I came across the job on Glassdoor and LinkedIn. The job description was a perfect match for my skillset. I chased the job more than I should have, admittedly. I followed-up with the recruiter SEVERAL times when I hadn’t heard back when they said they would reach out about next steps. My messages were routinely ignored, a red flag I overlooked. Often, I had to chase down someone else involved in the hiring process to prod the recruiter into action (scheduling next-round interviews and such). In my interview process, it became clear the site/company has little direction, people are overworked, and leadership doesn’t value the brand. In my interview with a c-suite leader, I was told “it’s just a website” several times when I asked about the long-term vision for editorial. The company reposted the job several times during my interview process, each time reducing the salary range. The last post had a salary range of less than half of what was originally listed. Ultimately, I was asked to discuss “next steps” in a final call with the recruiter, which - in tone - felt like they were prepared to offer me the job. When the recruiter got around to scheduling a call days later, the meeting subject was “update on the EiC position,” which was telling. In that call, the recruiter told me the company was holding off on hiring as it was acquiring other brands and wanted to “wait for regulatory approval” before hiring. My (correct) assumption was they wanted to see if they could slot someone from the brands they acquired into the role instead of hiring. The recruiter told me the company is “volatile” and there was a lot to work out before they considered hiring anyone. They told me they would have more information in a month or so. That was several weeks ago. I’ve since reached out several times and been ignored by the recruiter each time. Again. The people I met in my interview process seem great, and I would have enjoyed working with them. Unfortunately, the leadership and recruiters don’t instill any confidence the company values the brand proposition - which is alarming for a media company. The main issue I have is they began acquiring new brands well before posting the job, much less interviewing external candidates. They didn’t need to waste everyone’s time with this process. In examining reviews of existing and former employees, it seems this level of chaos is status quo for Ziff Davis.