I applied online. I interviewed at Sonder (Dallas, TX) in Dec 2020
Interview
This interview process was embarrassingly incompetent.
There were a total of three parts to this process:
My first interview (part 1) consisted of multiple what-if analytical scenarios that I needed to answer. These were clearly intended to screen my knowledge and competency in data analytics. Simple enough and expected.
I then proceeded to part 2 of the interview where I was giving a pricing exercise to complete in 24 hours. I was given raw data that needed to be organized into an excel spreadsheet and I had to create rates for approximately a full year for a 1 bedroom unit. I created a very similar "daily detail" spreadsheet you would often find with larger hotel chains. I had to create some simple formulas that were not given such as daily RevPAR. I also had to answer some follow-up questions regarding the data.
I worked hard on this document and I wish I could share on this site so you could see the quality of product I put out. I was very confident about this exercise. I've worked in revenue management for 5 years for hotel chains. I'm not the slightest bit underqualified for this position.
So I didn't hear back from the recruiter for a bit and decided to send a follow-up email. She replied and said she sent it to the team.
I then hear back from the recruiter about a week later to set up my 2nd interview (part 3). To my surprise, it was with the same individual who interviewed me the 1st time.
Also to my surprise, he asked me THE SAME QUESTIONS covering basic analytical scenarios as my first interview. From the perspective of the interviewer, there was no new information to be gained from these questions and I wouldn't be this far in the interview process if I couldn't answer such questions competently. I had obviously cleared this hurdle at this point and it was like we started all over again.
But that wasn't the most frustrating part...
I was extremely disappointed that during this 2nd interview that he did not discuss the results of my pricing exercise nor did he give any feedback. He did not acknowledge the exercise at all.
I thought to myself that nobody could be this incompetent, so I attempted to theorize why this happened.
The only conclusion I can come to is that there was a miscommunication between the recruiter and the interviewer and the interviewer thought I was a fresh candidate.
Mind you, this is all over Zoom and email so it's less personal than your standard sit-in interview.
Based on the interview process, I can see why this company has such poor reviews. I'm actually glad I was not chosen for the position because it would be hard to turn down something in my field while I'm currently unemployed and the pandemic continues to cripple hospitality.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Based on the data, do you believe this is a business or leisure heavy market and why?
I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Sonder
Interview
First phone call with HR, then an interview with some team member. The interview was the one when i had the worst experience. The team member was so condescending, and he did not care about what you said, he cared more about what did you know about the business. If the company cared so much about industry experience, why did they invited a person who had no experience in their hospitality business. It took me a week to conduct research on the business and gave the correct answers to his questions. The HR is so unprofessional: she said to inform me the result within a day after the interview. however, after one week, i did not receive any result.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Given a metric, what characteristics would affect that metric
I applied through a recruiter. I interviewed at Sonder
Interview
Interview with hiring manager, phone screen, take-home assignment, take-home assignment review, and onsite.
Be prepared for a challenging onsite, and learn your revenue management metrics well. The recruiters professional, the process is streamlined, and it seems like a very sharp, curious team. I recommend applying for people with an econ, finance, or data background.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
How would you price a new Sonder? What data would you use and how would you use it?
Pricing Analyst applicants have rated the interview process at Sonder with 3.5 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 50% positive. To compare, the company-average is 36.9% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Pricing Analyst roles take an average of 14 days to get hired, when considering 4 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Sonder overall takes an average of 28 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Sonder as a Pricing Analyst according to 4 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 22%
Presentation: 22%
Background check: 22%
Phone interview: 22%
Other: 11%
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