This may have been the longest set of interviews in my life. Round one, phone screen with HR. He laid out what they were looking for and not looking for. Told me that this was to backfill an architect that moved on. He was a C++ god but a PITA to work with. More of a senior coder really. As such, they were looking for an architect and someone who could communicate. Sounds good. I told him I did C and C# but not C++. He didn't think that would be a problem. This lasted for about 90 minutes. Round two, hiring manager interview. It lasted about 2 hours. There was himself and one of his peers. He explained how they worked and again emphasized they weren't looking for a C++ person but a an architect for their engineering group. Including lunch, this lasted for about 3 hours. Round three, this was a full day (and then some) of interviewing. It was supposed to be 8 people and ended up being about a dozen. I got to see how their higher end simulators are created and how they work. After every interview, I would ask them how I did. None of them said anything bad. At the end of the day, I met with the hiring manager again for 2 hours. We went in to what he was trying to accomplish. That clarified some things, but I'm not sure he still had it straight in his mind yet. He asked how the interviews went and I told him no one had any complaints and that they said I would be a good addition. A say later, the hiring manager told me he wasn't sure of my tech skills and wanted another round of interviews. Round four, a half day group interview with eight people including the hiring manager. I took them down into the weeds and back up again. I went from TOGAF & DODAF down to why they are using UDP instead of TCP and all points in between. They also asked how I would develop the people around me. I replied that there are good ways to do this and I have done this in the past and went into detail how I did it. Walking out of the building, the hiring manager said he saw quite a few things he wasn't expecting, it was a very pleasant experience and I would be hearing from them. Short pause, two of the people I interviewed with send me messages on LinkedIn asking to connect. One told me that he wanted to have my skill set and hoped that I was hired so he could learn from me. I received a phone call two days after the group interview day and was told that I would not be getting an offer. When I asked why, I was told, after a long pregnant pause, "well, it's the C++ thing." None of my interviewer thought I would be doing that and the hiring manager said it wasn't going to be part of the job. Wow! This was obviously a made up answer but I didn't press the point. I was told later, through back channels, the hiring manager was a bit intimidated. The engineering organization feels a bit disorganized. I did not appreciate the amount of time it a) took to make a decision and b) they didn't value my time. It's too bad. The were geographically desirable but in a state where they needed leadership but didn't have a sufficient amount. I can't recommend them as an employer.