Elastic Sales Representative Interview Questions
& Process

The interview process was pretty straightforward. You should definitely learn about the company beforehand. The first part was a phone call, which wasn't too stressful and was pretty easy to handle. Reading up on the company before your interview is key.

The interview process was very thorough. The recruiter was prompt and friendly, taking time to understand my background and values. I also had the chance to speak with the CEO, who was personable and friendly, and I could really see how his leadership style influences the company. In total, I spoke with eight people over several weeks. These conversations covered culture fit, specifics about the role, and how I would plan to hit my sales targets. It did take a lot of time and energy to get through all these conversations while also working, but the interviews themselves were genuinely enjoyable. While I understand the importance of each interview, it might be better to avoid redundant conversations towards the end of the process. I wondered if the interviewers had any prior feedback or background on me, as it felt like having the same initial conversation multiple times. That was a bit odd! ;) Just being honest! But the sales recruiter was the most pleasant I've ever met. Even though I had another offer before a final decision was made, she managed to expedite the process and gave me an offer too. It was lower than my other offer, but we had an honest, professional, and transparent discussion, and we ended up in a good place!

I interviewed with Elastic about 4 times over Zoom. The recruiter and everyone seemed nice. We got to the point of discussing references, salaries, and start dates, and they said there was just one last step: a PPP presentation before a panel. I have 20 years of experience with PPP presentations and wasn't too worried because the FAE and recruiter told me not to spend too much time on it, saying they were just looking for presentation style. I did spend a lot of time preparing, including a 5-minute intro about the company and why we were there, followed by a slide presentation they provided, and then a Q/A before the "fake" engineers were supposed to do a demo. I confirmed this process with the FAE beforehand. About 100 seconds into my presentation, the FAE, who was role-playing, said he had an unexpected call and only had 5 minutes, asking me to get to the "chase" and explain why he should be listening to me. I was surprised and unsure if he was serious or role-playing. I would normally suggest rescheduling in a real-life scenario given the importance of the decision and the planned demo. However, not knowing, I quickly realized they wanted technical solutions to their specific technical issues at a ground level, which I hadn't prepared for or been directed to do; in fact, the opposite was implied. They seemed more interested in trying to "trip me up" than in the time we wasted or the other job offers I'd put on hold. I ended up taking another position and likely wouldn't have enjoyed that kind of environment. The hiring manager suggested studying YouTube videos after the fact, which felt like an ambush, especially after being told not to prepare too much.