This whole process seemed very unorganized and dysfunctional. The HR Recruiter called me on a Friday around 1:00pm and spoke briefly with me about my experience and the position. But then she asked if I could come in THAT VERY DAY at 4:00pm to meet with the Manager!! So I quickly had to throw myself together, with not much time to prepare, and rush to get there.
She said that they had already interviewed 5 people for the position earlier in the week and were looking to conduct one more interview before heading into the second round the following week. Already, I felt pretty much like an after-thought, but was happy to at least have the opportunity to interview.
I arrived for my interview and the HR Recruiter met with me just to show me around the very very small and overly-crowded office space they have. Then she got me situated in the meeting room, where I would meet with the Manager. However, the Manager of course had just gotten a call when it was her turn to speak with me, so I ended up having to sit alone in the meeting room for a good 20 minutes waiting for her. Aside from that, the interview seemed to go pretty well, especially considering how little notice I had that it would even be taking place. And the Manager said that I would hear back either Monday or Tuesday about whether they wanted to conduct a second interview with me.
So on Monday I got a call from the HR Recruiter and she said that they did want me to come in for a second interview and that the Manager was very impressed with me. She also told me that there were two others who had been selected to move on to the second round, and that I seemed to be the strongest candidate out of the three.
I went in the very next day for my second interview. It was supposed to be with the same Manager as before, as well as with the CEO of the company. However, the Manager was on a call when I got there (again), so she ended up not joining us. So it was just the CEO and me. He seemed like he didn't want to be there and had no interest in me whatsoever, and like he was in a big rush the entire time and just wanted to get it over with.
At that point, I pretty much felt the same. They just kept throwing me through hoops and making me waste my time. And I found out two days later that they had decided to hire someone else. So I just want everyone else out there to be aware of what they might be getting themselves into.