I picked up on that phrase too, and it made me laugh. I've worked in places where often interviewers seemed more interested in proving how smart they were - an

I picked up on that phrase too, and it made me laugh. I've worked in places where often interviewers seemed more interested in proving how smart they were - and particularly how much smarter than the candidate they were - than in assessing whether or not the candidate is suitable for the job. It smacks of insecurity. My current company, regardless of how good or bad a candidate is, everyone knows that they are to be treated with respect and kindness, and they also know that if they don't treat the candidates well they're going to get a bollocking for it. First impressions definitely cut both ways, and word travels. If you treat candidates like crap don't be surprised if your stream of applicants dries up. Unless you're a FAANG you really can't get away with that sort of behaviour.