Ugh, this is genuinely one of the worst feelings in the industry right now. Four rounds plus a ten-hour take-home and then silence? That's not a hiring process, that's free consulting with extra steps.
Here's what I've started doing after getting burned a few times: before I invest more than two hours in any task, I send a quick email asking who's evaluating the submission and what the timeline looks like after it's reviewed. Companies that are serious will answer that without hesitation. The ones who ghost you later usually fumble that question or dodge it entirely. It's a decent filter.
The multi-round gauntlet has gotten completely out of hand, especially at mid-size companies trying to copy FAANG processes without the compensation to match. Remote hiring made it worse because teams feel like they need seventeen touchpoints to compensate for not meeting you in person.
- Cap your take-home effort at 3-4 hours max and say so upfront
- Ask for a named point of contact before you start any task
- Set your own follow-up deadline in writing, something like "I'll follow up Thursday if I haven't heard back"
That last one actually works surprisingly well. It reframes you as someone managing their own pipeline, not just waiting by the phone.
Did they give you any feedback at all, or was it a complete blackout after you submitted?
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