Ask HN: Months Long Interview Process

by 0xmarcin on 10/30/2024, 5:33:46 PM with 5 comments
I am looking for a new position right now. I have a few open "processes" that are 2 months+ old and I still don't get any offer/rejection. This is a bit exhausting at this point, are all those job adds/process just for appearances? Is a company really interested in hiring someone if it cannot decide after 2 month+ long process and 7+ meetings.

This is nothing new and was also described in this article: https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20240402-return-of-never-ending-job-interviews

Can you give me some advice, please? How much time should I give the company, e.g. 3 months? Can I assume that if they cannot decide after 3 months the job ad is just fake?

  • by toomuchtodo on 10/30/2024, 5:49:13 PM

    Don't wait on them, just keeping interviewing, and when you have an offer you're happy with, move forward with it.

  • by JohnFen on 10/30/2024, 6:05:14 PM

    I can't remember the last time that less than a couple of months have passed between the start of applying for a position until I got word that I was hired.

    However, 7+ meetings in that time? I've never experienced that and I wouldn't be willing to put up with it (which might be why I never experienced it). But that's a matter of temperament, so YMMV.

  • by discretion22 on 10/30/2024, 6:14:04 PM

    Is this company asking you to do things for them by any chance? The only time I've seen anything like this was when they were leeching free consultancy for a problem they were unable to solve. They compartmentalized the problem into different sub-components and under the guise of advancement in the process, held an 'interview' on them separately and a follow-up for the feedback (i.e. find out the answers). Once they had all the parts they needed, they said the person had not got the job.

    Find different opportunities - this one sounds no good. If they treat you like this in the play nice phase, they will treat you much, much worse if they ever employ you.

  • by AnimalMuppet on 10/30/2024, 5:47:13 PM

    If they're ghosting you, you can freely ghost them. If they come back at some point, great, but expect that they won't.

    If they're continuing to ask you to interview, to jump through hoops, to fill out more applications or do more assignments or whatever, the time to call a halt to that is is long way before three months. You don't have time in your life for that game. (Even if you have nothing else to do but job hunt, spend your time hunting for a job that won't put you through that kind of nonsense.)