Oh, this honest piece, well-written piece should be read by more people. It’s a shame that this practice is being used not only by startups, but also by big companies.

My experience ticks all the boxes:

• being assigned on non-business day.
• it happened before an interview occurred.
• the other side wanted properly formatted report with fully-fleshed out ideas.

Every one is out for a cheap deal. Thanks for giving helpful advices in dealing with this agonizing matter.