LI-COR Interview Questions
& Process

The process was ok, I met with HR first then my potential supervisor. After a few weeks, I was offered the position, but before I was able to begin my position, the offer was revoked as there was internal employment changes.

The interview process had 3 rounds. The first round felt okay. The second round started fine but got a bit weird towards the end. They asked for my salary expectations and got annoyed when I gave a narrow range, which was the first odd thing. For the second round, I had to go to their office. The receptionist hadn't noted my appointment, so I waited around for 40 minutes. I was interviewed by future colleagues and some higher-ups who flew in from the US. The questions themselves were interesting and made me think, which was a plus. One interviewer kept playing with their hair, which was distracting. They rushed me out at the end, even into a thunderstorm, without offering a moment to wait it out. This lack of empathy was a definite turn-off and made me realize I didn't want to work there. Also, unlike most German companies that cover travel costs for interviews, LI-COR doesn't, not even for train tickets, and they ignore emails about it.

I went through three interviews. The first was a chill phone call with HR where I just talked about my background and how it fit the role. Then came a really intense two-hour phone interview with an outside company called Kenexa that was doing an analysis. It was super fast-paced with barely any pause between questions, mostly behavioral stuff and some weird either/or choices like 'Would you rather have a talented employee or a hard-working one?' The last interview was in person with the recruiter and her manager, and they were both really nice and seemed interested. I thought it went well, but the next week the recruiter called to say they chose someone else. I asked for feedback because I'm still looking and could use some tips, but she said it's their policy not to give feedback because of how many people they talk to. It still bugs me that I don't know why I didn't get the job after giving them so much of my time.

I had 2 interviews out of what seems to be 3 total, maybe more if I did well on the third. I talked with the Design Engineer Manager, Embedded Engineer Manager, and Head Engineer Manager. The HR person wasn't super responsive and a bit disorganized, I had to chase them for webcam links. The interview team was really nice though, not intimidating at all, and seemed to get along well. They mostly asked about my past projects. Each interview was about an hour long. They would ask follow-up questions on everything I said. For example, if I talked about a project, they’d ask why I chose that specific stack. Or if I mentioned working on XYZ in my free time, they’d want more details on that. The weirdest part was there wasn't a formal technical interview, which I think they realized and maybe planned for the third round. I didn't get the job because of my location; it was remote, but apparently, I wasn't in the country where LI-COR operates. I do recommend the engineering team though, they seem to have good teamwork and positive vibes.