The interview process was long but straightforward, and closely aligned to the actual role:
• Recruiter introduction – very friendly and professional.
• Hiring manager interview – great conversation, clear expectations.
• HackerRank test – relevant to the role.
• Take-home use case – practical and fair.
• Discussion over the usecase with the team – they were welcoming, honest and collaborative, I could totally see myself working with them.
• Final interview – where things became challenging.
Everyone I met up to that point was genuinely nice, the recruiter was very friendly, the hiring manager was excellent, and the team was awesome.
However, the Final interview stood out for the wrong reasons: the interviewer expects candidates to frame Adyen as the “dream company” (as it is hers), stopped me mid-answer to say my response wasn’t good enough, and shifted the tone into a more confrontational style. She asked if I’d ever fired anyone and pressed for weaknesses ( and started writing as I answered for the first time in the interview ) without balancing it with a strengths question.
The biggest red flag for me was the admission that they operate with no processes at all, at a level they themselves described as frustrating. That raises concerns about sustainability, scalability, and culture fit.