3 stage interviews

[6128k]

Hi all,

In all my contracting years I have never gone beyond a simple telephone call and face to face interview. On occasion, even a telephone interview was good enough.

Do I want the role? Yes, so I guess I should just suck it up, but I will need to take 2 days leave and incur close to another day in travel expenses.

Would be interested to hear your views.

Thanks
6128k

[MyUserName]

If you won't do it someone else will and they will get the gig

[dx4100]

If you won't do it someone else will and they will get the gig

And some people work for peanuts and are on call at evenings and weekends....

[dx4100]

Hi all,

In all my contracting years I have never gone beyond a simple telephone call and face to face interview. On occasion, even a telephone interview was good enough.

Do I want the role? Yes, so I guess I should just suck it up, but I will need to take 2 days leave and incur close to another day in travel expenses.

Would be interested to hear your views.

Thanks
6128k

Its being given technical tests I hate the most at this stage of my career... Mainly because most of them are tulip and don't reflect anything of a real days work. That is my pet hate. I tend to refuse interviews that require me to come in and sit one. If they want me to knock something up remotely then that is fine as I will do that in my own time inbetween episodes of cash in the attic.

Three stage interview... The last stage is usually just about meeting the people on site and job is yours as long as you don't scare people etc... So it wouldn't put me off...

Guess stage 1 is telephone, stage 2 face to face, stage 3 satisfying the egos of certain permies ?

[psychocandy]

Shorter interview process = better gig in my experience.

my best gigs have been ones where its been a 30 min general chat

[dx4100]

Shorter interview process = better gig in my experience.

my best gigs have been ones where its been a 30 min general chat

This ^

Anything involving a three stage interview sounds more like an interview for employment to be frank and I think that is where their mindset tends to be.... So I would be making sure I kept an eye on my IR35 status a little more than usual...

[VillageContractor]

I always wanted 2-3 interviews to judge technical abilities and how they will work with others, even then we still end with numpties (contract and perm). But on a day to day basis we don't infringe IR35 status for our contractors, we're just picky.

It comes down to how much you want the job? Is it worth the cost of 2 days and travelling?

I'd ask them to schedule it at the beginning or end of the day so I can still half a days work.

Or ask your current client to work from home and do the interview in your "lunch".

[dx4100]

I always wanted 2-3 interviews to judge technical abilities and how they will work with others, even then we still end with numpties (contract and perm)

I read this so often yet people continue with the same old rubbish approach to interviews

If you haven't worked out within a 30 min chat if the person you are talking to is what you are looking for then talking for another 3 hours isn't going to change anything. Yet people keep doing it. Its just a box ticking exercise.

[LondonManc]

This ^

Anything involving a three stage interview sounds more like an interview for employment to be frank and I think that is where their mindset tends to be.... So I would be making sure I kept an eye on my IR35 status a little more than usual...

Yep. Contractors don't need to fit in as much, they need to be able to do the piece of work asked of them. Ask them about their hobbies to make sure that they aren't a freak and that's about it.

[VillageContractor]

I read this so often yet people continue with the same old rubbish approach to interviews

If you haven't worked out within a 30 min chat if the person you are talking to is what you are looking for then talking for another 3 hours isn't going to change anything. Yet people keep doing it. Its just a box ticking exercise.

30 minute phone call on tech makes me think he's amazing. Spend 30 minutes in a room with him shows me he has a massive ego so a no go.

Just because contractors can be released quickly doesn't mean they always are. Managers are hesitant to release and recruit again to avoid risk to the project. Means the team are stuck with the numpty.

I've tried the 1 interview method, ended up with a lot more numpties hence why we do more