Cardinal Financial Company Interview Questions
& Process

I was contacted by their internal recruiter and was scheduled to meet with an SVP. The SVP didn't show up for the Zoom meeting. When I asked the recruiter about it, she said she missed an email about rescheduling and would do it ASAP. The recruiter has ghosted me ever since. I know things happen, but why ghost me? If something changed about the role or me, they should have just communicated that. This is unacceptable behavior, especially since the recruiter hyped up the company culture. Big red flag!!!

I did a virtual interview where I was prompted questions and gave video responses. It was mostly about how I work under pressure and handle difficult situations with coworkers/supervisors and customers. After that you take a series of tests that test your competence as well as your personality. Lastly I had 2 calls with upper management that weren't very interview like, more so conversational to make sure I was a good fit for the company and culture.

I applied and they emailed me for an interview. We set up the interview and they told me this: The job is commission only, and most loan officers make between $40k and $70k a year from direct customer calls. You can make more with your own leads from cold calling. It's all on you, but be ready to take customer calls at 8, 9, or 10pm. They give 2 weeks of unpaid training, but some reviews say it's not great. You can have someone else do your loans during training so you can earn points. Commissions are based on points, which seem to be from 0.05% to 1%. BENEFITS: They have 401K with a possible 5% match if they approve it. They also offer Vision, Dental & Medical, but I'm not sure how good they are. WORK/LIFE BALANCE/SUPPORT: You can work from home with flexible hours and they give you a laptop, two monitors, headset, and PC, and set it all up. Or you can work at the branch. They service all 50 states and DC. They have 24-hour tech support and a really cool, custom software called Octane. The Branch Manager I talked to was super nice and said he and some other people would help me out if I took the job. He answered all my questions.

I met with a few upper management folks for the interview after taking a quick aptitude test. The testing setup was a bit noisy as I had to use someone else's computer while they were on lunch. After that, I met with the VP. The interview seemed to go well and the role looked like a good fit, but the company was in the middle of relocating right after my interview. Three different people I met with thought I'd be a great fit. I also sat with one of their top performers to get a better understanding of the day-to-day. There were a couple of potential drawbacks for some people. First, it takes about six months to start earning substantial income due to licensing and training, which might be tough for some, but it's fine for me as I'm used to commission-only roles. Second, rising interest rates could be a challenge down the line, especially since the company's business is mostly refinancing, though I think a strong performer can overcome this. My main concern was learning that during a past temporary rate hike, the pay scale for salespeople was altered. I find it difficult to plan a career where income can fluctuate based on minor rate changes. While I expect income to be affected by economic conditions, changing pay scales haven't been positive in my sales experience. Aside from that one issue, I could see this being a solid career for an ambitious and skilled salesperson. All three managers were very confident I'd do exceptionally well and wanted me to start the licensing process. They said they'd call me in a few days once they had a clearer picture of their move timeline. I never heard back, possibly due to the move or a change in direction, or maybe they found a better candidate. It's unusual to be told so many times how well I'd do without getting a follow-up.