I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at HubSpot (Cambridge, MA) in Apr 2017
Interview
Being interviewed by HubSpot was a complete pleasure! The recruiters and interviewers are all very quick to respond and incredibly kind, sometimes responding to emails within a minute. The interview is a three part process. The first part consisted of a phone interview with questions about my goals and how I would be a good fit at the company, the second consisted of a skype interview where I had to learn about the software and engage in a simulation of what I would be doing, and the last interview was in person at their Cambridge office where you're put through three interviews back-to-back with question that would let them know if you're a good fit for them.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What is something that you have taught yourself recently that may be relevant to the position you're applying for?
Thanks for your review - while you may not have reached the outcome you hoped I appreciate you dedicating the time and effort to our process. Best of luck in your search! -Becky
About a week after I applied, I received an email to set up a phone interview. They told me the start date was the next week and that things would be moving very fast. It turns out they told me the wrong information and the start date was was actually the week after, but this whole process took place within two weeks.
The phone interview was fairly conversational with a few behavioral questions. I was then asked if I could complete the video interviews literally later that day. I understand that the process was moving fast but I thought it was inconsiderate to expect me to take time away from my current responsibilities to complete the software training tasks and prepare for behavioral interview questions plus an hour of time actually participating in the interviews. If I had agreed to that, I would not only be very rude to my current employer but I would also only be hurting my chances by not taking time to prepare for the interviews. We arranged to do the Zoom video chats the next day.
The video chats were also fairly conversational and the tasks with the software were not difficult at all. I was then invited for the in office interview, in which I talked to three different people for a half hour each, in addition to a quick chat and tour with the recruiter before and after. The conversations were honestly pretty difficult. They will grill you about your experience in handling angry customers, which I did not necessarily have. I have plenty customer service experience, but not much experience dealing with angry customers, so I framed what experience I did have to answer these questions. I know they hire directly out of college for this role so I don't know what they would be looking for in that case. I was told I wouldn't be confident enough to handle angry customers. Also, you better be prepared with examples of things you have taught yourself. I felt very uncomfortable being grilled on questions about my personality and my success.
The worst part of this experience for me was waiting for the final decision. Like I said, the process took two weeks. All three interview steps took place in the first week. The entire second week was waiting for my answer. I did not receive a call about whether I got the job until 3:30 pm on the Friday, with the start date being Monday. I found that extremely inconsiderate. By that point, I figured I did not get the job or perhaps they were waiting for others' answers and I was a second choice, but it was very frustrating to not have the answer until the last minute like that, especially in regards to informing my current employer. Hubspot brags about their transparency but I did not find that to be true in the end. They really push the Glassdoor reviews, mostly because they tend to showcase them in such a good light. I did find Glassdoor to be a very helpful resource in preparing for the interviews. However, as I ended up not having a great experience, I think it is important that I share that as well.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What have you taught yourself recently?
Teach me something?
What have you been successful at outside of school?
Thanks for your feedback and I'm sorry about your negative experience - it sounds like we completely missed the mark on respecting your time, not only in the effort it takes to prepare for your interviews but also in following up with decisions. HubSpot is growing quickly and our team is hiring at a rapid pace to meet our goals, but that shouldn't come at the expense of your experience. I'm taking your feedback and using it as a learning opportunity for my team to ensure we are more thoughtful about timelines and follow up. I truly appreciate your open and honest feedback - it helps us continue to get better. -Becky
I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at HubSpot
Interview
I applied online after filling the application form and I received an email one month later asking me to do a video-recorded interview. You have between 30 seconds and 1 minute to prepare the question and a specific amount of time to answer. Unfortunately I wasn't successful and couldn't advance with the process.