I reached out to a sourcer about a position I was interested in. It had already been filled, but she encouraged me look for another one I would be open to. This happened for 2 separate positions before I was finally referred to a third position that the team lead for the role thought I would be a good fit for.
I completed a phone screen and a homework assignment before being invited for an on-site interview. The assignment wasn't too difficult or time-consuming as has been mentioned in previous reviews under Gusto's old Glassdoor page at Zenpayroll. Rather, it felt like they were just looking for answers that were thoughtful and thorough as well as how you approached unfamiliar situations. The on-site was scheduled for 3.5 hours in the afternoon, and the recruiter was very helpful in sending me all of the details beforehand with the schedule of who I would be speaking with, what team they were from, and what the topics would be with each person. One of the sessions was a pretty intensive skills-based interview, but the other ones felt more like comfortable conversations. A lot of emphasis was put on the company values. The office had a great vibe, and people were clearly excited about their work. A week later, I received an email from the recruiter explaining that while they liked me, I didn't have enough experience for the position, and was referred to the 2nd position I had originally inquired about. Frustrating because I had been reassured during both the phone screen and on-site that my lack of experience wouldn't be a huge obstacle, but I was open to this position as well.
The recruiter for this position reached out to me saying I would be great, but that he had reached his headcount. He used a lot of vague buzzwords that basically meant we would talk again next month when he started hiring for that role. I followed up twice over the next couple weeks but never received a response. A month later, I received a generic rejection email from the careers email with no further explanation. I reached out to the other recruiter I had communicated with previously in the hopes of understanding what had changed in the past month and also did not receive a response but finally heard back from this recruiter. After explaining that they were busy with rebranding the company and reconstructing the interview process but valued candidates' time (clearly not the case here), he suggested I take a look at the new positions. I expressed interest in one of the positions he recommended, after which he informed me that I didn't have enough experience and they didn't have time to train me but to keep in touch. I'm still confused why he encouraged me to take a look at a position only to say I wasn't the right fit.
For all the talk about values and transparency (I was asked to talk about the company values at every single stage of the interview and with all 4 people on-site), there is a distinct lack of effort to demonstrate those values outside of the actual office. Being left hanging and sent mixed messages by the last recruiter was discouraging, unprofessional, and kind of like a bad relationship. Reading so much about Gusto/Zenpayroll's amazing culture as well as talking to the employees in person about how much they loved the work they do had put the company at the top of my list of places at which I wanted to work. I was determined to get a job there, willing to roll with all the changes being thrown my way while giving them the benefit of the doubt. However, this experience has left me wary of pursuing further opportunities with this company until the recruiting process actually reflects the values so often referenced. Really disappointed that things didn't work out.