Tech-020: The Interviews That Changed Everything

After my time at ParentPay, the next step in my journey came through a recruiter’s email. The role was with Infonetica, a research management software company based in Esher, Surrey. I didn’t know it yet, but this would turn out to be the opportunity I’d been looking for all along ...

The process began with a first-stage call with Rachel, the Chief of Staff. This was less about technical ability and more about personality and culture fit. From the moment she joined the Teams call, her bright smile and positive energy set the tone. The conversation was short but warm, and I left feeling genuinely optimistic.

That same day, the recruiter phoned me — I’d been successful in moving to stage two. I was ecstatic. Could this really be the role I hadn’t known I was searching for?

Stage two was a video call with Andrey, the CTO. It was meant to be more technical and a deeper dive into my CV. Yet the moment the call began, it didn’t feel like an interview. It felt like a genuine human-to-human conversation. We walked through my CV, explored my experiences, and exchanged questions and ideas. Andrey explained that Infonetica takes its time to find the right people — a statement I would later learn to be completely true. I left that call feeling confident and inspired.

I was told the process might take a few days because the team was busy, so I returned to my day-to-day at ParentPay and waited. A few days later, the recruiter rang again with great news: I had passed stage two. There would be a final round, this time in person.

So I dusted off the suit and made the four-hour drive to Infonetica’s offices in Esher. This stage was different. I met with multiple people: Andrey, Rachel, the Head of IT Steve, contractor Gurpreet, and the CEO Raja.

Meeting face-to-face brought a new dimension. Video calls are fine, but you can’t fully read body language, feel the energy in the room, or build the same rapport. This interview was brilliant — a blend of tech talk, personal stories, and genuine conversations. Raja shared his background, his journey, and Infonetica’s core values, placing emphasis again on the importance of finding the right people.

Closing

I left Esher with a long drive ahead of me, but also a strong sense that something had clicked. For the first time in a long while, I didn’t just feel like I was interviewing for a role — I felt like I was meeting people I could genuinely see myself building the future with.