For starters - the position sounds so cool and the company seems pretty awesome. I felt confidently about both of things prior to going into this experience. I still think the company is awesome, but the position.. eh, read on! A little background on me - I work for a well-known tech company and have a great position there but have been wanting to move to the Bay Area. Now, I did not get offered the position and don't want this to sound like bitter feedback so keep in mind that I had doubts once the process started and want to at least relay my experience, which seems fairly consistent with what other candidates have written.
The interview process is long and drawn out with a less than experienced staff. I had emailed with an employee at Houzz (I wouldn't say recruiter, because I don't think they have legitimate recruiters), after applying a year before (April 2015) and was asked to schedule a time to chat via Google Hangouts. I responded promptly and didn't hear back for over a month (mind you, I followed-up via email a few times). I accepted a promotion at my current company before finally hearing back.
Fast forward to May 2016, their processes haven't changed. I noticed the same position was open and decided to email the "recruiter" and see if I would have better luck with a response. Another member of that team reached out, we scheduled a Google Hangout (after having to offer a second set of availability because she didn't confirm with enough time the first go around). After that, I was asked to film and submit a video presenting on predetermined questions (why do you want to work for Houzz, what's your favorite feature, etc.). After that, I was asked to come on site to give a presentation. Throughout the process so far, I'd say on average, I had to send two emails (an original and follow-up) to illicit a response. Frustrating, but doable.
I live 3 hours away, so I was excited to come onsite but figured the person I was emailing with realized I had to make arrangements for my current job that day and plan for a full day of travel. When I asked about travel reimbursement, her response was, "I thought you lived locally." Over three hours one-way is not what I would consider local. I'm not sure if she just didn't read my resume or what.. I didn't get confirmation on the details of the on-site interview until a day and a half prior, which was frustrating because again, I have a full-time job currently and had to make arrangements. Now, here's the kicker, I had less than 20-minutes of face time when on site. The on-site interview could have easily been done over Skype. Had I realized I would have 20-minutes of time, I would not have spent over 6 hours in the car in 1 day to drive there. In my opinion, it was poor planning and lack of experience on this staff's end. About a week later, I got a generic email stating I was not selected to move forward. Oh, and needless to say, I never got reimbursed for my travel or even a response to follow-up asking about it. Moral of the story is, their communication is quite poor and they ask a lot of effort from you (taping and submitting a video, memorizing a presentation).