Ideals Business Development Manager Interview Questions
& Process

The interview process at iDeals was pretty organized and had a few stages. It started with HR reaching out, and we quickly set up an initial chat. That first meeting was mostly about the company and what the job needs. Then, I met the Hiring Manager and did a cold call simulation. I had to call an analyst who knew another VDR service and get them to agree to a lunch meeting. For the next step, there was a task: I needed to create a presentation and, in a role-play, sell the benefits of iDeals. After that, I had a nice 30-minute get-to-know-you call with the VP of Sales. The final stage was a detailed Competency-Based Interview (CBI) with the Talent Acquisition Manager. This involved using specific examples from my past work to show how I've handled different situations. Even though I didn't end up getting an offer, I learned a lot from the whole thing. I really appreciated the Talent Acquisition Manager; they were great at organizing everything and understanding when things needed to shift. They even offered a detailed feedback session after the rejection, which was super helpful. I got valuable insights on areas where I can improve. Their professional and respectful approach really made the process a positive experience overall.

The whole process took about two months, and I went through 5 rounds. There were also 2 case studies that took me days to complete. Interestingly, I met with the same two people for all 5 rounds. I kept getting really good feedback after each round, which kept me motivated. I also got interview slots for the next rounds pretty quickly. Around the middle of the process, when I saw how much work they were asking for, I started to wonder about their real intentions and if they were being transparent, you know, because sometimes companies use candidates' work for free and then don't even hire anyone, which is a huge waste of time and energy. The HR person did email me confirming they were hiring 5 people in Germany and 2 in France, including the Director role. I continued to get good feedback throughout, but at the very end, after all 5 rounds and the 2 case studies, they told me the two people I interviewed with didn't actually make the final decision. Instead, they were sending the information to a 'Committee Approval' – basically, people who've never met me or spoken to me. It also became harder to get responses, and deadlines were consistently missed. After two weeks of chasing them via email and LinkedIn, I finally got an email saying I was rejected. I pushed for feedback, and the HR set up a meeting. He told me my work was the best they'd seen and I should be proud since only 2 out of 50 candidates made it to the final stage. For the rejection, he gave 3 reasons, two of which were completely inaccurate, and the third was true but already in my CV, making it a weak reason after all the rounds and case studies. Plus, the reason wasn't something that would actually prevent me from doing the job. He also mentioned that the reasons were superficial and not real development areas. I argued that given the positive feedback and the extensive work required, rejecting me didn't make sense, especially with 5 positions approved. The HR then said it was a misunderstanding and they didn't actually have 5 positions approved, contradicting his earlier email. He then changed his statement again, saying positions were approved but the profiles weren't, which basically means no positions. They weren't honest or transparent throughout. The company ended up not hiring anyone, and the job keeps getting reposted on LinkedIn. They also seem to ignore GDPR. I suspect they're using these hiring processes for reasons unrelated to actual hiring. They lack honesty and transparency and keep changing their stories. My advice to job seekers is to stop after 3 rounds and one case study. I made the mistake of continuing and letting them use my work, and now I'm having trouble getting my data deleted, and I'm sure they'll use my work, just like they seemed to use other candidates' work.

This was a terrible experience. They ask you to do a presentation that takes days of your time and then decide whether to hire you or not!!! I mean, can't they find a smarter way to assess people without wasting their time unnecessarily??!!!!