Reply to: Had my first 'bad' interview in years yesterday

[Spacecadet]

Here is a good idea for a film:

"The Interview"

Exam Trailer - Exam Movie Trailer - YouTube

[Old Greg]

Ive worked in some really evil places where the receptionists were super nice. So the test is meaningless.

You're missing through point. Russell is a charmless temp receptionist who has illusions that he is a contractor. So I'm guessing the companies themselves must have been nice places.

[sbakoola]

^ This

Their loss. FWIW, my last interview was crap and I got the gig, so sometimes not as bad as you fear.

Same here and sometimes I think I've done really well at an interview and it doesn't go anywhere.

[mudskipper]

...
Never mind, keep looking.

^ This

Their loss. FWIW, my last interview was crap and I got the gig, so sometimes not as bad as you fear.

[Sysman]

"How would you tell a developer his code is crap?"

I've done that, but phrased it a little more diplomatically:

"This code is crap because..."

Had one brave chap retort with "Well it works". When I told him a few of the ways it could fail in the future, he simply said "We'll fix it when it fails".

We whipped a few privileges away from him after that.

[Sysman]

You might be right about exposure to turd world dictators at an early age. The only ones I knew at public school were the Kaunda boys of Kenneth Kaunda's family, who were really very nice guys, plus a few utterly revolting British aristocrats who'd be dangerous in charge of a chip shop, never mind an embassy or an army regiment.

I came across some of the upper classes at Uni who could have been dangerous.

But I also came across foreigners who were really nice and well regarded in the UK, but changed personalities when in their own country.

[Gentile]

Wots a DV?

Developed Vetting

[BolshieBastard]

Wots a DV?

Basic security clearance.

[Sysman]

One of the places I got a gig in the past was the FCO (where my DV comes from), which is full of Old Wykehamists and only about 1-in-250 get through, so I think I might be alright with trotting out the odd Americanism for comedic effect.

Wots a DV?

[escapeUK]

So you work in a nice place?

Ive worked in some really evil places where the receptionists were super nice. So the test is meaningless.

[cojak]

I just binned off an interview for next week. Client and agent couldnt decide between themselves what the job spec was, what skillset was or whether the location was centralised or around the country.

I said forget it. They said oh the client really wants to see you and you could resolve all these questions at their 'interview' day. That just made more alarm bells ring! Thanks, but I'm not spending 3 hours travelling at my cost to find out in the first 10 minutes my gut feeling is 100% correct.

..and don't forget the free consultancy you would have probably had to give them before they rejected you.

[oscarose]

To the OP, by the sounds of things, you turned up to do business, and they weren't.

WHS+1

[SupremeSpod]

See what I mean? Make that 90%

Yep, the fun has gone out of it somewhat.

[BillHicksRIP]

To the OP, by the sounds of things, you turned up to do business, and they didn't.

[Old Greg]

I think you read a bit too much into thing, "reception test"? WTF are you talking about? You failed because you were not what they wanted.

So you work in a nice place?