Applied at Microsoft for Senior Data Engineer

I recently encountered a situation that raised some red flags regarding a potential job opportunity with Microsoft. An external recruiter reached out to me about a Senior Data Engineer position in Redmond, and the job description seemed to match my experience well. After I submitted my updated resume, I received positive feedback from the hiring team, indicating that I had passed the initial screening stage. However, before moving forward to the interview stage, the recruiter requested that I prepare several documents: a Strategic Value Proposition Letter (SVPL), a Leadership Vision Statement (LVS), an Executive Impact Brief (EIB), and additional leadership statements. To make matters more suspicious, she offered to connect me with a 'specialist' who could assist me in preparing these materials. What concerned me most was that the recruiter was using a Gmail address instead of an official Microsoft or recruiting agency domain. Additionally, I had not received any Microsoft Careers requisition ID or an official job posting. I reached out to the community to see if anyone else had experienced similar requests for such documents before interviewing for Senior or Principal-level engineering roles at Microsoft. The responses I received were overwhelmingly cautionary, with many suggesting that it was likely a scam. I'm now left questioning the legitimacy of this recruiting process.