I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Samsara in Feb 2025
Interview
This was the most well-structured interview process I've ever encountered. Each step was clearly explained, including the behavioral attributes that each interviewer would be testing for (using the STAR format).
There were five stages over roughly a month:
1: Initial screener with in-house recruiter (fairly standard, but I was impressed with the transparent explanation of the interview timeline and compensation)
2: Initial interview with hiring manager (much more substantive)
3: Hiring panel (behavioral questions using the STAR format)
4: Take-home assignment + presentation with hiring manager (probably the most controversial part of the process from an applicant perspective, but it only took a couple of hours and I thought it was a helpful differentiator)
5: Final stage (more behavioral questions with senior leaders)
The recruiter stayed in close contact at each stage of the process, all of the interviewers were punctual and engaged, and I never felt like the company was hiding the ball on compensation (which is sadly rare these days). I could not have been more impressed.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about a time you had to give advice that the business didn't want to hear.