Blurb Interview Questions
& Process

So I spoke with the recruiter, then had a phone call with the hiring manager. It was mostly a chat about the company and my background. The interviewer was really great and made me want the job even more. It was pretty easy, they seem to care more about cultural fit than having the exact tech skills, which I didn't have. Then, I had a technical interview with the team lead. It was about 45-60 minutes, I shared my screen on Hangouts and coded live. They asked me to write some test cases for their website. It wasn't super difficult, I was just a bit nervous at first because it was so straightforward, but I managed. The interviewer was really nice and helpful. The last round was an onsite, which actually took 3-4 hours and was kind of strange. I had 6 interviewers, and 4 of them called me on Hangouts, which felt weird since I could have done it from home or the office. No coding in this stage, they focused more on team fit and how I'd handle psychological situations, which was unexpected. Lots of theoretical and practical questions. Even though I didn't have the right tech stack, I made it clear I was eager to learn, and the team lead said that's why I got to the onsite. I didn't get an offer, and it sounded like it was a tough call for them. Overall, it was a really good experience, one of the best interviews I've had.

I applied to Blurb in early November by sending my resume and cover letter. The recruiter responded the same day asking for salary expectations, which I provided. They then scheduled a 15-minute phone screening for the following week. The recruiter mentioned little about the job responsibilities I saw in the posting, which was strange. Next was a second phone interview with the hiring manager, which was more detailed. A day before, I learned from the recruiter that the role discussed was actually different from the one initially described, though similar in some functions. This felt messy on the recruiter's part. The second interview was enjoyable and comfortable. The hiring manager said I'd hear back soon about the next step. An interview was scheduled at the San Francisco office, where I met with department and team members. This part lasted about two hours, with individual interviews around thirty minutes each. Everyone was warm and pleasant. I didn't hear back for four weeks after the interview. After reaching out to thank everyone, I had to follow up with the hiring manager in the fifth week to finally hear from the initial recruiter that the position was offered to someone else. My experience was positive until the end, given the genuine interactions, but the lack of communication was disappointing.

The interview process had 4 stages and was all done by video calls. They were really flexible with scheduling and always found a time that worked. They made me feel super comfortable the whole time, and the questions were always spot on for the job. First, I had a quick chat with the recruiter to go over my background and experience, and then she passed it to the team. It was a good way to make a first impression before meeting the team I might join. The recruiter kept me in the loop about what was happening next. The other 3 parts of the interview were with the customer support manager, the tech team, and then the recruiter again who offered me the job. Everyone was so nice and friendly, which made me feel good about the company and the people. Since it's a multilingual job, I had a 24-hour task about my language knowledge, writing emails, and handling customer questions. It was tough but totally worth it! I learned a lot about the business, asked tons of questions, and got to know the staff. Overall, the experience was professional, friendly, and transparent.

I got contacted by the recruiter on LinkedIn to interview for this role. First, there was a phone interview with the recruiter. Then, I had two hour-long phone interviews with the CFO and SVP of Print Ops. After that, I went in for in-person interviews with the team, meeting five people over five hours, including the hiring manager (CFO) and the team reporting to me. The interviews seemed to go well, though I didn't get a great vibe about teamwork or happiness at the company. The people I met were friendly and knew the industry, company, and role requirements. I felt I would get an offer. The next week, the recruiter asked for references, which I gave. Then, communication stopped. My references said they were contacted, but I heard nothing for weeks. One reference talked to the hiring manager for almost an hour and was sure I'd get an offer. After three weeks, I asked the recruiter for an update. She said they were still interviewing others and would update me by the end of the week. Another 10 days passed with no word. I contacted the CFO directly, and he said I was a final candidate and he hoped to decide by week's end. Three more weeks passed, and I never heard back. I stopped following up because it didn't seem like a good company to work for, especially in leadership. They talked about respect and communication, but their actions didn't match. It's strange they'd interview for a senior director role, check references, and not inform the candidate about the decision. I found it unprofessional and feel lucky to have avoided it.