I applied for this position on-line. The initial communications was made by the Director of Human Resources via email. Much time had passed since applying that I didn't even remember when I applied...I was surprised. After several emails back and forth (spanning 2 business days) we were able to coordinate a date and time for an initial phone interview. The HR director was upbeat and really just confirmed more details that were not specified on my resume. After the phone interview HR director felt confident that my qualifications would make me a good candidate for the position as well as another opening so the HR director scheduled me for a dual phone interview in the afternoon on Tuesday with 2 hiring managers via conference call. Well on the scheduled day...I waited and waited for their phone call until 5pm. After which I sent an email to the HR director about not being called and whether or not I had gotten the dates mixed up. The HR director initially scheduled the phone interview for Wednesday but told me Tuesday!
On the rescheduled phone interview day, I received the call as scheduled. One hiring manager was from the Micro lab while the other was from the Biochem lab. Both described their work environments briefly before asking questions that basically summed up my resume. I perceived both hiring managers to be cold and standoff-ish in the tone of their voices. Both hiring managers wanted to know if I had any formal training or relative experience in investigations. I replied that I learned about industrial hazard investigations in a college-level continuing education safety class but I had not conducted an official investigation on-site. After my response the interview was basically over and they even told me that I would not move further on in the interview process.
The following day the HR director sent me a "formal" email saying the hiring managers were looking at more experienced candidates for the position. In the same email, the HR director said she would recommend me to her colleague who may have positions I was qualified for and gave me her colleague's contact info.