Sonder Analyst Interview Questions
& Process

Screening call with the Hiring Manager where we discussed my background and salary expectations. Then a second round with the Hiring Manager focusing more on the projects I've worked on. After that, a 30-minute interview with the Senior Manager to go over my experience. Followed by a 15-20 minute introductory interview with a C-Level Executive. Finally, a call with HR to finalize the offer.

This interview process was embarrassingly incompetent. There were a total of three parts to this process. My first interview consisted of multiple what-if analytical scenarios that I needed to answer to screen my knowledge and competency in data analytics. Then I proceeded to part 2 where I was given a pricing exercise to complete in 24 hours. I was given raw data that needed to be organized into an excel spreadsheet and I had to create rates for approximately a full year for a 1 bedroom unit. I created a very similar 'daily detail' spreadsheet you would often find with larger hotel chains. I had to create some simple formulas that were not given such as daily RevPAR. I also had to answer some follow-up questions regarding the data. I worked hard on this document. I then heard back from the recruiter about a week later to set up my 2nd interview (part 3). To my surprise, it was with the same individual who interviewed me the 1st time. Also to my surprise, he asked me THE SAME QUESTIONS covering basic analytical scenarios as my first interview. From the perspective of the interviewer, there was no new information to be gained from these questions and I wouldn't be this far in the interview process if I couldn't answer such questions competently. I had obviously cleared this hurdle at this point and it was like we started all over again. But that wasn't the most frustrating part... I was extremely disappointed that during this 2nd interview that he did not discuss the results of my pricing exercise nor did he give any feedback. He did not acknowledge the exercise at all. I thought to myself that nobody could be this incompetent, so I attempted to theorize why this happened. The only conclusion I can come to is that there was a miscommunication between the recruiter and the interviewer and the interviewer thought I was a fresh candidate. Mind you, this is all over Zoom and email so it's less personal than your standard sit-in interview. Based on the interview process, I can see why this company has such poor reviews.

A recruiter contacted me about the role and set up a 30 minute call to discuss the job, the company, my background, and why I'm interested. Next, I had a 30 minute chat with a team member about my experience and how I'd price a Sonder unit. After that, I completed a 5 hour pricing challenge using data from Sonder. This was followed by another 30 minute interview with a team member to go over my results. Then, I was invited to the office for a 2.5 hour interview where I met with four managers and team members. During this onsite interview, two people had me work through case study pricing questions on a whiteboard. The challenges and case studies really reflected the actual job duties. The whole process, which took about 2 weeks, gave me a clear picture of the company culture and expectations. The recruiter was quick to respond. Even though it's an entry-level position, I think I didn't get an offer because they wanted someone with more experience. It was a good experience overall, and I'd recommend applying if you're interested.