I applied online. The process took 8 weeks. I interviewed at Genentech in Jun 2020
Interview
I've interviewed for multiple SSR roles in different Genentech departments remotely during the pandemic. Usually, the initial interview is ~1 hour via video chat. Full interviews involve a 45 minute seminar with 15-20 minutes for questions followed by a series of 30 minute 1:1 interviews with ~15 people in the department. Full interview takes about 1.5 days. I did the seminar and all interviews remotely via video conferencing software. Last step is reference check and they required written letters from 3 advisors. I interviewed for multiple positions at Genentech with very positive feedback and was told to hear from them in less than a week. After multiple emails and 2 months later, I finally got an official no from them. It is extremely rude to ignore candidates and tell them that they are the top candidate, request 3 written reference letters, and then never even tell them that you hired someone else. Isn't this why you have hiring departments and recruiters? Especially with that long and grueling of a full interview.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell us about yourself and how you fit this role at Genentech.
I applied through a staffing agency. I interviewed at Genentech in Jan 2023
Interview
Multiple rounds with a lot of technical questions, and a very interactive team. The hiring team members were intelligent and respectful. It took some 3-4 weeks to complete all rounds. Enjoyed the interview process and was provided with feedback.
Phone screen interview. No call back. Felt not relevant for role. Cold. It was hard to get an idea of what the job would have been relating to. Found another job
First there was an initial HR screen, which, if it goes well, will be followed by a shorter meeting with the Hiring Manager. After this second interview, the final round interviews were structured such that I gave a 1 hour seminar to the department corresponding to the position and then had around 13 individual, half-hour long interviews with different people.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
This depends on the seminar and scientific background of the candidate, but one question I received was the typical:
Why Genentech? and Why move to industry instead of stay in academia? and What were my motivations for not pursuing a postdoc before applying to industry?