I met with the recruiter for 20 minutes by phone, followed by 30 minutes with the hiring manager on zoom. The hiring manager indicated they were seeking to fill the role quickly with a decision on the final candidate within 4 weeks. I then did a 2.5 hour panel interview with multiple heads of departments, during which all of them indicated what a fantastic fit I would be for the company. I felt like I had done a really great job throughout the interview process because of all the positive feedback given by the panelists. Less than a week after the panel interview I was rejected by email, stating that the team absolutely loved meeting me and saw me as a huge asset to the team but decided to move forward with a candidate further along in the process. I was surprised by this because the hiring manager had given me a clear timeline on a hiring date (still 3+ weeks away) and I had already invested 3+ hours interviewing and many more hours preparing.