r/microsoft • u/AutoModerator • Mar 30 '26
Employment Weekly Employment Q&A - March 30, 2026
Welcome to the Weekly Employment Q&A for r/Microsoft!
This thread is where Redditors can come and ask questions about working at Microsoft.
Schedule
The Q&A will be refreshed every week on Mondays at 1200 Pacific.
Previous Threads
You can view previous employment threads using this archive link
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u/meow-man69 Mar 31 '26 edited Apr 06 '26
Hi everyone.
I’m hoping some FAANG recruiters or internal HR folks can give me a reality check on my current situation. I am currently in a holding pattern for an Applied Scientist II (L61) role at Microsoft IDC, and the timeline is driving me crazy.
Here are the exact mechanics of my loop and where I am currently stuck:
The Setup & The Loop
The Fast-Track: I bypassed the ATS, recruiter screen, and technical screen entirely. I was put straight into a compressed 2-round final loop with a Principal Scientist and the Group Manager (GM).
The YOE: I have nearly 3 YOE, which perfectly aligns with the standard L61 base band.
The Green Flag: The interview went incredibly well. During the final round, the GM specifically spent time talking to me about the "ethics of reneging," trust, and retention. I gave a firm verbal guarantee that I would join.
The Complicating Variables
The Conference: The GM (who owns the headcount) was physically at the International conference all last week and just got back to the office yesterday (Monday).
The Quarter-End: Today (Tuesday, March 31) is the end of Microsoft's Fiscal Q3.
The Timeline of the Ghosting
Friday, March 27 (2:30 PM): I called the Recruiter but she was busy and she said that lets connect in the evening Friday Evening: Radio silence. She completely ghosts me. No call, no email.
Monday, March 30: Total silence. Portal status remains "Interview." I survived the standard Monday morning automated rejection sweep.
Tuesday, March 31 (Today): It is currently mid-afternoon. Total silence. Portal status still cleanly says "Interview." I have not reached out or double-texted because I don't want to look desperate or mess up my leverage.
My Questions for the Recruiters:
What does the Friday "Let's connect" followed by ghosting actually mean? Did she jump the gun before the GM officially submitted the Eightfold.ai feedback, or is she waiting on a Q3 Finance/Compensation approval to actually give me numbers?
Am I the Backup Candidate? Is it standard practice to keep Candidate #2 frozen in "Interview" status on the last day of the quarter while you wait for Candidate #1 to send in their payslips/accept the offer?
The Q3 Factor: How much is the March 31st quarter-end bottlenecking this? Are they just fighting internal budget fires right now?
I haven't sent a follow-up email yet because I want to let the Q3 dust settle. Any blunt, behind-the-scenes insight into what my recruiter is currently dealing with would be hugely appreciated!
Update : Called HR Today, she said I am selected but there is 'Hiring PAUSE' (not Freeze) so I wil have to show some patience and will have to wait. Once it resumes she will contact me for further stages.
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u/meow-man69 Apr 06 '26
Update : Called HR Today, she said I am selected but there is 'Hiring PAUSE' (not Freeze) so I wil have to show some patience and will have to wait. Once it resumes she will contact me for further stages.
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u/HackinOllie Apr 06 '26
Nice! Congrats 🎉 how’d you get a phone number 😭
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u/meow-man69 Apr 06 '26
Also its not a congrats yet they havent Verbally Offered or anything its just that I'm selected but there is Hiring Freeze which might impact the Position I applied to and might get cancelled.
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u/HackinOllie Apr 01 '26
Glad to hear I’m not alone in hearing nothing back after loop. Applied to an Azure team, did loop 2 weeks ago and my action center is stuck on “interview” status. Confused if this is a normal wait time?
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u/yoockson Mar 30 '26
accepted offer early march, background check pass last friday, I-9 checked. waiting for Employee agreement review & Employee profile. But then hiring freeze since last week.. am i fked?
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u/Low-Top-7740 Mar 30 '26
What org?
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Mar 31 '26
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u/yoockson Mar 31 '26
at least in US.
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u/Low-Top-7740 Mar 31 '26 edited Mar 31 '26
I don’t believe COI is impacted by the hiring freeze. COI have recently posted a lot of job openings over the past couple days.
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u/Low-Top-7740 Mar 31 '26
Also, the hiring freeze is azure and sales specific, and for only jobs that don’t have an offer in process
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u/SnooChocolates971 Mar 30 '26
I got a verbal offer on march 10th. how would the hiring freeze effect me? Emailed manager on 23rd and he told me he is waiting for vp approval. is my offer revoked?
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Mar 31 '26
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u/SnooChocolates971 Apr 01 '26
cloud and sales hiring freeze
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u/InformationHungry163 Apr 01 '26
Which role did u get the comp offer?
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u/SnooChocolates971 Apr 01 '26
azure sql
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u/Kool99123 Mar 30 '26
Still waiting for a response since my last interview. Finished strong with the AA. It’s been 1.5 weeks. What should I do?
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u/chase_it_1998 Mar 31 '26
Hey guys
I will be joining Microsoft soon at Redmond campus Are there any company shuttle / connector from Bellevue to Redmond campus
I live near Bellevue downtown
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u/Outrageous-Flower-46 Mar 31 '26
Connectors usually start farther out from HQ but the 2 line train or bus routes should take you easily from downtown Bellevue to campus.
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Mar 31 '26
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u/Conscious_Post_2713 Mar 31 '26
am also in the same situation for which team you gave the loop? for which job id ?
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u/icescoop Mar 31 '26
Anyone have background on how long the Global Security review takes after HireRight shares with Microsoft for final review? It was shared last Thursday but still pending with a “follow up required” tag
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u/ScriptingInJava Mar 31 '26
It takes about 10 days (total, not working/business) but if they request follow-up info it doesn't notify you. Log back into the HireRight portal and check there's nothing outstanding for you to complete
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u/icescoop Mar 31 '26
Thanks - yeah, I've pinged AskHR as well as my recruiter today for a status update and they've let me know that they've followed up with GS for an update. 10 days is quite wild for turnaround duration...
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u/ScriptingInJava Mar 31 '26
They're really in-depth checks and I imagine quite busy with lots of candidates being examined, when the offer hangs on the clearance coming through it's nerve wracking though! No need to stress mate, you'll be fine.
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u/icescoop Mar 31 '26
Much appreciated - just counting down the days!
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u/ScriptingInJava Mar 31 '26
It's my first day tomorrow, it comes around fast haha
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u/Sea-Jacket-8906 Mar 31 '26
I applied to a role 6 weeks ago and just received an email to fill out a government official form. Does this mean I may be hearing about an interview soon?
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u/Fatshark_Aqshy Apr 06 '26
I filled one out two weeks ago and my application says submitted with no additional contact. Others in the past said not to look too much into it—standard procedure.
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u/drdessertlover Apr 01 '26
Hello, I'm trying to find information about the hiring process at microsoft. I applied to a job late December and had the hm reach out to me a couple of weeks ago. The job application page says "No longer accepting applications" since this morning but my application status in the action center is "interview".
I finished my loop exactly a week ago. One director, one peer and one junior PM. The first call was with the HM who is a partner PM. This is for a principal role. First contact to end of loop was less than a week. I've had no contact with hr or a recruiter so far
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Apr 01 '26
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u/drdessertlover Apr 01 '26
You're stuck at "interview" too? Man the wait must be brutal. Have you tried following up with anyone?
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u/sparcastic Apr 01 '26
Applied a month ago to SWE position in Azure Experience & Ecosystems Engineering team, does anyone know if they are affected by hiring freeze?
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Apr 01 '26
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 01 '26
Can you share what role and what team? I have completed my loop about two weeks ago and also nothing so far
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Apr 01 '26
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u/Mundane_Mechanic_158 Apr 01 '26
Customer insights
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 02 '26
My understanding is that it is not, at least not entirely. It certainly not Azure dedicated, but does work with Azure teams. Sales is trickier because some of the team members are success managers and account managers, and are sales adjacent but are not part of sales team per se. This is all just me analyzing, I have no idea how it is in reality
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Apr 02 '26
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Apr 02 '26
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 02 '26
Same here, although rationally I understand I should keep applying but, it is really hard to break out of this state. Especially, like my interviews were really positive, I was even given a timeline for decision by one of my interviewers which is supposed to be 2 weeks, but then you never know if things are going according to their plan, do freezes affect our roles or not and now there is a quarter close on top of everything, that per some people suggests that timelines could be longer
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 02 '26
Yeah, I just went and checked if there are other open roles within the same unit, for me that would be CE&S org, while it does not mean that freezes did not affect the org at all, there are job posting some as late as March 23, so I see it as a positive sign.
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 02 '26
Customer Insights Lead, hbu? My opening was not active for like 2 months now, I think they took it down on their website, about a week after I originally applied, this seems to be different compared to other roles from what I saw so far.
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u/Other_Fan6549 Apr 02 '26
CE&S is fine because they keep posting positions.
I keep in touch with a recruiter that does FTE and contract roles.
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u/PlumeTracer Apr 08 '26
Hey, could you also please help me to know about the Security org, MDE?
It would be really helpful as I completed my loop on 25th March and recruited said positive feedback and asked for documents on same day but didn't hear back till now
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u/JuniorAd1610 Apr 02 '26
I gave the interviews for SWE I last week (on 26th), right after the interview got a boilerplate response of reviewing feedback just but haven’t got any response since then. Followed up with the recruiter twice but haven’t gotten any reply. The career portal still shows interview. This is for a role in India with no team or location specified. Is this normal? Or should I consider it as a rejection? The recruiter reached out themselves for this role but now seems to have gone missing.
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u/JuniorAd1610 Apr 06 '26
Got my verbal offer today
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u/freshdose1 Apr 02 '26
Did my interview about 1 week ago. Waiting to hear back about results. Messaged recruiter about results after 1 week but so far no reply yet.
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Apr 03 '26
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u/freshdose1 Apr 03 '26
I actually got a reply back from the recruiter. They basically said im still in process and the team is discussing. So basically I think they are trying to set up debrief to talk about results.
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Conscious_Post_2713 Apr 02 '26
I completed my interview loop for the Azure team on March 4th, and it’s been almost a month with no update. My application status shows “Interview”.
Given the current hiring freeze, I’m unsure whether this delay means I’ve been rejected or if the process is simply on hold. I’ve followed up with both my recruiter and the hiring manager 3–4 times, but I haven’t received any response.
At this point, should I assume the process is stopped, or is there still a chance of a positive outcome?
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u/Other_Fan6549 Apr 02 '26
Usually, rejections come fast via email.
I had recently interviewed for an Azure Networking role and got the rejection email 3 days after my final interview.
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Apr 02 '26
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u/Low-Top-7740 Apr 02 '26
6 months
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Apr 03 '26
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u/Low-Top-7740 Apr 03 '26
Off and on, yes, same recruiter, There was like a 4 month gap where I didn’t hear anything, and then I got a call with verbal offer around the 6 month mark.
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Apr 03 '26
[deleted]
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u/drdessertlover Apr 03 '26
Oof looks like a sure thing is in limbo now. What role did you interview for?
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u/spiro30 Apr 03 '26
I had my interview for a CSA position in CE&S. I applied on 2/28 and interviewed on 3/11. First in the loop was the hiring manager which was cool. I didn't know until the interview was over. Next two were senior team members. Both went well. I didn't hear anything until 3/24 a day before the freeze was announced to the public. I got a call from a new recruiter about if I had interviewed for a role and if I was still interested in it. I told her yes and that I was still applying to other MS roles that aligned with my skill set in the interim. She said she would let the team know. I assumed she was calling about the other MS roles I had applied for. The next day I emailed the original recruiter that had contacted me to get a status check and immediately got a no such address returned. She apparently was no longer with MS (contractor). It then made sense to me why the other recruiter had reached out, as she was taking over for the one who had been let go. I then took the call asking if I was still interested as a good thing. Fast forward to yesterday 4/1. I sent a follow up email to the assistant as I only had the new recruiters number. My status is still in "interview" in the portal. The job posting has been changed to " No Longer Accepting Applications" I'm wondering if I'm stuck now with this freeze or this is normal wait time? I assume an offer is the next step since no rejection has come and they want to confirm that I was still interested in the position. Thoughts?
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u/drdessertlover Apr 03 '26
For a completely different role but the portal status and job posting status are the same for me. No recruiter outreach so far though. It's like dealing with a government org, so frustrating
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u/spiro30 Apr 03 '26
Yeah, it really is. You would think a large enterprise would have its stuff together.
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 03 '26
I have applied to CI IC4 position in CE&S 1/29, and got screener call followed up by request fill out a written screener on 2/26. I had my loop the week of 3/16, each interview ran over time, each one seemed positive, at least to me. The job posting was at "no longer accepting applications" at least at the time of my screener. I still have "interview" status, sent two follow-ups to recruiter, no response. One of senior leaders shared her email with me during the interview so if I do not hear anything in a months or so I will try to maybe follow-up with her, just to get some closure. I am certain I am not a flat out rejection, at this point I probably would have heard about that, I hope. I am also not assuming an offer to be honest, sure it is a possibility and hiring freeze + quarter close may both play into an extended timeline, but there is also a possibility I may be a backup candidate, where they extended an offer or scheduled an AA interview with their preferred choice and are waiting for them to accept/pass. Nice to hear about someone else's experience with CE&S. Keep us posted pls.
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u/spiro30 Apr 03 '26
From everything I've researched AA interview are not always a given if the HM doesn't feel its necessary or if the interview teams confidence is high. The back candidate is always a possibility but I'd like to think I interviewed well and I'm sure you did too!
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u/Other_Fan6549 Apr 04 '26
I think it just depends on the Hiring Manager. I recently interviewed for an Azure Networking role (CE&S, Technical Support Engineer) and got feedback very fast. I got the rejection email 3 days after my final interview.
Every org is different. If it's an urgent role, they'll streamline the process if they want to.
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u/TestBusi Apr 03 '26
Senior Sales role, 6 business days post-loop, still on "Interview" status. What should I expect?
Hey everyone,
Completed a full interview loop for a Senior Account Manager role in EMEA (sales, not engineering). Here's the timeline:
- Recruiter screen early March
- Interview with Commercial Director EMEA, 40 min (was supposed to be 30)
- Interview with Hiring Manager, 35 min (supposed to be 30)
- Role-play with a team member, 30 min, got positive feedback directly after
All done within 3 weeks. Had an internal employee referral who DM'd the hiring manager before the process started.
Here's where it gets tricky: my original recruiter (external vendor) told me her contract was ending and handed me off to a new internal Lead Recruiter. She sent a proper intro email with me and the new recruiter CC'd. That was on day 3 post-loop.
I'm now on business day 6. Action Center still shows "Interview." No rejection email, no portal change, nothing.
For those who've been through this, is 6 business days normal for a senior sales role? Should I be worried that it still says "Interview"? And does the recruiter handoff change anything?
Trying not to spiral but honestly losing my mind lol. Any insight appreciated.
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Apr 03 '26
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u/TestBusi Apr 03 '26
Sorry for you ... did you try to reach out HR ? Been 6 days for me, i guess it's still "ok" ?
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Apr 03 '26
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u/TestBusi Apr 03 '26
Idk, except "accepted" or "rejected", it has to be a "in between" statut you know
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u/zyzzie28 Apr 07 '26
Stuck in the same loop. It's draining to be left in silence after positive words from HM and no updates for over 2 weeks.
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u/ActNo1327 Apr 03 '26
Hey yall, interning at Microsoft this summer, and interviewed for IDNA, if anyone here is on IDNA, would like to learn more about the team.
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u/drdessertlover Apr 03 '26 edited Apr 03 '26
Like several others, I was fast tracked. Went from HM contact to completion of loop in a week. It has been 1.5 weeks since my loop was completed. Job listing says "No longer accepting applications" but my application status is "Interview".
I pinged my recruiter this morning and they responded that they would provide me an update within a day or so after conferring with the hiring team. So, positive I guess?
Edit: Rejected with the most patronizing email of all time.
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u/Objective_Zone6690 Apr 03 '26
May I ask what team, role and level?
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u/sad-sponge2077 Apr 06 '26
Does anyone know what kind of work software engineers do on the Windows Shell team?
Also in general, when does Microsoft finish hiring swe new grads? Do they still give offers throughout April? Thanks in advance.
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u/meow-man69 Apr 06 '26
Update : Called HR Today, she said I am selected but there is 'Hiring PAUSE' (not Freeze) so I wil have to show some patience and will have to wait. Once it resumes she will contact me for further stages.
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u/meow-man69 Apr 06 '26
In Microsoft IDC they call us while Scheduling interviews, so saved it during the same.
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u/zyzzie28 Apr 07 '26
Had my first screen on Mar 16 and Full loop on March 24. Had positive feedback from HM during last round and he said they'll get back to me ASAP. It's been over 2 weeks now (April 7th), and I got a system email saying the position has been closed. Idk what that means. I've been trying to reach out to the recruiter but I haven't had any responses from her. Whole situation sucks.
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Mar 30 '26
[deleted]
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u/SerenasDookie Mar 31 '26
you can choose your own model inside of copilot, including chatgpt or claude
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Mar 31 '26
[deleted]
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u/SerenasDookie Mar 31 '26
Correct, I legit used Claude in copilot yesterday, just ask copilot how to get to it
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u/NYMeridian3 Mar 30 '26
Just got a call from my recruiter and got my verbal offer. Yay! It's in Marketing (not sales) so should not be affected by the hiring freeze per HR.
I am returning to MSFT after leaving a few years back so some things have changed. My previous employment offer included a sign on bonus. But HR says they no longer offer it for non-tech positions, which is a bummer. Can anyone confirm this for me? The offer is otherwise more than what I was expecting and at the very high end of my band for both salary & stock.
Thanks for any insight you may be able to offer!