and reached out—to the recruiter, and to the hiring manager. I said I remained interested and would be happy to re-engage in conversation. They ghosted me. Again. Both of them. I rarely cry over work. But this felt so deeply unfair, so careless, so humiliating, that I broke down. To this day, I have no idea what I did “wrong.” And more importantly—I don’t think I did anything wrong. I think this is just how they treat candidates. And it’s not okay. Advice to Pinterest:
If you require seven interviews, a portfolio, and a multi-day business case, treat candidates with the basic respect of a phone call and actual feedback. Ghosting someone after asking for that much work is outrageous. Advice to candidates:
Unless you're a robot with unlimited time for that many interviews, decks, and a full business case presentation—don’t bother. If you expect to be treated like a human, look elsewhere.