I never write interview reviews but my experience interviewing with Talkiatry left me feeling sickened and humiliated. The interview process was exploitative and felt like a scam designed to get free consulting work. The first three interviews (with the recruiter, CMO, and a product manager) seemed standard, though in hindsight I realized I was never given the opportunity to ask many questions. The final round, however, was a “case study” unlike anything I’ve seen interviewing for other positions. Talkiatry requested not one but two social media strategies (for Instagram and TikTok) with questions that would be more appropriate for someone already in the role. This was a time-consuming project that took me days to complete. It was obvious they were attempting to extract free labor under the guise of an interview. When it came time to present this “case study” I presented virtually to a room full of employees whom I hadn’t interviewed with prior and the CEO. The session was hostile: I was constantly and rudely interrupted with oddly specific questions that seemed more appropriate for someone already in the role. The tone was condescending, and the presentation felt less like a fair evaluation and more like a public roasting. I left the experience feeling humiliated, exploited, but relieved I would not be working with such a rude group of individuals. I’m sickened my work is in their hands with absolutely no guarantee that it won’t be referenced to build their Instagram and TikTok presence. I reached out to the recruiter to request that my work not be used in future project and received a “of course, thanks” response. Based on the comments I’ve seen on their own Instagram posts, this culture of exploitation seems to extend beyond hiring practices. I do not recommend interviewing here unless you don’t mind being exploited for free labor and then publicly roasted. Below is the presentation I was asked to put together for this interview.