Overall, I had a mixed experience during the interview process at SumUp. There were three interviews in total, and here's a breakdown of each stage:
Interview with the Recruiter
This was a positive experience. The recruiter was genuinely interested in my background, skills, and motivation for the role. It felt like a natural conversation where we discussed my career journey and how I could contribute to the company. There were no technical questions at this stage, just an open and friendly discussion to see if I would be a good fit for the role.
Interview with the Hiring Manager (Sergi)
The second interview, with Sergi, was very positive. He made me feel comfortable right from the start, and the conversation flowed easily. He asked insightful questions about my previous experiences, examples of difficult situation with a customer situations, and my biggest achievements. It was clear to me that Sergi is a great manager who values clear communication and has a collaborative approach to leadership. I really appreciated his professionalism and approachability during this stage.
Interview with Leaders
Unfortunately, this was a disappointing experience. From the moment the interview started, it felt like the interviewers had no interest in my profile. The questions seemed focused on negative aspects of my experience, and there was a noticeable lack of engagement. The interviewers kept asking questions with a negative spin, and their responses to my answers were often met with confused or skeptical expressions. It felt like they were trying to turn my responses into something negative, which made the conversation uncomfortable and left me feeling disheartened. I felt as though they had already made up their minds before the interview even began, and it was hard to recover from that atmosphere.
Overall Impression:
While the first two stages of the interview process were smooth and professional, the final interview left me feeling disappointed. It's important to me that interviews are a two-way street, where both parties are genuinely interested in understanding each other. Unfortunately, the final stage felt more like an interrogation than a conversation. Despite the positive interactions earlier, this last stage significantly impacted my overall impression of the process.