The recruitment process consisted of five stages for a role advertised at approximately £40,000 and took over three months to complete. During this time, the role was repeatedly re-advertised, which raised questions about stability in either requirements, expectations, or candidate suitability. At the outset, I was informed that office attendance would be occasional. However, this changed progressively throughout the process, shifting from occasional presence, to a couple of days per week, then to a minimum of three days, and ultimately to a fully on-site expectation. This lack of consistency made it difficult to establish the true nature of the role and suggested uncertainty in the role definition. Throughout the interviews, I encountered aspects of the hiring approach that felt unprofessional. The hiring manager openly referenced using inappropriate language towards colleagues, which did not reflect a culture I would consider acceptable or aligned with a professional working environment. In the final stages, a notable portion of questioning focused on personal circumstances, including family life and how personal time would be managed alongside work. This created the impression that availability and workload tolerance were being prioritised over skills, experience, and delivery capability. The Nottingham office environment itself also appeared dated, which seemed reflective of a more traditional and less progressive approach to ways of working. In one interaction involving senior staff, I also observed discussions regarding employee sickness absence and performance issues being handled in a manner that felt unprofessional and inappropriate for a formal setting. Separately, I was informed by the recruiter that my interview examples were perceived as unrealistic. Given that these examples were based on real experience, this raised concerns about expectations and the organisation’s understanding of practical, real-world delivery standards. Despite these concerns, I was progressed through to three additional stages of the process, which further highlighted the lack of alignment between expectations and assessment criteria throughout the recruitment journey.