There were three virtual interviews. It felt like the first was checking to make sure I didn’t lie on my resume. The next was to make sure I’d be a good fit with the team and daily work. And the last to make sure I would mold into the culture.

It was very weird. The interviewer kept asking irrelevant personal questions about my current position and my supervisor and why I was leaving. She kept asking over and over again and I finally told her that I did not want to talk negatively about my employer and wanted to know what her questions had to do with the position I applied to. The interviewer was very confrontational and not at all nice or personable. Every question she asked felt like I was being interrogated instead of being asked genuine questions about my experience and capabilities. Each time I thought we had moved past the reason for wanting to leave my current company, I would get asked another question about how I would handle a difficult supervisor and why I found it easier to leave my current employer after a few months instead of rectifying the difficult situation. I kept telling her that I was not going to talk poorly about my current job no matter how she rephrased the question or how many times she asked. I finally cut the interview short and told the interviewer that I was no longer interested in the position. She didn't ask one question about my skills or experience. Obviously, there is some concern with retaining their employees and wanting to see if they can handle difficult supervisors or she wouldn't have kept asking.

I had a phone screening interview Monday and my video interview today. The vibe was very odd; unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before today. For the first time in my career, I immediately felt like I was being confronted instead of interviewed. I went into the interview genuinely excited and fully prepared. But from the moment it started, it was clear the tone wasn’t collaborative. It was combative. Every answer was met with suspicion, every joke fell flat, and follow-up questions felt less like curiosity and more like cross-examination. One of the interviewers pointed to my résumé as if she were pointing to photos of me caught in a compromising position. They assumed I was a flight risk who was “taking a step down” from my previous role, and they couldn’t fathom why I would do that. So they told me so... And they grilled me on it. Even when they seemed to move on, they challenged everything I said. What struck me most was how disconnected the experience felt from the values they advertise online. The conversation was cold, guarded, and transactional, which made me realize something important. A company’s culture shows up long before your first day. Decision-makers have a responsibility to challenge their own assumptions. Not everyone wants to climb the corporate ladder. Not everyone you interview is coming after your job. You can tell when a place sees people as partners versus problems to be managed. And you can definitely tell when leadership confuses authority with credibility. I walked in excited for the opportunity. I walked out thankful for the clarity. Culture cannot be faked, and I’m glad I saw the truth early.