I was contacted by their recruiter on LinkedIn, and I scheduled a quick phone call soon after. The person I talked on the phone was very professional and easy to talk to. The interview was pretty standard, as he asked me about my employment history and my skill set. He said he would have one of their designers reviews my portfolio before moving on the next step. Two days later, I received a LinkedIn message from them. Basically, they said my portfolio is good but not good enough for the job. They made some very general suggestions and asked me if I can make those adjustments. It was hard to really understand what they meant, as they said things like "his portfolio does not make a compelling case that he has experience with all the tools needed (even though I suspect he does)" Comparing to other recruiters that I deal with, Motive Design/ UX Hires takes an extra step - they offer a portfolio review before they can represent you. However, I am not sure it is an effective approach. It definitely slows down the process, as well as it is lack of transparency. I wonder the qualification of the designer who reviews portfolio and how he/she serves the point of view of the companies they represent. I bet they lost many talent because of this process.