Lactalis USA Interview Questions
& Process

You start with a one hour interview with the plant director and assistant director. If you get through that, you have a second interview that lasts about an hour with the same plant management plus the production and packaging manager. The directors really stressed how important it was to 'get operators to work' and they spoke pretty negatively about them. They seemed to want someone who would 'write people up' for every little thing, which sounds like micromanagement. They can be pretty deceptive about the hours you'll actually work. They told me there were enough supervisors and I'd have set hours, but they were actually short on supervisors and expected us to work 50-60 hours a week with hardly any time off. The interview is designed to see if you're someone who won't question them and is easy to push around. If you want the job, just say you're willing to work weekends and are super flexible because they plan to give you no time off and exploit the fact they don't have to pay overtime for supervisors.

The interview was very shallow and superficial. They asked questions that don't really matter professionally and focused a lot on your personal life. There were practically no questions about the professional aspect, it lasted about 30 words. Again, about thirty words.

My first interview with Stonyfield for the Associate Omnichannel Manager position was on October 24th, 2023. There were 4 rounds total. The third round involved a 2-day trip to New Hampshire the week of Thanksgiving. After the 4th round, which was virtual on December 5th, 2023, I sensed things weren't going my way. Even though I had already interviewed for 4 hours in person in New Hampshire, I was asked to interview a 4th time. This interview was short (18 minutes) and unpleasant. It ended abruptly with me being cut off mid-sentence just as they said, 'it was nice to meet you.' A few weeks later, the recruiter mentioned it was between me and an internal candidate. I was confused why they didn't have a decision after I traveled to New Hampshire from Milwaukee, and I was blindsided to learn I was competing with an internal candidate the whole time. The recruiter did say that if they went with the internal candidate, they'd be interested in me for his backfill, which wasn't ideal but maybe a positive sign. On January 11th, 2024, I got the email that things didn't work out with the internal candidate and they were reposting the job. The feedback was that the team needed someone with more experience and they didn't think I had enough yet. My advice for junior-level positions at Lactalis is to stay positive. I'm not sure they knew what they wanted, and it's not your fault you got caught up in their indecision. I've interviewed with many large CPG companies, and each experience has been a learning opportunity, highlighting areas for growth or future goals. After being a candidate with Stonyfield, I regret even applying. Protect yourself, keep interviewing elsewhere, and know when to withdraw your application due to being strung along and disrespected.

I had a recruiter phone screen, which led to an in-person interview. The second interview started late because the engineers were over 30 minutes behind schedule, and they seemed more concerned if I'd be bored with the role. After two weeks, I contacted the recruiter twice for an update but never heard back, not even a rejection. I later found out they hired someone internally for the role, and then posted a similar job opening at the same pay and description. This internal hire was already promoted to that position. Posting the role after hiring someone is arrogant and disrespectful, giving candidates no real chance. The company and interview process were unprofessional.