One Hour Before Start. The CEO Said No.

An insurance company pursued the candidate. Over six weeks, they ran multiple interview rounds, a test assignment, and background checks. The team and HR approved. A start date was confirmed. One hour before the candidate was due to log on, HR called — nervously laughing — to say the CEO, who had never sat in on a single interview, had personally reviewed the CV and deemed the years of experience insufficient. The offer was dead. The candidate had stopped looking for other roles weeks earlier.