I applied online. The process took 6 months. I interviewed at Microsoft (Moskau, ) in Jul 2015
Interview
First the regular discussions with HR, then you talk with someone at the same position you're aiming for. then you prepare a presentation for a panel of managers, who vote on a decision.
Of course you might not get to that last step.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
There were questions about knowledge of the Microsoft stack
I applied through a staffing agency. The process took 1+ week. I interviewed at Microsoft (Reading, England) in Jul 2017
Interview
The interview process was 2 rounds of technical phone interviews followed by 3 back-to-back on site interviews over an afternoon (1 on personal skills, 1 on business acumen, 1 in depth technical presentation). From initial approach to job offer took 10 days. Slickest recruitment process I've ever had. Face to face session were tough but pleasant - no one was trying to trip me up or throw curve balls at me to see how I responded.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Wasn't like that. The interviews were a conversation not a Q and A session.
I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Microsoft (Reading, England) in Oct 2017
Interview
The overall impression is negative however there are a few strong positives I will call out, unfortunately balanced by some aspects really disappointing.
Had one brief prep call with the recruiter, then a technical screening, then a detailed prep call with an assigned person from the recruiting team, then got invited at their assessment centre in Reading.
Strong positives:
- Impressed with the quality of prep work guidance and interview materials sent by e-mail before the interview;
- Impressed with the proposed format of the interview (three one-hour interviews in front of a panel);
- Impressed with the level of the detail in the feedback.
Amazing negatives:
- None of the three interviews were what they were supposed to be; they were one person conversations and I felt like I put one week of effort preparing a presentation which was neither discussed nor seen.
Only one interviewer in the room meant subjectivity and risk of biased feedback;
One of the interviewers actually made up most of the findings on which the rejection was founded;
The feedback given was contradictory to the point of absurdity.
That being said, I fully accept the idea of an employer at will. However, rational and consistent in the decision making process would make two great additions to that...