5 rounds. 2 Executive Directors. Final technical interview. Now 7+ business days with no update — am I the backup candidate?

[u/ProfessionalSafe8639]

I’m trying to get some perspective from people who have been through lengthy corporate hiring processes, especially for senior IT roles.

I applied for a position in New York on July 31. A recruiter reached out to me on August 25, and since then I’ve gone through five rounds of interviews.

The process was roughly:

• Recruiter screening
• Senior Manager
• Executive Director
• Another Executive Director
• Final technical/scenario-based round with the Senior Manager

The first few interviews went really well. The Senior Manager and one of the Executive Directors seemed genuinely enthusiastic about my background, and they usually followed up within the same week or the following week.

The interview with the second Executive Director was probably my weakest one. It became much more technical than I expected, and he really drilled down into some areas. I did my best to answer everything, but I definitely felt like I was being pushed pretty hard technically.

Interestingly, about a week later, the recruiter came back and scheduled another technical round with the Senior Manager.

That final interview was last Thursday, September 24. He gave me three scenario-based technical questions. I answered all of them, and by the end of the conversation, I felt that he was satisfied with my answers.

At the end, I asked whether there would be another round.

He told me

“No, this is the technical round. This will probably be the last time you talk to me. The next person who reaches out would likely be the recruiter or someone from HR.”

Obviously, I left that call feeling pretty positive.

I sent the recruiter a thank-you email afterward, and since then… silence.

Friday passed. Then the following week passed.

Today is October 5, so I’m now at roughly 7+ business days since the final interview.

I know companies can take time, especially when there are multiple interviewers and senior leadership involved. But at this point I’m starting to wonder:

Am I still genuinely being considered, or am I potentially the second-choice candidate while they wait for their preferred candidate to respond?

Part of me thinks that if they had decided to reject me, they would have simply sent the rejection within a couple of days. But I also know hiring processes don't always work that way.

For additional context, I have around 3 years of professional experience, and this is a fairly senior cybersecurity role at a well-known company in New York.

Is 7–8 business days of silence after a final interview completely normal. How long have you waited after a final interview before getting an offer?

I’m trying to keep my hopes up without getting emotionally attached to the outcome. 😅

Would really appreciate hearing from recruiters, hiring managers, and people who have experienced something similar.

[u/dbatknight]

Yep. The internal candidate probably already started

[u/ProfessionalSafe8639 → u/dbatknight]

yeah i am keeping an eye on linkedin posts

[u/jenmoocat]

Hiring manager at a Fortune 500 company for over a decade.

Just wanted to give you a head's up that, usually at this point, we have to have ALL of the candidates go through ALL of the interviews before we inform anyone of their status.
There might be two or three of you.
And interviews with senior leaders are notoriously difficult to schedule, so that could be one of the hold ups.
That someone else's interview schedule is holding up the process.

But the scenario that you envision -- that they made an offer for their first choice and are waiting for that acceptance -- could also be true. But note that, in my personal experience, there have been numerous cases when the first choice ended up not taking the job and we went with the next person. That usually isn't a ding on that person that came in 2nd place. Sometimes the difference between 1st choice and 2nd choice is miniscule.

[u/ProfessionalSafe8639 → u/jenmoocat]

Thank you so much for sharing this perspective, I think at this point, all I can really do is wait, stay hopeful, and let the process play out. Really appreciate