How to get a job (or not)

[Janig]

At least in writing your attitude sucks. Hopefully youre nicer on the phone.

As to how normal it is; only once have I been asked to do something exceptional before interview, and when I met it they offered me the position. A date is a date, and if they want anything more then you have the upper hand. Dont be an ass about it, but try your best to meet their expectations. If the employer isnt good enough for you then you dont have to take it.

My general advice is just try your best. Everyone likes a tryer.

 

[aelf]

If the recruiter didn't care, he wouldn't have called you in the first place. If I don't care about a candidate, and I miss an interview, I don't always call back.

He didn't. I called him.

At least in writing your attitude sucks. Hopefully youre nicer on the phone.

Yeah, it has to be my fault somehow. I guess if I can't take this experience positively immediately after it happens, then I'm not good enough.

 

[Zelig]

Watching TV or internetting before an interview? Really?

Eh, why not? There's no reason I should get any more worked up than the interviewer.

 

[downtown]

He didn't. I called him.
.

Then he cares enough to still want to talk to you. If you don't care about the job, then don't pursue it. If you do, then do what he says and try again tomorrow. He has the upper hand right now, not you.

 

[aelf]

Then he cares enough to still want to talk to you. If you don't care about the job, then don't pursue it. If you do, then do what he says and try again tomorrow. He has the upper hand right now, not you.

Which basically affirms what I was saying earlier:

I suppose in this kind of job market applicants just have to be grateful that recruiters even deign to speak with them?

I guess you're right that it's an employers' market and all the talk about etiquette is just BS.

Anyway, the replies here have been interesting. It sure is a whole different perspective from all stuff that recruiters themselves seem to say when they are in the public eye. It basically tells me what I should expect and what I should do. Thanks!

 

[downtown]

You're making a huge deal out of nothing. A recruiter missed a phone interview. You did your due diligence and called him, letting him know you are still interested. How long was the wait between missed interview and your conversation? A day? A week?

The phone interview wasn't the final stage in the process right? You'd have to have an in-person interview afterwards right? Phone interviews aren't worth getting stressed over. They're pre-screeners.

You are applying for a highly selective and competitive industry (big firm consulting) at an entry level. Yes, YOU are in an employers market.

 

[aelf]

Eh. You're saying it's perfectly acceptable to miss a phone interview like it's the most natural thing ever, never mind having the courtesy to actually apologise when called. What do you want me to say? From my perspective that's obviously not nice. If I was the one who did this I can forget about the job for sure.

I understand that the reality is as such, and I've said so. I'm not sure what else you're expecting. Do you want me to apologise for bringing this up? Alright, I apologise.

 

[Zelig]

Eh. You're saying it's perfectly acceptable to miss a phone interview like it's the most natural thing ever, never mind having the courtesy to actually apologise when called.

Expecting basic courtesy from HR is generally too much, I do my best to avoid them at any stage of employment.

 

[aelf]

I've had little or no experience with HR till now (all but one interview I've had so far were with people I actually worked under), which is why I was surprised by what happened. Lesson learned.

There seems to be no place for noobs in the corporate world, though, so I guess another error I made was to express my surprise.

 

[madviking]

Heh. I find this really odd considering I have a phone interview planned to get an internship scheduled for later today.

 

[galdre]

I've had little or no experience with HR till now (all but one interview I've had so far were with people I actually worked under), which is why I was surprised by what happened. Lesson learned.

There seems to be no place for noobs in the corporate world, though, so I guess another error I made was to express my surprise.

My experinces with HR have generall been bad to terrible, and I worked in HR so I've seen it from the inside. That person should have apologized to you, that was very unprofessional. I had an in-person interview once where I sat for 45 minutes waiting; I asked the receptionist to make sure the person I was meeting knew I was there and was told my interview was cancelled while I was waiting!


My HR laid me off recently because I had been on short-term disability and was only working part-time because of an extruded disk in my low back. Now I'm unemployed and can't get an office job (which is what I've been working for years) because I can't sit down for any length of time. But who cares about me, the company wanted to save some money on disibility benefits, so laid me off and then said they weren't paying me any more benefits. I love HR, and insurance companies . . .

 

[Whomp]

Aelf--I don't think you're wrong at all to expect professionalism from this person. I do agree that you should grind through this first step and hope that the actual decision makers are not the same in representing the firm's culture. If you get the same experience there then I would definitely give pause to whether it's a good fit for you.

 

[aelf]

My experinces with HR have generall been bad to terrible, and I worked in HR so I've seen it from the inside. That person should have apologized to you, that was very unprofessional. I had an in-person interview once where I sat for 45 minutes waiting; I asked the receptionist to make sure the person I was meeting knew I was there and was told my interview was cancelled while I was waiting!

My HR laid me off recently because I had been on short-term disability and was only working part-time because of an extruded disk in my low back. Now I'm unemployed and can't get an office job (which is what I've been working for years) because I can't sit down for any length of time. But who cares about me, the company wanted to save some money on disibility benefits, so laid me off and then said they weren't paying me any more benefits. I love HR, and insurance companies . . .

Sorry to hear that

I'm convinced that lack of empathy is a fundamental human problem. People are so wrapped up in their own affairs that it's hard to see things from other people's point of view. Employers will always have their reasons for ignoring employees' plight, for which they can't be blamed (or so they say). It's very unfortunate that we can't have a better system.

I do agree that you should grind through this first step and hope that the actual decision makers are not the same in representing the firm's culture.

Thanks. I will be doing that

 

[madviking]

Heh. I find this really odd considering I have a phone interview planned to get an internship scheduled for later today.

Wow. It's been thirty minutes since the interviewer was supposed to call me. Aelf, are we applying for the same job here?

 

[aelf]

Very unlikely, since we're not on the same continent. You should probably call and leave a message if you can't get through.

Actually, I remember having a phone interview once before. I did badly, but it was a fairly pleasant experience. That might have been before the financial crisis, though, make of that what you will.

 

[Mise]

I absolutely hate phone interviews. Ugh....

 

[madviking]

Very unlikely, since we're not on the same continent. You should probably call and leave a message if you can't get through.

I sent the interviewer an email (now 45 minutes after the scheduled time) reminding them about it. Hopefully this isn't them just flaking on me. :meh:

 

[downtown]

I absolutely hate phone interviews. Ugh....

I'm not crazy about giving them either. I wish I could just have everybody meet me in a coffee shop or something and we could just talk.

 

[madviking]

Okay, so time zone craziness caused her to call at 4:30 instead of 3:30 (she's in Chicago). But I feel like the interview went really well. If I hear back from their recruiter, I could be going to Chicago (again) for a job fair with the company I'm applying to.

 

[Zelig]

I'm not crazy about giving them either. I wish I could just have everybody meet me in a coffee shop or something and we could just talk.

I'd prefer to sit down in person, but conversational phone interviews aren't awful; they're much better than technical ones where you get asked questions where you need to sketch out answers on paper while you either mumble out your thought process or leave dead air on the line.