An Interview Cuts Both Ways

[OwlHoot]

... Do you need anything before we go in, water etc?

Yes, it's more indicative than practical. Chances are that if they didn't ask something like that then they're surly graceless oafs anyway and would be boring and unfriendly to work with, and probably also make unreasonable demands. Sounds like you're well out of it.

[psychocandy]

Went to do a one-day gig once and the contact fella had phoned in sick, so they left me in reception for 2 hours until someone else was 'free'. Cheeky twats had even insisted I be there at 9am sharp! (This was about 4 hrs drive away from home too).

Wasn't happy. Even less so when no-one had a clue what needed to be done (and the sickie fella had the key to the store cupboard which held the disk they wanted fitted in their server).

Did my best but to no avail. Lets just say they I was positively bomping when the agency said client didnt want to pay because work was incomplete!

Small claims court later all was sorted...

Morale of the story - some people dont give a tulipe how far you've driven, hassle you've experienced as long as they're ok.

[DodgyAgent]

- though I will re-assess that statement when I finally get a CICS region to play with (the wheels grind very slowly round here!).

are you actually allowed to drive at your age?

[LatteLiberal]

It's an old psych play , they leave you waiting to see how you will react. If you are the unstable sort and get stressed they will find you out, but it you can handle a stressful situation in your stride then you are in balls deep.

[Pondlife]

He'd been sat there 40 mins. He had plenty of opportunity to ask the receptionist about facilities.

[vetran]

You need to be asked if you want to go to the toilet?

Are you sure you're cut out for being a contractor an adult?

It's not your toilet, courtesy dictates you should ask to use it and as you have no way of making a drink you should be offered one.

normally you would be offered a drink and given an opportunity to ask for the facilities by a competent receptionist especially if you were kept waiting > 10 mins.

Normally I would ask the receptionist (one of the reasons you arrive early, I normally pop to a Cafe nearby, get a coffee and go to the loo but sometimes you make it by the skin of your teeth) but the interviewer should also offer a drink and rest room break especially if they know you have travelled a long way. i.e. Do you need anything before we go in, water etc?

[Pondlife]

You need to be asked if you want to go to the toilet?

Are you sure you're cut out for being a contractor an adult?

[vetran]

Though in light of the travel (I assume its a stay away contract) the flexibility of a 10 - 30 minute call to save the interviewee a 10 hour journey with a follow up face to face if successful makes more sense.

It was a reasonable request and the only reason the client refused was because they felt they should have the right to demand a minimum level of service from their potential lackey.

30 minutes wait without a serious reason is just rude.

No drink or toilet break is just rude.

making your feelings felt at interview is just rude.

I would have just told them sorry I'm not interested. Then let the agent break the news or not, its their responsibility.

[northernladuk]

I've often thought of an interview as being an opportunity for me to get a look at the client and see if I like them just as much as it is about them getting a look at me.

Now, I know that this is probably more of a permie mindset because I've knowingly enetered short term contracts with companies with whom I wouldn't even entertain the prospect of taken up full time employment safe in the knowledge that the light is at the end of the tunnel before I've even started.

That said, two weeks ago (possibly out of sheer bloody mindedness) I diverted from my normal mindset and actually turned down an offer.

Why? Well, let me relate what happened.

and........

[jmo21]

seems like a massive overreaction to me.

Nothing wrong with them wanting a face to face.

I would not hire someone without meeting them first, even for a short contract.

Sure, 30 min delay is annoying but it is hardly the end of the world.

[DimPrawn]

I prefer your Malc Buggeridge sockie.

HTH BIDI

[Bathing With Peter]

I've often thought of an interview as being an opportunity for me to get a look at the client and see if I like them just as much as it is about them getting a look at me.

Now, I know that this is probably more of a permie mindset because I've knowingly enetered short term contracts with companies with whom I wouldn't even entertain the prospect of taken up full time employment safe in the knowledge that the light is at the end of the tunnel before I've even started.

That said, two weeks ago (possibly out of sheer bloody mindedness) I diverted from my normal mindset and actually turned down an offer.

Why? Well, let me relate what happened.

I had been in correspondence with an agent (a good agent, I have to confess, no problems there) about a role in Ipswich with a certain client co.

On the Monday, I received a call from said agent informing me that the client would like to see me for a face to face on Thursday.

My initial reaction was to ask for a telephone interview bearing in mind that the time taken to drive to Ipswich from Bristol is nigh on 5 hours. The agent later got back to me saying that the client insisted on seeing me face to face, their reason being that if I couldn't make it to the interview, how could they be sure that I'd turn up to work every Monday morning?

Reluctantly, I relented and spent much of Wednesday sorting out my dry-cleaning, packing bags and making various contingencies for Thursday's big journey.

So, the big day came and I was up at the crack of sparrow fart for the drive up to Ipswich. I won't bore you with the details of the journey but, believe me, it was monotonous and I needed numerous Costa stops to top up my caffeine levels just to keep my eyelids open.

I arrived 10 minutes before my alloted interview slot (as I always do) and was conducted to a seating area in reception where I was asked to wait for my contact to come and collect me. 10 minutes passed. Then 20 minutes. The repetitiveness of the receptionist answering every single call with "Good morning, Client co. How may I help you?" was starting to grate.

I also didn't like the look of the motivational slogans adorning the walls of the room in which I was sat. "Head and Shoulders Above Everyone Else" read one of them showing a picture of the DBA team sat in a tree. The work of an over zealous HR, I thought to myself.

I had now been sat in reception for 40 minutes before somebody came to collect me. That's a whole 30 minutes late. There was no offer of coffee, they didn't ask if I needed the loo, they didn't enquire about the sort of journey I'd had.

And so to the interview. A fairly standard interview - it went ok. I had the chance to talk about myself and I answered the technical questions they posed with no problem. But, towards the end of the session when I was asked if there was anything else I'd like to know, I broke with my normal protocol and let rip. I told them exactly what I though of being made to drive the entire width of the country to be left sat waiting in a draughty reception for 40 minutes. I was pretty fed up. The two interviewers shifted in their seats and looked uncomfortable. I don't think they had expected me to be so feisty but I was saving it up for the end, such was my annoyance. Let's just say I made my own way to the exit.

As a corollary to all this, I am now working on an integration project just off the M4 corridor, much closer to home. Seems like I made the right move - though I will re-assess that statement when I finally get a CICS region to play with (the wheels grind very slowly round here!).