For context, I have significant industry experience for the role I applied for, but no direct experience in a comparable position, so I set my expectations accordingly. The process wasn't bad overall, but the communication needs to be more timely to close the loop with candidates who are not selected. Interview 1: Scheduled for the recruiter screening within a few days of applying. Pretty standard stuff. Interview 2: Scheduled with the hiring manager the following week. Most of the interview was spent detailing the role, with surprisingly little time focused on my experience. They did confirm that I checked all the boxes, but also heavily hinted that there were preferred internal candidates in the running. Fair enough, and I appreciated the transparency. I was told that scheduling for the final round of interviews would take place the following week once the 2nd round was completed and decisions made on who would advance. I didn't hear back until a month later when I received the auto-rejection email. I came to my own conclusions within a week of the 2nd interview, but would've been nice to have confirmation sooner.