I had a phone screening with the companies recruiter, then had a brief phone conversation with a manager. It went well until they tried to run a hard credit inquiry as part of the background check. I decided not to move forward as there is no need for an employer to run a hard inquiry on an employment application. That is their practice prior to providing a job offer. I have worked for many organizations large and small and none of them ran a hard inquiry for employment. Not sure why Equitable Lending does. But I decided not to proceed with the process.