Northrop Grumman interview questions

I interviewed at Northrop Grumman (Redondo Beach, CA) in May-June 2017. The process took 6 weeks. Overall the process was very straightforward. I applied online and 3 days later I was asked to do a phone screen. During the call, which last roughly 30 minutes, I was asked to go over my current role and mention anything relevant to the job I was applying for. The recruiter then explained in detail what the company offers, the atmosphere and more about the role itself. The call went very well and the recruiter felt confident in me moving on to the next round and said he would push for an in-person interview with the hiring manager. 15 days later I received an email to schedule my on-site interview. 3 days after that I met with the hiring manager of the department I was applying for. At the time, it felt like an odd interview experience. We spent a lot of time going over my college experience (I graduated 5 years ago). We barely discussed my current role or the position I was applying for. Had I not asked about the program, the company, his background, etc., we probably would've finished in about 15 minutes and only talked about my college experience. However, after getting feedback from the hiring manager, it appears I did really well on the in-person interview. That's just the hiring manager's style of interviewing - having it be more of a casual conversation than an interview which I understand now. The recruiter reached out to me 2 weeks after the in-person interview and told me they had gone with the other candidate. The only difference between us was that they had aerospace experience. I completely understand the reasoning. But I do have to say though, I wish they had put together a candidate pool that was comparing apples to apples instead of apples to oranges. Someone without aerospace experience can't compete with someone that has it. So I really didn't have a shot from the get go. Just a suggestion for them* The recruiter did a phenomenal job throughout the process and I really appreciate their effort. They were very helpful and even said they want to keep the communication between us open so that if they come across another position that they feel I'd be a good fit for, they'll reach out and if I see something I'm interested in to directly reach out to them rather than going through the application process again. I really appreciate their level of dedication towards a candidate they feel is a good fit so I'm glad I made that contact. *If you get to schedule an on-site visit, arrive 15 minutes prior to your interview time as you must check-in at the visitors center and your interviewer has to come get you. Also, a lot of employees get visitor badges for friends, and they are given preference over you so this may make you late* Application Submitted: 5/16 Phone Screen Request: 5/19 Phone Screen: 5/22 In-person request: 6/6 In person: 6/9 Rejection Received on 6/26

Took around three weeks after I applied online to hear anything back, then the process moved a bit more quickly after that. After passing their initial screening, I had two in-person interviews. The first interview was with two of the cyber security hiring managers, mix of technical questions and personality questions. The second interview was with one of the hiring managers and two cyber security analysts/engineers. I was thoroughly unimpressed at this point - the two cyber engineers were completely unprepared for the interview and asked no questions of substance to me, nor seemed to care one bit about my professional/research background. I asked more questions to them than they had for me, all the answers to my questions (topics that interviewers usually get excited about, like tech and computing questions) were totally unsatisfying/short and unprofessional in tone. Also, I had to wait more than a half hour for the interviewers to meet me in the lobby, as they were late. The interview process is not just for the employer to determine if the candidate is an excellent fit for the team, but also to determine if the employer is fit for the candidate. I'm an understanding and patient guy, no biggie if the interviewers are a little late or some things don't go as planned, but I felt the experience was so poor I should write a quick summary so that the process can improve. I had high hopes going into an environment that has excellent record in the defense and research realm, but this particular team at Northrop left me wishing I didn't apply and invest my time there in the first place. Fortunately, I have offers and much more positive experiences elsewhere... there are plenty other high tech places looking for technical talent that are much more respectful and timely in their interest in candidates.