The recruiter was excellent and provided a comprehensive study guide to help prepare for the technical rounds. I also had a very positive informal chat with the presales who provided great insight into the day-to-day culture. However, the actual interview with the hiring manager revealed a significant disconnect between the information provided during my previous conversations and the actual technical depth required.
The manager was looking for a pre-developed engineer who already mastered the foundations of networking workflows, rather than a strategic leader who could learn and adapt those workflows based on previous implementation and client-facing experience in other fields. While the feedback was constructive regarding 'knowing the audience and the job description,' the delivery felt a bit dismissive of non-engineering backgrounds. Ultimately, it wasn't the right fit for either side, and the interview was cut short after 10 minutes of conversation.