Applied in March on-line and was selected for a phone screening interview. I was told it would be sometime during the next week but not a specific time or day so be prepared for a random 20-30 minute phone interview. I made into the next round where 7 of us were selected for a panel interview. Some of us were via Skype and others were in person. They accommodated my schedule as I was unable to meet in person and did a panel Skype interview (unsure how many were in the room since I couldn't see them all) that lasted 30 minutes. I made it on the the 3rd and final round where the top 3 of us were invited in to interview. Prior to the last interview, the point of contact made an appointment with me to review the job more in detail and offer advice for the 3rd interview. We spoke on the phone for 2 hours and it was very helpful and interesting. He went over where he saw weaknesses in the company, where they hoped the position would help, and suggested that I develop an outline of suggested action items the company should take as internal candidates are afforded the opportunity to create and action plan but external candidates are not. I learned that 2 of us were external and 1 was an internal Whole Foods employee, which made me worried as I know the company especially likes to promote from within. I spent the next few days spending hours in different Whole Foods stores to develop suggestions to share at the interview. I went into my panel interview and there were 8-10 people and it lasted 45 minutes. I passed around my suggestions we discussed them the conversation was focused mostly on my ideas, cooking, food, and my background. I was told I'd get a phone call later that night with a decision. I did not receive the offer, but my point of contact called as he said he would explained that the other person had a little more design experience. From my own point of view I feel upset with myself as I spoke mostly on where I felt and where they felt (from what they had told me) on areas that needed attention-communications, training, water programs, etc. and I should have told them more about my design experience but didn't realize it at the time. I did ask, and it was the internal candidate who received the position so it's hard to compete on that front. Every step of the process we were informed of the interview process. I really appreciated meeting all the people I met as they were all courteous and respectful on my time. The follow-up and feedback was also great as it can be applied to future job searches. Overall it was a good interview experience, especially for a job I wasn't offered