Blistex Interview Questions
& Process

Applied for a Level 2 role in March. Recruiter contacted me in late May, suggesting I was a better fit for Level 3 and setting up a call for the next week. I had a 40-minute Teams meeting with two section managers and the R&D director. The following week, I had a 20-minute Teams meeting with the VP of Product Development & Quality. The recruiter then asked for my feedback on the call, which was a bit strange, and I confirmed I was still interested. A few days later, I was told I'd been selected for an offer. A week after that, the offer was read to me over Teams, and I was given three days to decide. The offer was unexpected and not what I'd hoped for. Despite having 5 years of experience and a science degree, they moved me from Level 3 to Level 2 without discussion. The $65k offer was unreasonably low, and they wouldn't negotiate, citing current salaries. They offered a $3000 signing bonus, possibly to compensate for a restrictive non-compete clause that bars employees from the cosmetic/pharma industries for 12 months wherever Blistex products are sold. When I inquired about relocation assistance, they implied the signing bonus was intended for that purpose. There was absolutely no flexibility on any terms. I felt humiliated and angered during the offer presentation on camera, which really soured my view of Blistex. It's concerning that a company would refuse to negotiate with their so-called top candidate and then allegedly misrepresent the purpose of the signing bonus. I'd be interested to know what local candidates are offered as a signing bonus. Hopefully, they'll be clearer about the lack of relocation assistance for out-of-state candidates in the future.

There were 2 online interviews and the final round was onsite, which lasted 3 and a half hours. I spoke with the design manager. There was also a team lunch, which was kind of weird and I felt a bit out of the loop because they didn't ask me any questions. I also met with the president and the vice president of marketing. Even though I didn't get the job, I thought the team interview could have happened earlier. I'm thankful for the experience, though. It's a good company with a good product.

Communication was sparse throughout this interview process, and my time was not valued. The whole thing took about 3 months. I didn't hear anything for a whole month after my last panel interview, which was my 3rd interview. It felt like they were figuring out the process as they went along, because I never knew what to expect next or when things would happen. During the process, I was asked a few irrelevant or borderline inappropriate questions.

Had 3 interviews. First a phone screen, then a Skype video screen. After that, I had a Skype video conference with the hiring manager. The final interview was in person with the hiring manager and some of the team.