I recently went through the interview process at Deall for a Copywriter position, and while it was structured and fairly smooth on the surface, there were several moments that raised serious concerns for me. From the beginning, I was surprised that there was no HR screening at all. In most professional settings, an HR round helps set expectations and ensures alignment early on, so skipping this step made me question the structure of their hiring process. Another red flag was that some interviews were scheduled outside of regular working hours, which made me wonder about the company’s views on work-life balance. The final interview with the CEO was where things really turned. Instead of focusing on my qualifications or ideas, the conversation veered into whether I’d be willing to take on tasks outside the Copywriter role. He casually stated that AI could now handle most copywriting, and therefore I should expand my skill set. He also claimed that creative copywriting is “limited”—a particularly strange take coming from someone with no background in creative or agency work. I found myself explaining the actual scope of copywriting, from ATL and BTL campaigns to 360 digital strategies. At that point, I felt less like a candidate and more like a guest lecturer. After several rounds, I was told my salary expectation was higher than other candidates. It was baffling—why bring me to the final round if budget was the issue from the beginning? What’s more telling is that, despite recently closing that hiring round, Deall has now re-opened the Copywriter position. This suggests that either the other shortlisted candidates also declined the offer (perhaps for the same reasons I did), or the company rejected them in hopes of finding someone more skilled, but still willing to accept a lower salary. In the end, I’m honestly glad it didn’t work out. The experience revealed enough red flags to make me cautious, and I’d advise others considering Deall to do their due diligence—especially when reading overly glowing reviews online. Sometimes, what looks polished on the outside doesn’t reflect the real story.