I have dealt with two senior executives, one HR director, and three recruiters... the execs and director was excellent people and seemed genuinely interested in getting to know me, while the three recruiters were all very cocky. All three acted like Cisco was the best in the world and they wanted to you to jump through hoops for every little thing. There was also a big expectations gap between them and the managers of their groups two levels up. For this particular interview, I had spoken with the director of the group who was very pleasant and willing to get to know a bit about me. He mentioned that he was looking for more "big picture" people with vision to round out his team and that investment banking experience was not necessary. He put me in contact with the HR director below him and he was also a wonderful person. After talking with these two I began to get excited about the company and I felt like there would be a good cultural fit. The HR director then put me in touch with his recruiter who seemed annoyed by me being set up to interview. It was like pulling teeth to talk with her, and then two months later (after pushing back the date a few times) she passed me on to someone else who wanted to schedule a time to get to know me. The time came and after two "small-talk" questions she dove right into technical interview questions. I had not prepared for an interview since this was supposed to be a "get-to-know-you" call and I told her so. She said that was fine and then continued with more technical questions. I was still noticeably caught off-guard by her questions, and so she then started to go on about how they really only wanted people from Harvard, Stanford and Wharton and that investment banking experience was a must (the complete opposite of her boss two levels up, who didn't attend any of those schools). After such a positive initial experience, I was surprised and disappointed in how it ended. I definitely have a bittersweet taste in my mouth towards the company and it is obvious that there is a large disconnect between Cisco management and HR.