I got hired on for a position once where the job description was retroactively written for me after I came in for an interview. I suppose in retrospect that means it was written in a way that it probably wasn't a good fit for most people.
I'm not going to be specific, but at a certain level, companies will hire people that execs know/have worked with and figure out the best role for them.
> but at a certain level, companies will hire people that execs know/have worked with
This happens more frequently than people realise. Execs depend on, to state the obvious, a loyal next line leaders to get work done. And more often than not newly hired execs are under pressure to begin showing results in about 8 months or so. Hiring their loyalists gives them a very good chance of showing positive impact. Otherwise they need to wrangle with existing reports and peers to win their trust and loyalty which is a time consuming process.
I've seen this happen almost at all the places I've worked in
"Old boys network" in the US. Companies do need to guard against excessively hiring only people with the right connections. On the other hand, personal networks are certainly a thing and companies rely heavily on referrals for hiring. I have to confess that I haven't gotten a job by applying blind/via a recruiter for 35 years.