Phone interview first. Face to face with SM and BM, you have to visit 5 businesses and present in ppt. for third interview w/o compensation on time and cost of this requirement. Offer next.

The interview process was extensive and involved multiple stages. I first interviewed with a recruiter, followed by a virtual interview with the sales manager. That was then followed by an in person interview with the sales manager and the plant GM, which included delivering a PowerPoint presentation. After that, I completed a final interview with the regional sales manager via Teams. Approximately 30 minutes after the final interview, the recruiter called to express strong enthusiasm about extending an offer and mentioned awareness that I had another offer pending. I was transparent about the competing offer from a direct competitor and was told the sales manager would follow up the next day. During that follow up call, the offer was withdrawn, with the explanation that they could not come close to the competing compensation. There was no opportunity for discussion or negotiation, which was surprising given the role was a sales position and the job posting referenced competitive pay. Overall, the process took approximately two weeks and required me to take time off work to attend the in person interview. Given the outcome, the time investment did not feel respected. Based on my experience, I would recommend clarifying compensation alignment earlier in the process to avoid similar situations for future candidates. It seems like their concern is not with quality sales reps. It's with who they can pay the lowest amount.