Proton.ai Interview Questions
& Process

Applied for the PMM role and connected with someone on LinkedIn who was keen to schedule a direct call. The call the following week was unusual; it started with casual questions then immediately became an interrogation without any company or role context. I didn't learn anything new about the company. They asked odd questions like criticizing my current manager and gave vague answers to my questions about company growth, fundraising, and daily responsibilities. I was told I'd get an email back. I sent a thank you email the next morning but received no response. It felt like an organization run by young people who prioritize hiring friends over professionals. The lack of a response suggests my time wasn't valued, and the pressing questions during the initial call were strange. I probably would have declined an offer anyway.

The interview process had three rounds. First was a technical screening covering SQL, Python, PySpark, and Airflow, which was clear and relevant. Then, a technical deep dive focused on architecture, pipelines, scaling, and APIs; it was challenging but fair. The final round was with senior leadership and was unexpected, as it focused heavily on personal life, schooling, and past manager feedback, rather than technical skills or professional fit. This felt more like a background check than an evaluation, and the interviewers seemed disengaged, making it feel like a waste of time after three weeks. The technical rounds were good and related to the job, but the final round was disappointing due to its overly personal nature, which wasn't related to data engineering or professional cultural fit.

The interview process was quite drawn out, lasting about a month. It began with an initial call, followed by two technical interviews. The final stage was a "vibe check" with the CEO and Head of Engineering. They claimed there were no right or wrong answers, but the main question was about my journey from high school. While I shared my story, the questions were basic, like my student type. I asked some unique questions that impressed them. Despite a positive feeling and good initial feedback, I received a generic rejection email two days later. The company also failed to inform the referrer why I was rejected, which was very unprofessional given their supposed culture.

I applied for this job and had a phone chat with the recruiter. The plan was a 30-minute call, but we ended up talking for almost an hour because I had a bunch of questions. The recruiter was great she knew a ton about the job. It was honestly the most detailed HR convo I've had about a role. She really got into the nitty-gritty of the job, the challenges, and what they needed. She even gave me some straight-up on my gaps compared to others in the process. After that, I had a 30-minute interview with the CEO. It went pretty well - he seemed a little distracted but asked a ton of questions about my background and dove into my work experience. I got a deeper look into the company and the role, which was cool. Left that call feeling like I wish I had more time with him to learn more. The next day, the recruiter hit me up to say they weren't moving forward with my application. Bummer...but hey, at least she was speedy with the news. I shot her a follow-up asking for some feedback, and she got back to me fast with some helpful insights. All in all, I appreciated how fast things moved, even if the outcome wasn't what I hoped for.