The process involved a recruiter screen, a behavioural interview and a case study presentation, all with prep calls with a recruiter before the later stages. I initially expressed my interest by cold-reaching out to a contact at the company, and throughout the interviews I consistently received positive feedback, including being told my background aligned with a more senior role than the one I applied for. After the final round, I was told I had presented the case well and had a solid understanding of the business. The reason given for not moving forward was that I didn’t show enough interest or the right “energy.” This final feedback was inconsistent with the guidance I had been given and felt contradictory, given that I had cold reached out to the company before applying, invested considerable time in the process and had previously been coached in prep calls to be prepared for certain "prickly" interviewer demeanors. Following this, I applied for another internal role that seemed better aligned with the feedback. Over several weeks, my follow-ups to the recruiting team went unanswered. The only time I finally received a response was after reaching out again to the same initial contact I had cold-messaged at the start of the process, at which point I was told that I was not being considered. The abrupt communication gap, combined with the conflicting feedback, made the experience feel disjointed and ultimately a disappointing one.