As I've been told by friends and family that work at Entergy, they were right: the interview process is long and the actual interview is behavioral. My first interview was with five people who took turns asking me questions along these lines:
"Tell me about a time when you when you were not able to deliver on customer service. Were you able to keep the customer? If so, how did you go about fixing the problem? And what did you learn in the process?"
The interview lasted right at an hour. They called me the same night and said I was in the top 2 and asked me back for a 2nd and final interview, which was to consist of a very challenging 15 minute presentation and 15 minute Q & A session with the top two managers in the division. Following the presentation I spoke with the two managers candidly about the position. We talked salary range, expectations, etc. They even took the time to show me the exact territory where I'd work, the organizations I'd work with, and so forth. They told me how I would have to deal with existing company and management issues, and even "sold" me on how great a company Entergy is to work for and how I wouldn't find a better benefit package elsewhere. I was certain that I was going to be hired for this position for which I was capable of bringing success.
After 5 days I got a call from one of the managers explaining that they went with the other candidate who already had worked at a lower level with some of the partner organizations in the position territory. He then explained to me that perhaps I didn't have the experience, which I thought was completely counter to the tune they were singing leading up to and throughout the interview. There is one important piece of information about my experience as well: I am in the National Guard, which they knew from the very start. I showed them proof, after being questioned about my activation commitments in the first interview, that I would only be required to serve one weekend per month and two weeks each summer until late 2015. It's difficult for me not to believe that perhaps what separated me was the fact that I am a reservist. But who knows?