WaterAid Interview Questions
& Process

The hiring process was pretty simple, with three main parts. First, there was a screening chat with the hiring manager and a current team member. They were super nice and made me feel comfortable right away, asking standard questions like what I was excited about for the job and why I was interested in WaterAid. After that, I got a problem statement and about a week to put together a presentation with an idea for how WaterAid could bring in more money. I was also given 7 questions beforehand to get ready. These questions touched on how to track innovation, my experience with prototyping, and what kind of support I'd need to do well. Even though the presentation took a good amount of work, I liked having the time to prepare my answers and that most of the interview stuff was done in one go. The last interview was with the head of department and the hiring manager. They were friendly again, and it felt like a real back-and-forth, giving me a good sense of what it would be like to work at WaterAid and what they were looking for. In this last chat, we talked more about my past experience and skills, and what I might find tough about the job.

I initially didn’t make it past the application stage, but the hiring manager reached out saying it was a mistake and I had a couple of days to prep for the interview. The first interview had about 10 questions and a presentation on a specialist area of WaterAid. Some questions were repeated with slight variations. The interviewers seemed nice, but the hiring manager’s camera was off for both rounds, which made picking up on body language difficult. I moved to the second round, which involved more questions and a task that usually gets shared beforehand but this time they wanted my gut reaction. I did my best and was later told I didn’t get the job. I understand it’s a competitive field, but the reason given, “If it was a different region, it could have been a different story,” was vague. I asked for feedback to know where I could improve, especially since I have other interviews lined up. The hiring manager said she’d share it after her leave, but then sent an out-of-office reply. It’s been a week since she returned and over two weeks since the interview, and I still haven’t received any feedback. Considering the prep time expected from candidates, this is poor form. The interviewers have been at WaterAid for over 10 years, and I suspect they’ve forgotten how valuable feedback is to candidates. I heard from a friend that a recent hire is miserable due to the pressure, so maybe it was for the best I didn’t get the role.

It was a temporary role for about 6-8 weeks so it was just a casual chat. The interviewer was nice and said I'd hear back that day (Friday) because they wanted someone to start the next week. I watched my emails all day hoping for work. I then checked with my agency at the end of the day and found out they'd actually decide on Monday. I get waiting longer for a permanent job, but I had to wait all weekend without knowing. I had to ask again on Monday and only found out late afternoon that I didn't get it. It was a junior role and I have a lot of experience so I asked for feedback to know where I messed up. I never got any feedback. It was all really disappointing and I wouldn't apply again because of it.

So, before the actual interview, I had to do this tough prioritisation task. Basically, I was given ten things to do and I had to figure out the order to tackle them. Then, I had to chat with the interviewers and explain my reasoning behind that order. After that, they asked me stuff about how I handle different people-related scenarios, time management skills, and my previous experience with databases. Interestingly, apart from me explaining my motivation for working there, they didn't really ask anything about the organization itself.