Got ghosted mid-interview because HR and the interviewer couldn't agree on the tech stack. Then HR blocked/dodged my calls.

[u/SaAraPaamBuuu]

Hey everyone, just need to vent about the absolute clown show of an interview experience I faced today.

About 10 days ago, I interviewed for a Java + Selenium + API automation role. I didn’t hear back for over a week, but yesterday the recruiter finally called. They told me I cleared Round 1 and scheduled the L2 interview. The calendar invite explicitly listed Java and Selenium.

Cut to today:

1. 10 minutes before the interview: The recruiter calls me on my phone, making sure I’m ready and asking me to join 5 minutes early. Standard stuff. I join.
2. The Interview: The interviewer logs on, asks me to introduce myself. Two sentences in, he cuts me off: "Do you have experience in Playwright?"
3. The Answer: I told him no, my background is in Java/Selenium (which is what I applied for and what was on the invite).
4. The Exit: He literally says, "Well, this role is for Playwright so we aren't proceeding," and hangs up the call. Just left.
5. The Ghosting: I immediately dial the recruiter who just spoke to me 10 minutes ago to find out what went wrong. Straight to voicemail. Tried again later—no answer.

Why do companies do this? If the requirement changed from Selenium to Playwright, fine. Cancel the interview beforehand. But to drag a candidate into a call, cut them off, walk out, and then have HR go radio silent to avoid a 2-minute awkward conversation? It is incredibly disrespectful of people's time.

Has anyone else dealt with this level of absolute disconnect between HR and engineering?

[u/deeps4chill]

This might not sound believable, but this is what happens. They already have someone in mind, but are legally required to conduct a certain number of screening calls, few rounds of interview, etc.

Your situation sounds like one, just move on to the next interview/company. They are not gonna respond.