Reply to: contractor interview vs permie interview

[Fleetwood]

a) bear
b) I got this gig without even having an interview. My fame precedes me.

[Jabberwocky]

Harder maybe, but I could flip a coin to determine who gets the job. That would make it hard to get in and filter out the applicants. What is the merit of these tests over flipping a coin given that they bare very little relationship to the the job. Do banks need better C++ gurus given that most of the code they produce is over-engineered spaghetti ?

[sonu]

Interesting thread.

I also work in banking like BlasterBates and have found that the testing has got harder.

Most of the permie banking jobs have loads of applicants and so they've made the tests harder. Went to a UBS test the other day and they had a room crammed with people sitting tests.

[The Lone Gunman]

Last interview I had was on the phone and lasted 10 minutes including negotiating a start date.

They accepted my experience from my CV (I still use a CV style rather than a business presentation as most clients prefer that IMO). Their biggest concern was whether I would be willing to contract to them.

For once it felt like a proper business to business discussion, much like the one I have had with plasterers plumbers and roofers over the last 12 months.

Pity the agent is such an arse, I am still ironing out wrinkles in the contract placed there by him which expose me to IR35 when this job clearly isnt.

BTW. 3 months in to a 6 monther they have offered to make it 12 and I am still on 10 quid an hour better than other contractors here.

[Joe Black]

Think all this stuff goes through phases depending on the market, but generally I'd expect that someone hired as a contractor, or 'consultant' as I seem to be called here most of the time, should expect the interview to be more a case of simply what's your skills, what experience (and proof of that) you have, and what you can provide them (from a business perspective) for the money/budget they can spend.

One thing you can almost always be sure of is some permie trying to make themselves look good, whether it's trying to show how much smarter/better they are than you...or how smart they are for hiring you in the first place...

[Fungus]

I'm on my third contract and the interviews have been easy. About 30 to 60 minutes where I prove I know the buzz words and I'm not a complete dork. My current client have made it clear that the main problem with permie hiring is HR nonsense. Odd because they've said I can go permie if I want.

During the last IT boom I only had to turn up to interview to be offered a permie job. I went for interview at that big dot com company that did the internet security hardware stuff and which later went bust and was offered the job after 30 minutes. Thank God I went contract.

Before that most permie interviews seemed to be an opportunity for some sad gits to try and humiliate me by asking me about things I barely knew. Then I figured out that it was nothing to do with techical ability and in fact what they were doing was choosing who they wanted to sit next to for the next 5+ years. Lord knows why that takes so long.

I'm told that the 2 day interviews that were so popular 20 years ago are now passe. I recall several 2 day interviews with Shell including me giving a presentation. Sigh.

[BlasterBates]

banks

[Churchill]

do you do some sort of specialist work or something ?

Yes, Blaster is the only one of us trained to pull Threadeds head out of his arse!

[expat]

I had a telephone interview last week - about 15 minutes including the job offer. Managers attitude - if your crap we will get rid of you, doesn't bother me 'cos I know I can do the job.

Current contract - the lady interviewing treated it like a permie interview, where did you see yourself in 5 years. Seeing that the contract was only 3 months, there were a few obvious answers, but the job was local and it took me over the xmas period - so I had to play the game !

I wonder. I once had to fill in a questionnaire for a contract, as if it were a permie job application. I filled it in honestly: e.g. what do you want from your career - continue finding good contracts that I am competent to do.

The lady interviewer smiled thinly at that one, but she knew as well as I did that we were only talking about a 3-month contract; it was HR that didn't know its permie posterior from its contracting elbow.

[madhippy]

...fraid not, most contractor jobs I go for have battery of tests.

do you do some sort of specialist work or something ?

[threaded]

the lady interviewing treated it like a permie interview, where did you see yourself in 5 years.

With my reputation? What do they take me for?

[Not So Wise]

...fraid not, most contractor jobs I go for have battery of tests. Starts off with an email, either to do an on-line test or write a "little" program, "oh should take an experienced programmer about an hour". Having got through that which normally takes about 3 hours !!! then comes the first interview...usually involving written tests, then various experts are reeled in to do "vivas". Finally if you get through all that your invited to meet the "business", sort mafiosis shifty types that don't really want to employ anyone...and then finally the whole department piles in to finish you off with a few snide comments and sniggers.

...finally log-in to the internet to see it re-advertised on Jobserve.

For contractor position *would get to online test and tell them to bugger off unless they wanted to pay me for my time*
For permie (if was crazy enough to want one again) would expect it

[foritisme]

I had a telephone interview last week - about 15 minutes including the job offer. Managers attitude - if your crap we will get rid of you, doesn't bother me 'cos I know I can do the job.

Current contract - the lady interviewing treated it like a permie interview, where did you see yourself in 5 years. Seeing that the contract was only 3 months, there were a few obvious answers, but the job was local and it took me over the xmas period - so I had to play the game !

[BlasterBates]

...fraid not, most contractor jobs I go for have battery of tests. Starts off with an email, either to do an on-line test or write a "little" program, "oh should take an experienced programmer about an hour". Having got through that which normally takes about 3 hours !!! then comes the first interview...usually involving written tests, then various experts are reeled in to do "vivas". Finally if you get through all that your invited to meet the "business", sort mafiosis shifty types that don't really want to employ anyone...and then finally the whole department piles in to finish you off with a few snide comments and sniggers.

...finally log-in to the internet to see it re-advertised on Jobserve.

[Commscnut]

Interview for a permie job lasted 3 hrs. Interview for a Contractor role took 15 mins.