I'm happy to put this interview behind me. I had thought it went well, but after three weeks of silence and seeing the job get re-posted, I knew wasn't selected. The recruiter confirmed that "you weren't selected for the role" when I emailed. My first interview with Starbucks in March 2015 was successful, though no offer. It led to this second interview in April 2015 for the Lead Systems Analyst - Global Retail and Engineering. I interviewed for 3 hours, across a panel of 4 teams/individuals. It started with a director, then 3 leads/managers, followed by 3 senior analysts, and last, 3 developers. I felt OK coming in, because I had talked with one of the managers for an hour-long phone screen interview. The director/3 manager panel were OK. The director had skepticism, and I tried to balance her "Here are my problems" prologue with sufficient answers. I think what she was looking for was a teacher and leader for Agile SDLC on her team. The managers were OK, too. The one I had phone screened with was present and he appeared happy with my selection for the interview. The other two had good questions, one being quiet, the other more concerned about team dynamics. The analyst panel was where it went sideways. All three were senior level, all appeared to be reading from scripted questions, and all had tenure. I gave the impression of a pro-development bias, given that if you don't have good vibes with development, you're hosed. The team was just getting accustomed to Agile, as well. There was a palpable reluctance to discuss it. Instead, there was more talk about how one of them commuted to work, then there was about any SDLC. They described their relationship with development as rocky and how they always complained about scope and timelines. I took this just as typical friction between teams, but later when I reflected on it, this was a complaint with bigger meaning. At least one of them did look me up on LinkedIn before the interview. Last, I met with development. There were younger. I was encouraged with the rapport we seemed to get established. They voiced complaints about having to do the analyst documentation, and that real requirements typically had a way of coming in late. There was animosity being expressed. I dropped the comment that if you don't have a good relationship with development, you're hosed. They really brightened to that. We went through API calls and that they rolled out APIs frequently. When I asked about their middleware, they didn't know what it was. I was surprised by that. However, that's more about maturity of their software architecture. I felt this portion was my best part. Smiling, the lead developer commented as I left that he would get his comments in on the interview that day. Where did it go wrong? It was wrong before I entered the interview. I walked into a political minefield. The teams CLEARLY had issues. This wasn't meant to be a job about moving the business forward. It was meant to be a position filled for a mediator between two teams, one reluctant to move forward, the other lapping the slow pokes. I was too eager to want to work at Starbucks. I said that I was looking for a new home, long-term, and to add value to the enterprise. Heck, I even read "Onward", by Howard Schultz as preparation! I received no offer. After two weeks of silence, I realized it was not going to happen. When I actually thought about the post-interview quiet, I saw it was unprofessional and sophomoric to get no feedback. It felt like an injury. Again, how could I have an earlier interview go so well in March, then shot down in April? Then came the attempt at insult in July when an out-of-the-blue recruiter contacted me about taking a contract position with Starbucks, as a senior analyst for their API/SOA technology platform that was almost a copy of what I interviewed for in April. I answered, "...Whatever this job is, it appears like a lower responsibility position to the one I interviewed for in April. I can't help but think that the original position was filled somehow, and this one became available. While it is nice to be considered for this, I feel uneasy that Starbucks would pursue me for a different, lower level position and as a contract. It may have been more fruitful for them to reach out to me directly…” I don't think I'll pursue Starbucks again. My expectations were too high, and the work environment seems to be beyond dysfunctional. I may be wrong in why they did not choose me. It may have been planet alignment, fear of the unknown, or my salary expectations, which were in-line with Glassdoor's. It was likely a bad culture fit, for me being eager and them being political. Thank you, Starbucks, for not hiring me. I have learned that I will value even more the great job I now have, and I will remember that Starbucks isn't afraid to try and injure someone's hopes, and try to add insult to it later.