Ulta Beauty Operations Manager Interview Questions
& Process

The interview process was straightforward. After applying in early September, I received a callback about three weeks later for an in-person interview. Following that, I had two phone interviews, one with the District Manager and another with a Store Manager. I was offered the job shortly after these conversations. They explained that the team was essentially starting from scratch, and when they brought up the opportunities available in the store, I made sure to share my ideas on how I would enhance them.

I applied online and about a week later, I got a call. They asked me some quick questions and then set up an interview with the store manager. We met at a Starbucks, and it was pretty casual, lasting about 2 hours. She asked a ton of 'what if' and 'tell me about a time' questions. She mentioned she'd let me know if I should meet with the district manager. I got a call that same night to schedule an interview for the next morning. I went in and waited around 30 minutes for the district manager. She was nice too, and asked similar questions to the store manager, but fewer of them. That interview was only about 15 minutes. She told me they'd take about a week to decide because they had other candidates and I'd hear by the following Friday. If I didn't hear anything, it meant they decided to go with someone else.

I applied in March 2019 and a district manager contacted me about a month later. We had a good meeting, and she scheduled a second interview at a store closer to my home with the hiring store manager. About an hour before the second interview, the hiring manager called to ask if I could come at 5 PM instead because her closing manager was out sick. I had plans that evening, but I was able to rearrange them. I arrived at the store about fifteen minutes early. The manager said her backup hadn't arrived yet but should be there soon. She finally met me at 5:30 PM. During our 45-minute meeting, we were interrupted about five times due to staffing issues. After the fourth interruption, I asked if she wanted to reschedule since her staff seemed to need her. She declined, mentioning she was going to a work conference the following week and wanted to finish the interview before traveling. We agreed she would contact me the next week after her conference. I sent a thank you note after our meeting but never heard back. I sent several follow-up emails and tried calling the store. After a month, I assumed I didn't get the position, thinking Ulta didn't send rejection notifications. I just found out they do send them because I received one this evening. Pretty sad.