In July, I received an email from the Head of Tech Recruiting notifying me that I had been selected for an interview—only two days before it took place. The company was running a hiring event that week, with results promised by end of day Friday. I successfully passed both the initial and technical interview rounds by Wednesday. I informed the recruiting team that I had a vacation planned starting Friday and asked if I could complete the final round on Thursday. I was told that the interview had to take place on Friday to be considered, with no exceptions. As a result, I canceled my flight and vacation. After completing the final interview on Friday, I never received the promised update by end of day. The following Wednesday, the Director of Tech Recruiting called and extended a verbal offer over the phone. However, after a week of silence, I followed up and was told that Finance had reallocated the budget, but that I was still her top candidate and an offer could be expected in a few weeks. Over the next three months, I followed up multiple times and was repeatedly told “a couple more weeks.” Eventually, communication stopped altogether. I later discovered that the Director of Tech Recruiting had left the company. After canceling a vacation and being strung along for three months, this was one of the most unprofessional and time-wasting recruiting experiences I’ve had. It demonstrated a serious lack of respect for candidates’ time and commitments.