I was initially screened over the phone for the position. Both the recruiter and I agreed I was a great fit for the role. A time was set for an informal 1-1 with the Design Director which also went well. It was more of a 'get to know you' kind of meeting w.out much interest expressed in my experience, etc. He had seen and like my portfolio of work and felt I was a great match. I was brought in for a round of interviews with a panel presentation of my work. I presented a case study of one of my best projects which covered the many hats I wore, and tools I used to come to my solutions and final launch. The team seemed happy but had few questions for me.
We then broke out into separate 1-1 interviews with the team. I felt they all went well, I felt I answered the questions thoroughly and I felt aligned with the team's goals.
At that point, the Director came in and started asking random and seemingly irrelevant questions. He started talking about wanting to hire a jr designer instead of a sr designer. He also couldn't tell me what I would be working on or what his vision was for the team and the product. Somewhere in the presentation process and interviews he either lost faith in himself, or me.
I wrote the next day to the recruiter and the Director to express my thanks and continued interest in the position. I never heard back from either of them. To this day, I don't know what happened but clearly they decided not to hire me.