I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at Fortinet (Japan, PA)
Interview
There were two interviews. The first interview was with the hiring manager, and we mainly discussed my previous work experience, products I had handled, customer-facing activities, and my approach as a Sales Engineer. The second interview was with the head of the SE team in Japan. We discussed my understanding of the role, team collaboration, and expected responsibilities after joining. Overall, the interview atmosphere was calm and professional, and the questions focused mainly on my experience and way of thinking.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Can you describe your experience as a Sales Engineer and how you identify customer challenges and propose technical solutions?
The interview process included an initial recruiter screen, a culture and presales discussion with the hiring manager, and a deep technical and scenario‑based panel where we covered networking fundamentals, Fortinet solutions, and customer‑facing sales situations.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Describe a time when you went into a meeting to position one product, but the customer wanted to focus on a different product. How did you handle the conversation and still create interest in your original solution?
I applied online. The process took 2+ months. I interviewed at Fortinet (Seattle, WA) in Sep 2022
Interview
Slow process with poor communication from the human resources staff that sets up interviews. Technical staff were prompt, intelligent and friendly. The sales staff was not impressive in experience, personality, or technical knowledge.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What would you tell a customer with Cisco equipment that didn't want to change their core switches from Cisco.