I was recently rejected by EYP after going through the full interview process, including the final interview rounds. In the second stage, I didn’t necessarily get the impression that the partners were particularly interested in getting to know me personally (for example, they didn’t ask why I wanted to join the firm), but I was ultimately told that the reason for the rejection was cultural fit.
I found this somewhat difficult to reconcile with the feedback I received during the process. I felt that I was consistently friendly and professional, and the interviewers also mentioned that I performed significantly better than the other candidates in every case study. In the first round feedback, they did mention that there was a strong team fit as well.
When I asked for more clarification on the cultural-fit feedback, the partner mentioned “stakeholder management” and said that they felt someone else might be happier at the firm in the long run. He also mentioned that sometimes you need to give illogical recommendations to the client.
How would you interpret this feedback? In particular, what do you think they might have meant by “stakeholder management” in this context?
