The interview process was as follows:
1. I submitted my CV and cover letter in mid-February (13th)
2. They invited me for an interview in the last week of March (27th)
3. The initial phone interview took place on 2 April
There were other jobs I was more interested in, so I made an executive decision not to put a lot of effort into the preparation - which definitely impacted my performance, and, I believe, is the reason I did not progress in the hiring process.
In any case, I read a lot about the very interesting program I would work for and some reviews on the organisation. Although overall, Palladium's reviews were good, the reviews concerning their Australia practice were largely negative, which concerned me as, of course, workplace culture is an extremely important factor for me when picking a place of work.
So naturally, when it was my turn to ask questions, I asked the interviewer what kind of culture exists in Palladium's Canberra office. He made me feel weird for asking that question and barely answered it.
In the end, they sent me a rejection email four weeks after the screening call.