I spent over a month of interviewing. It seemed excessive at first, but keeping in mind COVID-19 and the uniqueness of the position I thought it important to keep an open mind.
In addition to multiple interviews I was asked to do free labor and develop two implementation plans, including milestones and stakeholder information. I was given 3 workdays to complete it, which should have been a warning sign: the amount of research and time it takes to do one (never mind 2!) is considerable. The low turn-around time shows they clearly didn't understand the work.
I had two levels of interviews with HR, another interview with would-be supervisor, and then an interview with the two principals. HR seemed very professional and responded in detail to my questions. They were in constant communication and tried to touch base with me regularly for feedback every step of the way.
The supervisor was very authentic and clearly passionate about the role. He did a good job explaining the workplace culture, which seemed very collegial, with a team of folks who were invested in doing good things.
The two principals were visibly bored during the interview, but they had great rapport with one another. Unfortunately, their questions seemed to be so far off-base from the position itself. My instincts proved right: two weeks later I got a curt email stating that they've changed the position altogether, lowered the level to a manager-role, and they're looking for a wholly different skillset than the role they originally posted.
I was stunned at how much work I was asked to put in relative to the outcome. My suggestion for future applicants is to not stress yourself out trying to provide top-notch work, they're still trying to figure themselves out. Overall, I was left a neutral impression of the company, with good and bad parts to the interview process.
