Someone above him might have decided that’s part of the process.
I am starting to think that most of those decisions are made by burocrats who have no accountability on the actual results, specially at Google where they can afford to lose great candidates left and right.
This process is very well designed to put all the cards in the employers hands.
Imagine if most highly compensating employers made the barrier to entry so absurdly difficult, you would no longer consider looking for new positions every 1-2 years to grab new offers/seek larger raises. Obviously, this isn't sustainable long term but it sure will reduce turnover rates if you can get a small cartel to follow suit.