I was interviewed on the phone by a recruiter, then with the hiring manager. I was then asked to complete an onsite interview. They have a separate building for interviews, which shows that they interview hundreds of candidates a month. The interview process consisted of a full day of interviews, with 4 different folks. There were two business cases, a job fit interview, and a product design challenge.
The business case interviews relied heavily on math skills. In the job description of the role, there is no indication that having solid math skills was a requirement. An assessment, prior to the onsite, could have saved everyone time and money. I am good at math - I have to be in order to be in product management, but nowadays no one works on pen and paper. I rely heavily on formulas that I have created in Excel, and as a product manager, I also work with my Finance team.
In the interview, they also provide you with a calculator. The calculator is very generic, and kept resetting or not clearing previous formulas correctly. Be prepared for that - my phone has a better calculator. Despite the challenge, I worked together with the interviewer to clarify questions and ask for assistance, when I felt it was needed. I completed both cases successfully, and within the allotted time. The questions relate to profitability, feature/cost analysis, etc for a hypothetical farming company, and a digital product initiative.
Between interviews, I met with the actual hiring manager, who told me that math was not something for me to worry about. During the design challenge, the interviewer also told me not to worry about math. I started to feel confident. Note- in each of the interviews, they do not ask you about your qualifications or resume/work experience, which I thought was very odd. I have 12 years of product management experience, and I'm actually one of the top 3 in my company. I tried to show case that where I could during each of the interviews.
Despite some struggles with math and the cheap calculator, I felt pretty optimistic. I was told I would hear back in 3-5 business days. The recruiter was non-responsive. Finally, on day 8, I was able to reach the recruiter by phone. The recruiter advised me that I did not get the position because I struggled with the business analyst case (math). However, I was very strong in communication skills.
He then proceeded to tell me that while math is not a requirement, that they look to see if I asked for help. I informed the recruiter that I did ask for help - I believe they saw that because they mentioned my 'strong communication skills'. He shared with me that the hiring manager was very excited about me.
Lastly, he told me that in their notes, I was recommended for a data analyst role. If the reason I didn't get the position is because I struggled in math, why would you recommend me for a role that requires numbers and math? Just doesn't make sense.
I felt this whole process was a waste of time, and that it is just a due diligence process they follow to ensure they are actively interviewing. It's important for potential applicants to understand experiences like mine, which is why I decided to share it. The reason for me not getting the job doesn't make sense, and I sense they interview so many people each month, they lose track of the individual. The recruiters are also not very responsive, so if you do not hear back, give them a call.