Colonial13's journey

I recently went through an unexpected experience while interviewing for a position in the Aerospace/Defense industry. After almost 30 years in my field, I decided to explore new job opportunities and was pleasantly surprised by the quick response from a potential employer. The first interview focused on my technical knowledge and went really well, leading to a second interview with a VP that also seemed promising. They expressed that I would be a great fit for their organization and that my expertise was highly valued. However, after a week of silence following the interviews, I received an email inviting me to the next round. To my shock, it included a four-page homework assignment asking me to create a detailed two-year business plan for one of their product lines. The requirements were extensive, including a PowerPoint presentation aimed at a leadership audience and an Excel document with all my assumptions and market data. The level of detail they expected was overwhelming. They wanted me to outline how I would manage assets, prioritize tasks, and even project gross margins for different market sectors. It felt like they were asking me to do the work of a consultant without any compensation. I’ve managed programs with significantly higher revenue than their entire projected earnings for the year and have never encountered such an unreasonable request in my career. Ultimately, I decided to withdraw from the candidate pool and sent them a professional email to that effect. It was a disappointing turn of events, but I believe in valuing my time and expertise.