The recruiting/hiring process followed the pretty standard iter of academic jobs, at least in science department. No surprises. Being one of the smaller top-tier universities, and being in the Houston, the experience was somewhat less formal than in other places. The department is smaller than elsewhere, which makes the interview visit less hectic.
Once the interview were over the offer, second visit, and negotiation parts were quite smooth and uneventful, and moving in a timely fashion.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
We are talking about faculty hires, so most of the interview revolves around research (match, promise, etc...). It's hard to mention any specific example because the hardest questions tend to be about fairly candidate-specific points.
Overall in faculty hires there is the concern with the likelihood that the candidate will develop a robust (and well funded) research program, attract students, cultivate collaboration opportunities.