A friend of mine referred me for the position via email. I sent her a cover letter and resume and she forwarded it on to the hiring manager, along with a strong recommendation. The hiring manager reached out to me and weI scheduled an interview. The day before the interview with the hiring manager, I received a phone call from an HR representative who screened me. I met the qualifications so she told me that she would refer me to the hiring manager, unaware that I already had an interview scheduled for the following day. The next day, I met with numerous people in the department to prepare myself for the interview. These were informational interviews. Finally, I met with the hiring manager in an interview that went very well. Ultimately, I did not receive the position because the hiring manager opted to go with an internal candidate. However, she made it clear that she felt I could be successful at the company and would be happy to lobby on my behalf should I find another role that I was interested in.