Reckitt Manager Interview Questions
& Process

So I just finished the Reckitt Nigeria Management Trainee hiring process, and I wanted to share how it actually works. You start by sending in your CV and some basic info, which is pretty simple. If they like your application, you'll have to do some online tests: verbal, numerical, logical reasoning, and a situational judgment test. These are tough because so many people apply. Then comes the one-way video interview, which is meant to check how well you communicate and how confident you are. After that, they narrow down the list for the Assessment Centre, which is held at their office in Ikoyi. Out of more than 12,000 applicants, only 40 of us made it to this stage. The Assessment Centre is a full-day thing where they really look at how you think and solve problems. You'll work through several business cases, and for each one, you get 15 minutes to present after an hour of prep. They're evaluating your critical thinking, how structured your approach is, your communication skills, and your overall attitude. Finally, a smaller group gets invited for the executive interview, which is the last step before getting an offer. Just getting to the Assessment Centre means you're in the top 1% of applicants!

I had an initial call with someone from HR to introduce the company and the role, and let me introduce myself. Once my profile was approved, I was invited to a first video interview. I prepared for it, and when it started, as usual, the first question was to introduce myself and present my experience in detail. But after 3 minutes, I was cut off mid-sentence, and told that unfortunately I was too junior for the position and it would be best to stop there. The interview thus lasted 5 minutes, and I couldn't even finish introducing myself. I understand the desire not to 'waste' time with the wrong candidate, but being cut off mid-sentence and not even being able to present my experience, especially after having spent time preparing, was a bit harsh. This isn't to say it's a bad company, but I think it reflects a lot of their culture: if it doesn't translate into ROI, they cut it short. They don't have time, they are overwhelmed, and thus can't take time just for the human aspect.

The interview process was a little intense. First interview was a 3 person panel interview where they went into much detail of my resume. Every question was how I would handle people that were not easy to work with. They also wanted to know how I worked in fast paced environments. The last interview, which I came another day for, was with the VP. Here it was more with how I would fit in and that I should work here. It was more of hey, we want you so don't go anywhere. For 4 weeks they had me wait for a response. I emailed the Recruiter once a week for updates. The same answer was " nothing new will get back to you, but don't worry they really liked you!" After over a month and a half, I told the recruiter I'm pulling my interest as they did not return any feedback or offer. It's not often that a person would withdraw from a position, I just felt that the lack of interest, feedback and/or negation was a bit insulting. My worry was also that if they did business like this, who knows what the position had in store for me once there.