In the job posting, they stated that they were looking for someone with near-native English reading and writing skills, while strong spoken English was considered an advantage. However, the CEO personally conducts a brief 10–15 minute online introductory interview. During this conversation, he speaks in advanced English and even pronounces his own name with an English accent, adopting what comes across as a somewhat condescending attitude.
He seems to believe that he can accurately assess a candidate’s English proficiency based on a 10–15 minute conversation, but in my opinion, he is completely mistaken.
He is also very transparent about how demanding the workload is and how busy the company operates, while at the same time offering a relatively low salary.
Before speaking with the CEO, I had the impression that this was a promising startup that had achieved impressive results in a short period of time and possessed strong growth potential. However, after the interview, I came away with the impression that the company is still rather amateurish and far less professional than I had initially expected.
It feels as though he is looking for someone who graduated from a top university such as METU or Bilkent, speaks flawless English, is willing to work with exceptional dedication, and yet does not expect a correspondingly competitive compensation package. What he seems not to realize is that candidates who genuinely fit that profile are highly unlikely to accept the conditions being offered.
The only positive aspect of the interview process, in my view, was the responsiveness. Since I was also interviewing with other companies and had already received job offers, I followed up shortly after the interview to ask about the status of the process. To their credit, they responded quickly and provided feedback without unnecessary delays.
