I was contacted out of the blue by a recruiter who found me on LinkedIn, was submitted and accepted for first round interview. Though I felt underqualified for the position, the next week I was flown to HQ to give a presentation to VP of real estate.
The first round was a typical interview with the regional Director of Real Estate and another Acquisitions Manager. They were very professional and controlled the flow of the conversation but I was able to interject and give them strong examples of why I would be a good fit for the position.
During the first interview the Director hinted that they give second round candidates an intentionally vague prompt for which they have to create and give a presentation.
The second round was in DC. Their offices there are very busy and I waited about 10 minutes before someone collected me from the lobby. An additional 15 minutes passed before the VP showed up. I felt rushed through my presentation as he was continually looking at his watch. Following, we had a brief conversation about development opportunities in and around my region - which is what my presentation had been on.
I would venture to say he was looking for more specific details on site selection rather than the broad analysis I had given based on the "intentionally vague" prompt.
Ultimately, my initial assumptions were correct, I was told they preferred someone more experience in an acquisitions role, of which I had none, as it is a fairly autonomous role at the beginning.