I applied online, and was contacted a couple of days later looking to scheduled a first interview. Confirmed my general availability, but was surprised that they were requesting that I download a program as they conduct all interviews online (1st red flag). I confirmed that I was 3 minutes away from their office, and would be glad to walk to the interview, but again they stated they do not conduct in-person interviews.
They emailed me the link to download the software about 20 minutes prior to the scheduled interview. Software downloaded with no issues and was fairly easy to navigate. However, I was caught off guard as the person conducting the interview was the "GM" as she stated the HR rep that I had been in correspondence with was "unavailable" for this time (2nd red flag).
The interview was extremely awkward as it is clear that she had not viewed my resume before beginning the interview. She was unaware of my education and previous work experience. She did not actually ask any questions, but simply asked me to review my resume for her. Throughout the entire "interview" she was clearly distracted by something in the background and asked me to repeat myself several time.
When the interview began to finish up, I took the opportunity to ask some questions about the make-up and structure of the company. However, she dodged both of my questions and attempted to change the topic.
I was notified at the end of the interview that i would hear back either way within roughly one week, but I received no further communication from them and was basically ghosted.
Upon further research, it turns out that this is owned by a Chinese Canadian, and essentially rents office spaces in communal offices. After working in China for the better part of a decade, I would have to state that she is clearly operating the company as if she is still in China as she presenting the company in one fashion, but in fact, it is clearly a start-up company looking to gain footing in the online ESL industry.
To be honest, I feel that I have dodged a bullet as I would not recommend anyone submit an application here as if this is how they sell themselves to potential candidates, I would love to see how they actually treat staff that they hire.