HOVER Interview Questions
& Process

The whole thing took over 8 hours over 2 months and was a bit of a mess, some parts good, some bad. First, a 30-minute recruiter call. Then a 1-hour chat with the hiring manager, followed by a 1-hour technical test on a different day. After a 1-hour scheduling call, if they liked me, they set up a 6-hour 'virtual on-site'. This included a 1-hour coding test where I had only 45 minutes to code after intros and setup, with the last 15 minutes for Q&A about the job, which the interviewer didn't know much about. There was another call with the hiring manager, supposedly a wrap-up, but it happened mid-way. They also squeezed in a 1-hour session on the company's 'values' and a 'behavioral assessment'. Another 1-hour session was about product, discussing how product, engineering, and design work together. Then a 1-hour 'whiteboarding' session focused on 'data abstraction' where we talked about data concepts abstractly for about 45 minutes. Finally, a 1-hour 'Technical Walkthrough' presentation to a panel of 6 people on a technical topic of my choice using Google Slides, which was supposed to be interactive. Some questions from the panel seemed scripted. I checked their candidate site, but it didn't seem to help much. Some interviewers seemed distracted or busy. The questions felt awkward, and the culture seemed pretty standard developer stuff. There were long delays in getting feedback, which felt like a bad sign, and a waste of my time. I spent over 3 hours preparing the presentation. The presentation and the first hiring manager call went best, but I might be wrong. Lots of repeating stories. I felt like at least two people on the panel disliked me from the start. They should really shorten this to one test and one hiring manager interview, plus maybe a presentation, cutting out all the repetition. They already have onboarding for 'values'. I never got feedback after my rejection, which came 48 hours later.

I had an interview with the recruiter and hiring manager, followed by an on-site visit. I want to share this experience to help other candidates make better choices because there were many red flags that showed they didn't consider the candidate's experience. It's a good reminder that the interview is a two-way street; you're also interviewing the company. The recruiter asked if I would relocate, then later acted surprised I was out of state. They wanted me to take a 4 am flight, go straight to a long on-site, and fly back the same day. I had to negotiate to stay overnight, even though the handbook said they'd cover it for out-of-town candidates. The whole interview was confusing, unprofessional, overwhelming, and lacked coherence. I asked to move the schedule earlier because I had a flight, but they said no. They sent a schedule with meetings with a specific person at the start and end of the on-site, but those meetings never happened. My first interviewer was late, and the next hadn't read my resume. Some interviewers had an odd, grilling attitude. The interviews felt disorganized and scattered, like I was giving consulting advice instead of interviewing for the job. I barely had time to ask my own questions, and when I did, I felt rushed. A scheduled break was unusable because interviewers lacked time integrity as the day went on. No one checked on me, and I was just shuffled between interviewers. A week later, they said I didn't get the job because I lacked experience in a specific area, but they didn't answer why they barely asked questions about it. The job was reposted online. The travel expense reimbursement has been a shocker; I haven't been paid back for everything promised in the handbook and emails. Uploading expenses into their system is challenging and time-consuming, essentially unpaid work. I had to send multiple emails asking them to fix it, even though I provided receipts and told them it was their issue. Escalating didn't help. They are unprofessional, lack empathy, and haven't responded to my requests about unpaid expenses and transfer fees. They haven't made any effort to improve the candidate experience, which is disappointing. There's a lack of accountability, attention to detail, and ownership. The company values seem transparent, but the execution is lacking. I hope the company uses this feedback to improve the candidate experience. Update: I was finally reimbursed after a long time, but they never apologized or took responsibility for the delay. This is a red flag about how they treat candidates.

I was contacted by a recruiter, and the whole process was online, which was great. I think there was an initial screening first, then a chat with the hiring manager. If that went well, there was a panel interview. The recruiter was really helpful throughout, checking in regularly and giving me tips to prepare, and answering my questions; she made a really good impression. The panel interview had about 4-5 smaller interviews, some technical, some about design, some about culture, and then a final presentation to everyone who interviewed me. The team seemed really cool and I felt like I fit in with them and the product. It's a good idea to have some thoughtful questions ready about the company and team because they are all genuinely eager to answer, and their answers were consistent, which made me feel more confident. There wasn't an IQ test or drug test, but there was a background check.

Applied on Day 0. Recruiter reached out on Day 10 for a quick chat, then asked me to wait about a week. Had my first meeting with the hiring manager on Day 30. The next day, Day 31, I was asked to complete a skills assessment/case study by Day 32. Submitted the assessment on Day 32. On Day 35, I was told the final round interviews with the VP and several senior directors would be the next day, Day 36, with no prior notice. Had the final round interviews on Day 36. Was rejected over the phone by the recruiter on Day 42. They cited a lack of BPO experience, which wasn't discussed at all during the interviews or in the job description, even though I have managed offshore BPOs. Overall, a really unprofessional process with harsh timelines and undue burden on the candidate. Also, found it highly distasteful I went through final round interviews with company executives, to include conducting a case study, and the hiring manager didn't even have the decency to reach out to give me the bad news. Plain old poor leadership.