Talked to two different recruiters who gave me relatively straightforward screenings. It was decided that I would interview for a different position than what I had originally applied for but was assured that I had the necessary skills to at least be in the conversation for a position. Went on to have a pair of back-to-back phone interviews with the person I was to be replacing and future manager. Both were nice enough but really didn't seem to have the time or energy to get to know me. I was told I was rejected for not having experience with a skill I told the recruiter up front I didn't have, so it was a colossal waste of my time in the end. Merkle has a reputation of being a thoughtful, intelligent agency, but I have no doubts that, much like many agencies, it values its bottom-line over people. This is based on my limited conversations with them, but their inability or unwillingness to respect my time as a potential employee speaks volumes about how they do business.

I had a phone interview in October and was told I would hear about the next step in December/January time frame. I was sent "we haven't forgotten about you" emails during that time frame but have yet to hear any sort of next step.