I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Gusto (San Francisco, CA) in Nov 2014
Interview
Applied online. Was then contacted for a phone screening. This was a casual conversation and was really just meant for getting to know each other - went well. After the phone screening I was sent a take home test asking to outline what steps I'd take to plan/organize an office move. Crafting a thorough response took about 6 hours and was a laborious test considering how early in the process it was. I was quite interested in the company and so didn't think twice about completing it but after sending in my response, I had to follow up twice over a two week period to finally hear that they weren't moving forward with my application. When I asked for feedback on the assignment, I never heard back. (Had a very smart friend confirm the quality of the assignment)
I understand hiring can be a time consuming process but found it disrespectful to request such a laborious test at such an early stage in the interview process and then fail to give an adequate response.
Hope this is helpful for ZenPayroll and future candidates.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
You are a small business owner who is moving to a new office building in San Francisco. You are in charge of planning and organizing the move. What steps would you take to make sure this move is as simple and stress free for everyone who is involved?
Dear Candidate,
Thanks for sharing your feedback with us. Time and responsiveness are keys to great candidate interview experiences. Sorry to hear this process took longer than expected.
We'd be happy to provide you feedback on your solution to the assignment. Please email us at jobs@zenpayroll.com.
I applied online. I interviewed at Gusto in Oct 2014
Interview
The interview on the phone was with Travis. He was polite, amiable and prepared with thought-provoking questions.
The Take Home Test reminds me of my Take Home Finals in college, except that I had been deliberately set up for failure. It took me over 6 hours, and was clearly designed for an experienced tax professional, which I am not, nor did their job description even recommend I be. This test comes after the phone interview, but before the 1 or 2 in-person interviews (and then job offer).
I think this is a sign of two things: 1) ZenPayroll thinks they are Google, and is incredibly disrespectful of your time or 2) I am completely under qualified for this job, which they should have realized through my cover letter and/or first round interview. In the middle of the test I became so bemused by how specific and nuanced my knowledge of tax law had to be to complete this thing, I almost called them and said "I'm no longer applying for a Customer Service position, but I would like to check out HR, because something is amiss here."
Based on this test, IMHO, they should be hiring cheerful accountants, not people like me (who aren't accountants.)
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What do you think of the phrase "Jack of All Trades, Master of None?"
Dear Candidate,
Thanks for sharing your feedback. We are sorry to hear your feel our assignment wasn't appropriate for the role. Most of our Customer Advocates at ZenPayroll do not have prior tax experience before joining us. We have a great training program, once you join us, which allows to ramp up quickly. Since you applied for the role, we made changes to the assignment. We hope you will reconsider interviewing with us and will remain interested in what we do. We hope to hear back from you.
Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you