Foo - How NOT to give a job interview

Do not, under any circumstance, say "I don't think this job is beneath me at all"

http://fc07.deviantart.com/fs45/f/2009/108/5/8/Double_Face_Palm_by_RIOTmon.jpg

Yes, I said that during a job interview.:twitchy: The other parts went well enough though, so *cross fingers*

This non native English speaker don't get it. My best wishes to you on the job hunt tho...

This non native English speaker don't get it. My best wishes to you on the job hunt tho...

Well...despite the flub I think I did get the job. Or at least that is what my friend who works there has hinted at. :lol:

If you still land it, it shall be epic!

True story... Last summer I had a job interview. The interview was going great. In fact, things moved away from question and answer to conversation. I was feeling pretty good about my chances. Then, someone brought up a story where the head person in charge drove her car into a ditch because she was reading and driving. I looked at her and said, "Good God woman! That's why they make books on tape."

I didn't get the job.

I got a better job a few months later.

I was applying for a part-time job to fill time that I was much too overqualified for.

I said, "I know I am overqualified for this job, but this is what I want to do with my life."

(I had college degrees, etc, but I was applying for a job that high school kids usually take.)

I don't know what I was thinking, but I ended up with a much better job later, also.

My advice...do not tell your potential boss that you want his/her job within 3 yrs. Especially if they think you are capable of doing their job now.

"Where do you see yourself in five years?"

"Australia."

Didn't get the job or go to Australia.

All true stories

At a lunch interview, the candidate asked the waiter for scotch and water to drink

A guy told me he didn't want my job and he was going to be rich in three years. He applied for 18 credit cards and will use a cash advance from each to buy real estate that he rents out.

Another guy had maybe 20 employers listed on his resume without dates. I assumed this was his entire career. Turned out these were over the past few years and 3 months was the longest.

I was doing "technical interviews" for a consulting company I worked for. I had to interview a guy that was supposed to be perfect for a particular position. I asked an him a simple technical question, more of an ice breaker than anything else. He came back with "Hey look, I've been doing this for more than ten years, I know what I'm doing, I don't have to answer silly questions." Well ok then. Needless to say, he didn't get the job.

Then, someone brought up a story where the head person in charge drove her car into a ditch because she was reading and driving. I looked at her and said, "Good God woman! That's why they make books on tape."I think the comment was definitely warranted. I applaud your candor.

I did the hiring for my previous job.

As part of the 'interviewing process', my intent would be to NOT contact the people after the interview for two weeks. It would give me time to go over things and review their background. I also wanted to see how much they wanted the job and expected them to call me back to inquire if I had made a decision. This would prove to me that they were truly interested in working for us and wanted THIS job vs just waiting for any place to hire them. Of course I would tell those that I didn't choose after the two week period.

ANYWAY

This one guy called me the day after his interview and said to me "So ya gonna hire me or what? I need to know because I need to make some money here. I'm not gonna be waiting all day for you to call". (At this point this was a red flag and just took him off of my potential employee list BECAUSE of this) I told him that I had already had some people in mind and that I would be contacting them in two weeks... to consider this your contact that I have made my decision and I think it probably is in your best interest to find a job more suitable for you.

He was flaming.

"YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ****EN *****, I DON'T EVEN WANT TO WORK FOR YOUR ****EN COMPANY ANYWAY YOU ****!! **** YOU, **** YOUR COMPANY AND I HOPE YOU ROT IN HELL!!!"

I wished him good luck on his job hunt.

Try not to play with your piercings, or pick at your scabs while being interviewed. That's never good.

I was doing "technical interviews" for a consulting company I worked for. I had to interview a guy that was supposed to be perfect for a particular position. I asked an him a simple technical question, more of an ice breaker than anything else. He came back with "Hey look, I've been doing this for more than ten years, I know what I'm doing, I don't have to answer silly questions." Well ok then. Needless to say, he didn't get the job.

Gold! I work with one guy who always drops the "i've been doing this for 30 years", I always think to myself there's a reason you and i have the same job even though I've been at it for 3

As part of the 'interviewing process', my intent would be to NOT contact the people after the interview for two weeks. It would give me time to go over things and review their background. I also wanted to see how much they wanted the job and expected them to call me back to inquire if I had made a decision. This would prove to me that they were truly interested in working for us and wanted THIS job vs just waiting for any place to hire them.

With all due respect, I think this is a horrible strategy.

So, you expect the person to be able to decode your behavior (lack of response for two weeks) and read your mind about the winning strategy is? Not to put too fine a point on it, but I would hate to recommend someone use this technique in any of their relationships. Professional or otherwise. "If you really loved me you would have known I wanted you to do the dishes this evening." I cannot endorse that as a good technique to get what you want.

Just be honest with me and tell me what you expect of me. Then I can decide whether I can meet your needs. And you can decide if you want me.

Booo.

jim

With all due respect, I think this is a horrible strategy.

So, you expect the person to be able to decode your behavior (lack of response for two weeks) and read your mind about the winning strategy is? Not to put too fine a point on it, but I would hate to recommend someone use this technique in any of their relationships. Professional or otherwise. "If you really loved me you would have known I wanted you to do the dishes this evening." I cannot endorse that as a good technique to get what you want.

Just be honest with me and tell me what you expect of me. Then I can decide whether I can meet your needs. And you can decide if you want me.

Booo.

jim
I hate to be on your opposing side, sis, but I agree with jgedwa.

I've always told them I would call after two weeks.

So far it has worked. Those truly interested had waited patiently and inquired at the end of the two weeks. :thumb:

With all due respect, I think this is a horrible strategy.

So, you expect the person to be able to decode your behavior (lack of response for two weeks) and read your mind about the winning strategy is? Not to put too fine a point on it, but I would hate to recommend someone use this technique in any of their relationships. Professional or otherwise. "If you really loved me you would have known I wanted you to do the dishes this evening." I cannot endorse that as a good technique to get what you want.

Just be honest with me and tell me what you expect of me. Then I can decide whether I can meet your needs. And you can decide if you want me.

Booo.

jimI agree.

It's also not good to screw with someone's means of support for two weeks. When we hire we rank the prospects and try to narrow it down to 2-3 people. Then we discuss the merits of each one and try to make a decision within a day but there's no reason to go more than three days.

there is always the fact that a good job applicatant may find a job during the 2 week silience period

I've always told them I would call withing two weeks...

OK. Not quite as bad if you told them 2 weeks was the time frame. Still...waiting for them to make the move, though, seems like you're only filtering out ones with certain personalities. It doesn't get to the bottom of which one is best qualified or wants the job most.

KT I edited my reply to clarify.

I agree.

It's also not good to screw with someone's means of support for two weeks. When we hire we rank the prospects and try to narrow it down to 2-3 people. Then we discuss the merits of each one and try to make a decision within a day but there's no reason to go more than three days.

We too have discussions about perspective employees. We also do background checks which take time themselves.


there is always the fact that a good job applicatant may find a job during the 2 week silience period

True, and I encourage that! But if they want to work for us, they will.

We too have discussions about perspective employees. We also do background checks which take time themselves. We're too cheap to pay for backgrounds for everyone so we wait until the prospective employee has signed the job offer.

Was the interviewer dressed as Picard?

We're too cheap to pay for backgrounds for everyone so we wait until the prospective employee has signed the job offer.

We also do pee tests for drugs. Have to wait for those results as well.

We also do pee tests for drugs. Have to wait for those results as well.
We hired a seasonal kid a few years ago and our HR person sent him to a hair follicle test. The next morning his mom called me screaming about a lawsuit. I guess the lab tech shaved a 2" square off the top of his head. It was hard not to laugh when I looked at the pictures.

I was asked in interview "if two departments come to you needing assistance, and both requests are urgent important, how do you choose which one to work on first?"

I replied, "whichever department brings me donuts."

I did get the job.

A neighbor I had once, that worked for many years in the state highway maintenance department, swears this is true. I'm not so sure, but it tickled me, nonetheless.

He said that every year, as soon as the shool year ended, dozens of the local HS kids would invariably come in and apply for summer jobs. They didn't usually waste a whole lot of time screening the applicants, as all they needed were warm & vertical bodies that could work a shovel or such.

He said this kid came in once and asked for, not one, but two, job application forms. The supervison of the department, being an old gruff curmudgeon looked at the kid and said:"What the hell do you need two of them for? Can't you fill one out without making a mistake?". The kid stammered..."oh, no sir, the other one isn't for me, it's for my brother".

Supervisor: "So what's wrong with your brother; why can't he come in and get his own application?
kid: "He was busy today. He had something else he had to do."
Supervisor: "Hmmpf! - so tell me son, are you a good worker?"
kid: "Oh yes, sir. I'm a very good worker."
Supervisor: "Well, what about your brother; is he a good worker?"
kid: "Oh yes, sir! Why he's even better than I am."
Supervisor: "Good. Then you go home and tell your brother to fill this out and bring it back with him, and be ready to start work tomorrow at 8:00am."

I've always told them I would call after two weeks.

So far it has worked. Those truly interested had waited patiently and inquired at the end of the two weeks. :thumb:


Okay, that is somewhat better. Now its not so much a game of stand-off. But still, you are judging their ability to guess your desires.

That is still game-playing. People that win games show themselves to be good game players. If your intentions are hire a player, this is an excellent strategy. That may or may not also pick out the person with the greatest desire for the job.

And anyway, I would think that shrewd employer would want someone with a healthy amount of desire for the job. That is not the same thing as the person with the greatest amount of desire for the job. To use the analogy of dating, I suspect that most of want someone with a healthy amount of sincere desire of us. Someone who has no desire for us is a poor candidate. But also its probably true that someone who has the most desire (or, desperate, in other words) for a relationship should give us pause.

You get the fish you fish for. So put some thought into how you bait the hook.

jim

We too have discussions about perspective employees. We also do background checks which take time themselves.


We also do pee tests for drugs. Have to wait for those results as well.

During the past 15 months, my wife has had 5 different employers, which means she was a new hire at 4 of them. Of those 4 employers, 3 did both background checks and urine drug tests. All 3 of them got their results back either the same day or the next day. All 3 also only submitted the person they wanted to hire to the background & drug tests, as a cost & time saving measure. She was actually the second choice of one employer. Her best guess is that the first choice didn't pass either or both of the tests.

On another note, years ago I applied for a production position at a company where a friend of mine was a salesman. He'd referred me, and since he had initially trained me in production, gave a glowing recommendation. The first step was a phone interview. I was working a temp job at the time, and the interviewer could only reach me via my cell, she was made aware of both facts. When she called, I informed her that it was currently raining downtown, so the only place where I got signal and could stay dry was the employee entrance at the temp assignment where I was. I said she'd probably hear the sounds of people going up and down the stairs in the background. She was OK with this, and we had the interview.

It must have gone well, because she asked me in for another interview at her office. This interview also seemed to go well. At the end of it, she had me fill out a 30 minute personality survey. I thought that was strange, but figured I needed the job & didn't mind doing it. She said it would take about a week or so to get the results back and that she'd get in touch with me when she received them. So I waited.

She called about a week later and set up another interview. When I arrived, I met with her and the guy who would have been my supervisor. She first wanted to confirm some aspects of my personality & work ethic as compared to the survey results. They were spot on. She then left me to be interviewed by the supervisor. It seemed to go just as well as the previous ones. He even gave me a tour of the shop, showing me where I'd be working & introducing me to the other employees.

I continued to contact her both via phone and email about once or twice a week, just to check on the status of their decision. When I called, I was dumped to her voicemail. When I emailed, she never responded. This lasted for 2-3 weeks. My friend kept telling me to be patient, but that's hard to do when you have bills to pay. In fact, the only contact from her I ever received after that 3rd interview was a canned email letter stating that I didn't fit their current needs, and they'd keep my application on file. The only reason I received that was because I called my friend and asked him to look into it. I told him that I hadn't received any contact from her, or response to my contacting her, since that 3rd interview.

Had she simply replied to one of my voice messages, or even clicked Reply to one of my emails, and told me they were still working on it, I'd have been OK with it. Or if she'd replied earlier that they weren't going to hire me, that would have been fine, too. As it is, I'll never consider working for that company, and will also be sure to let any friends I know to avoid them, too.

Her best guess is that the first choice didn't pass either or both of the tests.

I find it utterly amazing how many prospective job applicants there are in this day in age, that forget to "study" for their drug test. I mean, if you know you've got a whiz-quiz coming up, the obvious answer is - STOP DOING DRUGS!; at least until you get the job anyway.

This non native English speaker don't get it. My best wishes to you on the job hunt tho...

Este empleo la verdad no esta a mi altura pero igualmente lo intentare.

So far it has worked. Those truly interested had waited patiently and inquired at the end of the two weeks. :thumb:

What about those who truly were interested, but realize a lot of employers get testy when they're given a call?

It's hard enough for a lot of people doing the whole job search/interview/waiting game thing (ESPECIALLY now), so pleeeeeease don't make your decision because of this one little thing. Hiring managers seem to have a lot of trivial pet peeves and "this or that will get you crossed off the list". That person that you're playing with is someone's father/mother/daughter/etc. saving pennies every week to make ends meet.

My dad has had a hell of a time finding a job, and it irritates me to no end to hear about stuff like this (though he actually does follow up, but who knows what every hiring manager expects, and what he could have done differently to land the job for the last umpteen interviews??). :(

You have all made some very valid points and it seems that with today's circumstances this probably is not something that should still be applied.

Thanks for opening my eyes. :)

I find it utterly amazing how many prospective job applicants there are in this day in age, that forget to "study" for their drug test. I mean, if you know you've got a whiz-quiz coming up, the obvious answer is - STOP DOING DRUGS!; at least until you get the job anyway.

You reminded me of a buddy I had in the service -- he pulled a stint as a recruiter (USMC), and told me some real sweethearts.

One applicant: he asked, "When was the last time you smoked dope?" The kid asked, "What time is it?" He was shown the door.

Another, a female app, was told she couldn't enlist because testing had shown she was pregnant. She kept insisting that was impossible, because -- finally -- she told them, "I never swallowed."

With all due respect, I think this is a horrible strategy.

So, you expect the person to be able to decode your behavior (lack of response for two weeks) and read your mind about the winning strategy is? Not to put too fine a point on it, but I would hate to recommend someone use this technique in any of their relationships. Professional or otherwise. "If you really loved me you would have known I wanted you to do the dishes this evening." I cannot endorse that as a good technique to get what you want.

Just be honest with me and tell me what you expect of me. Then I can decide whether I can meet your needs. And you can decide if you want me.

Booo.

jim

I'll add in, if you wait too long without giving the recruit some kind of indication, you could lose them.

I'm actually post-fact of one interview right now and have one with another company upcoming. The second one is definitely more in line with the industry I want to be in, so if the first waits too long, they don't have a chance.


What about those who truly were interested, but realize a lot of employers get testy when they're given a call?

I hate this. EVERY SINGLE career guidance counselor IN THE UNIVERSE tells you to follow up and call, and dig around for phone numbers if necessary.

From the responses I've gotten when I've done that, I'm pretty sure at least 3/4 of them resulted in my resume going in the trash.

A family member of mine waited but I had encouraged him to give them a call. Good thing he did. They said they were trying to find his app so they can all him but somehow misplaced it and wanted him in for training right away.

Imagine if he didn't call.

As part of the 'interviewing process', my intent would be to NOT contact the people after the interview for two weeks. It would give me time to go over things and review their background. I also wanted to see how much they wanted the job and expected them to call me back to inquire if I had made a decision. This would prove to me that they were truly interested in working for us and wanted THIS job vs just waiting for any place to hire them. Of course I would tell those that I didn't choose after the two week period.
Uhhh.... It's standard practice to say when you'll inform the applicants. It's fine to say it will take two weeks to make the decision. However, if you don't inform them when you said you would, they can deduce:


They've been eliminated
You're negotiating with someone else
Your organization doesn't have its act together


None of these possibilities gives the applicant reason to call. If you actually want them, none of those possibilities will improve their opinion of your organization. If you haven't figured out from the interview process how interested the applicant is, it says something about the effectiveness of the process.

As an applicant, it wouldn't occur to me that I was being gamed. If I figured it out through back channels, I wouldn't take the job unless I were desperate since I'd know I couldn't trust my employer to be straight with me.

I've done a fair amount of hiring, and my experience is that it works best when everyone plays straight.


A family member of mine waited but I had encouraged him to give them a call. Good thing he did. They said they were trying to find his app so they can all him but somehow misplaced it and wanted him in for training right away.

Imagine if he didn't call.
Probably would get a better job elsewhere. I've never heard of such incompetence.

Thanks for the ideas, banjerek - makes a LOT of sense. :)

I guess I've been lucky with hiring a great team. But then again it's been a while since I've hired someone. So far the person with the lowest seniority only has 7 years with the company.

As for the relative that had his application lost, it ended up on the wrong hiring managers desk. So yeah...they should have been more organized. But at least he's got that truck driving job now. :D

What about those who truly were interested, but realize a lot of employers get testy when they're given a call?

It's hard enough for a lot of people doing the whole job search/interview/waiting game thing (ESPECIALLY now), so pleeeeeease don't make your decision because of this one little thing. Hiring managers seem to have a lot of trivial pet peeves and "this or that will get you crossed off the list". That person that you're playing with is someone's father/mother/daughter/etc. saving pennies every week to make ends meet.

My dad has had a hell of a time finding a job, and it irritates me to no end to hear about stuff like this (though he actually does follow up, but who knows what every hiring manager expects, and what he could have done differently to land the job for the last umpteen interviews??). :(

Theoretically speaking, if I were actually interviewing you, for the position of being my company's new, Human Resources hiring mgr, with expressions like that -- I'd hire you on the spot. Good job.:thumb:

The true measure of a person's character isn't something that can be determined through a lab test, nor is it derived from the answers to banal questions like: "Why do you want to work for us?" or "Where do you see yourself 5yrs from now?", but rather, by how much common sense, compassion, and willingness to say the necessary but unpopular thing, they display, when charged with determining the best interests of the company, and the fate of its employees.

I agree.

It's also not good to screw with someone's means of support for two weeks.
No. It's not good, but it IS the way things are done these days. I'm job searching for the first time in 20 yrs, and I'm having to relearn the process. It's not uncommon for companies to never contact a job applicant after an application or an interview. It's also not uncommon for companies and recruiters to advertise jobs that don't exist, just to get lists of people with certain skills, so that they can fill a future job more quickly. I managed to find a contact at a company I applied to. This company had 5 jobs posted on their web site, and the contact informed me that they didn't have any active openings. I can only conclude that the postings were for information gathering. Before you say that you wouldn't work for such a company, realize that this policy would likely rule out a sizable percentage of your potential employers. I think it's a result of the supply & demand of the job market. Years ago, as an engineer, I had recruiters contacting me all the time with real job opportunities. That doesn't happen now.

Hmmm......

I had one job where I showed up on site the day after they were going to call new hires ( it was a new restaurant that was opening). I talked to the hiring manager - he had actually put my resume aside as an example of an 'excellent fit' candidate. He was quite happy I came by as otherwise I wouldn't have been hired and I was one of the few they really, really wanted.

I applied for another job once - Industry I am very interested in, seemed like a real good organization to work for, nice growth position - moving into running a division within a couple of years. But wow, did it ever drag on:

Late May - Screening interview with HR consultant

June - Interview with Management Team - told decision would be in two weeks

Early July - Received call for 2nd interview with management team

Called a week and a half later, told they were reposting the position, because the original ad didn't reference that it could grow into running a division and they felt the pool was too small. Although I was still being considered they wanted to widen the pool ( this should have been a red flag)

Late August - Called for 4th Interview. I had a couple of offers on the table, but because the process had taken so long, I wanted to see this through. Figured interview 4 should end with offer. Told at interview 4 that they would decide in about 2 weeks. I told them that unless they give me an offer by noon tomorrow, to take my name of the candidate list. Got home, picked up the phone and told them to remove me from the candidate list.

I took one of the other offers and am quite happy. 4 months is waay, waay too long to string the process out.

This was 2 years ago. They have gone through 3 people in the position since I interviewed.

My current job process was interesting.

This was back in 2003.

Applied for the job saw it on Monster, then promptly forgot about it.

About a month later, got a phone call Monday evening checking I was still interested, filled out formal application on Tuesday, was informed firm did background checks, interviewed 8am Wednesday morning, accepted job offer by 1pm Wednesday, started two weeks later.

After doing the job for a couple of weeks, I had former employers in the UK contact me, to let me know that a private dectective agency was making enquires into me.

Turns out the background check, also checked all my UK stuff, even though by that time I had been in the states for four years and had a green card.

About whole following up thing... What are people thoughts on email? I thought it was a common practice to send an email the next day thanking for the interview, etc.

UD

About whole following up thing... What are people thoughts on email? I thought it was a common practice to send an email the next day thanking for the interview, etc.

UD

I have always sent an e-mail thanking them for the interview.

We also do pee tests for drugs. Have to wait for those results as well.

This is the first job I've ever had where there aren't drug tests. It's fascinating, as I'm regularly around some serious narcotics.

Well...even if I said weird things during the interview, I got the lob. It is teh lulz. :lol:

I did the hiring for my previous job.

As part of the 'interviewing process', my intent would be to NOT contact the people after the interview for two weeks. It would give me time to go over things and review their background. I also wanted to see how much they wanted the job and expected them to call me back to inquire if I had made a decision. This would prove to me that they were truly interested in working for us and wanted THIS job vs just waiting for any place to hire them. Of course I would tell those that I didn't choose after the two week period.


I think this waiting period is pretty fair, especially when considering that some employers take MONTHS to get back to you or MONTHS to actually conduct the interview process, followed up with more time waiting to hear back.

A good background check can take some time, so this seems fairly appropriate.

I have always sent an e-mail thanking them for the interview.

Same.