In 32% of 500 companies surveyed in 2008, candidates for senior executive positions went through only 1 to 5 interviews, while 12% of firms subjected candidates to 21 or more. Shockingly, only half of those recruited for the top three tiers of management were interviewed by anyone in the C-suite. And fully half the companies relied primarily on the hiring manager's gut feel, selecting a candidate believed to have "what it took" to be successful in any job.

Source: Harvard Business Review, May 2009