throwaway127329u4's journey

Applied at Barclays for analyst

I recently applied for an analyst role at Barclays and just checked my application status on the Workday portal. It has changed to "Preliminary Conversations," which is a new stage for me. Typically, I've only seen statuses like "Under Review" or "In Process." I'm curious if anyone else has encountered this status before. Does it suggest that they might be reaching out to references or networking contacts, or is it more of an initial screening phase before scheduling an interview? I'm trying to gauge whether this is a positive sign or just a neutral status in the application process. Any insights would be greatly appreciated!