March 1, 2010 at 10:24The worst interview ever
Hello, Habr reader!
Has there ever been an interview in your life, after which, at best, you went out in a cold sweat and said: “Well, there they are animals, these HRs!”, And at worst, your mood dropped all day and not just day ?
For example, I had it. Now I’ll tell you how.
Once I, quite young and inexperienced, still without a higher education, decided to change the field of activity. The previous work was tired of the lack of professional development: all actions were monotonous and carried out automatically, and there was no “food for the brain” at all. Well, what can I say: work in the glorious 1C Enterprise. No creativity. No new assignments.
At first, of course, I delved into and understood all these new things for me (I am not an accountant). Later mastered everything well. Then I felt like a professional in the work that I do. It was at the pinnacle of fame :) Then the green melancholy came and I wanted to forget all this pricing, invoices and tax invoices.
I posted my resume on the Internet. I looked at the vacancies that employers posted there, sent a resume to those positions that interested me. As time went.
I will not bore with all the details, I will go, in fact, to the “that only interview” in my life.
This happened in a large company, a chain of stores for women (household chemicals, cosmetics, etc.). I safely found their head office, filled out a form and waited for a recruiter to invite me. The latter did not take long to wait; we had a nice chat with her. True, she asked me if I could cope with heavy loads, to which I replied that I could. HR asked several technical questions, having received the right answers, and informed me that in their company the candidates for the position I am applying for are going through another interview with the HR Director. I agreed, and after 10 minutes I was already with the director, along with a recruiter, who interviewed me.
And here the worst began. I was still gazed up and down at the door (looking ahead and voicing possible comments: I was dressed in a clean, well-ironed classic suit and had a decent look) and they invited me to sit down with a gesture. I handed over my questionnaire for study, after which a heavy, prolonged pause hung in the air. You probably know what I mean: while your profile is being studied, you are sitting and do not know how to behave. It’s not quite right to look at the office where you are, it’s probably not quite right to look at one point, it’s also inconvenient to watch who reads the questionnaire.
A few minutes later I was asked in a demanding tone to tell about myself. I started. In short, they interrupted me, asked another question. I began to answer, after a few words they again interrupted me, asking a technical question that was completely out of place. This went on several times. And on the whole, communication was, to put it mildly, “tense”. I did not understand what was happening - before that I had not encountered such aggression on the part of the employer.
At the end of the conversation they asked me: “We have a five-day period. Explain why my subordinates go out to work on Saturdays. ” I replied that, most likely, you motivate them with something: give time off, pay for the extra working day, and encourage in other ways. To which they answered that no, there are no rewards. I suggested that in case of heavy workload, before the holiday, for example, a person can go to work to complete the current unfinished business. They answered me: my subordinates go to work every Saturday, regardless of whether I [the director] are in the workplace or not. I asked a counter, and, it seemed to me, quite logical question: "And how then can your schedule be called a five-day one?" After that, they told me: “I see,” and suggested they wait outside the door for a recruiter who, I recall, was present at this interview.
After such a "cordial" reception, I admit, I was completely defeated. This was the first time in my practice. True, at that time I was only about 20 years old, but this was not the first interview I had.
In general, I, as you probably understand, were not interested in working in this company. And my candidacy did not please that director. I didn’t understand then why it was necessary for her to be such a monster and to “discredit me” like that, but some time passed, and then I didn’t remember about this case.
Until she reached her goal, she became a recruiter. And then I remembered that incident.
There is such a term in recruiting: a stressful question. (In my case, it was a whole stressful interview.) In short: nothing will truly show your behavior like the situation itself. If you are asked: “How do you feel about criticism?”, Then you will most often give a socially desirable answer: “I accept constructive criticism, but I close my eyes to non-constructive criticism” (or something like that). Of course, there are those who will tell the truth, no matter how bitter it may be. But after all, we want to get a job and in an interview we involuntarily put on a social mask, as was said in the comments to my previous article.
But if you start to criticize right at the interview - you get a reaction that is closest to natural.
For instance. The recruiter in a pleasant tone asks you why you left your previous job. The conversation began sweetly and "nothing portended trouble." You answer that in the past there were no prospects for professional growth, and this was the reason for leaving. And here you observe the following picture: the recruiter pauses, is bent, looks at you sneakily and asks in an insolent voice: “Why did you suddenly decide that you will have prospects for professional growth in our company?”.
This is a stressful question. Firstly, your answer to it will show the level of your culture (you can’t be rude to a stranger after all). Secondly, the recruiter will see your behavior in an already stressful situation (not only that the interview is an excitement in itself, and then they “run into it” openly). You may be confused. Or, on the contrary, “flare up” and act (“how dare you, I’ll call the police now !!!” :)
And, interestingly, the recruiter will even see your “reticence”: continuing the conversation in a sweet tone, you can track the “echo” This is the only stressful question. If you "come to your senses" already answering the following question, then you are resourceful. If you are embarrassed / excited / indignant until the end of the interview, this will indicate a “long digestion”.
And instead of output. Now I understand why I was so "bullied" then. That position in that company assumed a very large load and a large flow of people daily (up to 80 people). They needed to prevent the employee from “falling into a stupor” or starting to sort things out, that’s all. Therefore, a stressful interview was the easiest way to figure out how I would behave in a stressful situation. That's just that director I do not consider a professional (due to many circumstances).
Here is such information for consideration. I hope she will be interesting and digestible.
Has there ever been an interview in your life, after which, at best, you went out in a cold sweat and said: “Well, there they are animals, these HRs!”, And at worst, your mood dropped all day and not just day ?
For example, I had it. Now I’ll tell you how.
Once I, quite young and inexperienced, still without a higher education, decided to change the field of activity. The previous work was tired of the lack of professional development: all actions were monotonous and carried out automatically, and there was no “food for the brain” at all. Well, what can I say: work in the glorious 1C Enterprise. No creativity. No new assignments.
At first, of course, I delved into and understood all these new things for me (I am not an accountant). Later mastered everything well. Then I felt like a professional in the work that I do. It was at the pinnacle of fame :) Then the green melancholy came and I wanted to forget all this pricing, invoices and tax invoices.
I posted my resume on the Internet. I looked at the vacancies that employers posted there, sent a resume to those positions that interested me. As time went.
I will not bore with all the details, I will go, in fact, to the “that only interview” in my life.
This happened in a large company, a chain of stores for women (household chemicals, cosmetics, etc.). I safely found their head office, filled out a form and waited for a recruiter to invite me. The latter did not take long to wait; we had a nice chat with her. True, she asked me if I could cope with heavy loads, to which I replied that I could. HR asked several technical questions, having received the right answers, and informed me that in their company the candidates for the position I am applying for are going through another interview with the HR Director. I agreed, and after 10 minutes I was already with the director, along with a recruiter, who interviewed me.
And here the worst began. I was still gazed up and down at the door (looking ahead and voicing possible comments: I was dressed in a clean, well-ironed classic suit and had a decent look) and they invited me to sit down with a gesture. I handed over my questionnaire for study, after which a heavy, prolonged pause hung in the air. You probably know what I mean: while your profile is being studied, you are sitting and do not know how to behave. It’s not quite right to look at the office where you are, it’s probably not quite right to look at one point, it’s also inconvenient to watch who reads the questionnaire.
A few minutes later I was asked in a demanding tone to tell about myself. I started. In short, they interrupted me, asked another question. I began to answer, after a few words they again interrupted me, asking a technical question that was completely out of place. This went on several times. And on the whole, communication was, to put it mildly, “tense”. I did not understand what was happening - before that I had not encountered such aggression on the part of the employer.
At the end of the conversation they asked me: “We have a five-day period. Explain why my subordinates go out to work on Saturdays. ” I replied that, most likely, you motivate them with something: give time off, pay for the extra working day, and encourage in other ways. To which they answered that no, there are no rewards. I suggested that in case of heavy workload, before the holiday, for example, a person can go to work to complete the current unfinished business. They answered me: my subordinates go to work every Saturday, regardless of whether I [the director] are in the workplace or not. I asked a counter, and, it seemed to me, quite logical question: "And how then can your schedule be called a five-day one?" After that, they told me: “I see,” and suggested they wait outside the door for a recruiter who, I recall, was present at this interview.
After such a "cordial" reception, I admit, I was completely defeated. This was the first time in my practice. True, at that time I was only about 20 years old, but this was not the first interview I had.
In general, I, as you probably understand, were not interested in working in this company. And my candidacy did not please that director. I didn’t understand then why it was necessary for her to be such a monster and to “discredit me” like that, but some time passed, and then I didn’t remember about this case.
Until she reached her goal, she became a recruiter. And then I remembered that incident.
There is such a term in recruiting: a stressful question. (In my case, it was a whole stressful interview.) In short: nothing will truly show your behavior like the situation itself. If you are asked: “How do you feel about criticism?”, Then you will most often give a socially desirable answer: “I accept constructive criticism, but I close my eyes to non-constructive criticism” (or something like that). Of course, there are those who will tell the truth, no matter how bitter it may be. But after all, we want to get a job and in an interview we involuntarily put on a social mask, as was said in the comments to my previous article.
But if you start to criticize right at the interview - you get a reaction that is closest to natural.
For instance. The recruiter in a pleasant tone asks you why you left your previous job. The conversation began sweetly and "nothing portended trouble." You answer that in the past there were no prospects for professional growth, and this was the reason for leaving. And here you observe the following picture: the recruiter pauses, is bent, looks at you sneakily and asks in an insolent voice: “Why did you suddenly decide that you will have prospects for professional growth in our company?”.
This is a stressful question. Firstly, your answer to it will show the level of your culture (you can’t be rude to a stranger after all). Secondly, the recruiter will see your behavior in an already stressful situation (not only that the interview is an excitement in itself, and then they “run into it” openly). You may be confused. Or, on the contrary, “flare up” and act (“how dare you, I’ll call the police now !!!” :)
And, interestingly, the recruiter will even see your “reticence”: continuing the conversation in a sweet tone, you can track the “echo” This is the only stressful question. If you "come to your senses" already answering the following question, then you are resourceful. If you are embarrassed / excited / indignant until the end of the interview, this will indicate a “long digestion”.
And instead of output. Now I understand why I was so "bullied" then. That position in that company assumed a very large load and a large flow of people daily (up to 80 people). They needed to prevent the employee from “falling into a stupor” or starting to sort things out, that’s all. Therefore, a stressful interview was the easiest way to figure out how I would behave in a stressful situation. That's just that director I do not consider a professional (due to many circumstances).
Here is such information for consideration. I hope she will be interesting and digestible.