Sneaking an interviewee in the building.
So today I interviewed for a position where there was an internal candidates. So I figure my likihood of getting the job is slim, however, what I found most interesting was the hiring manager had me meet her in the lobby and then we met in another person's office. She told me that she didn't want the internal candidate getting upset that she was interviewing someone from the outside. So I'm wondering if this type of behavior typical for the situation? Was she just being cautious of the person's feelings? Is she afraid the person will go off the handle? This is the first time I've encountered this type of thing, and to me it seems a little wierd. But, I don't know if perhaps I'm reading too much into it, because I haven't experienced it before. "She told me that she didn't want the internal candiate getting upset that she was interviewing someone from the outside. So I'm wondering if this type of behavior is typical for the situation?" Are you kidding?!? I have never heard of that before. I think if that would have happened to me, I would have looked the hiring manager in the eye and said "Sorry, if she is upset. I really don't think you should be interviewing outside candidates, if you are that worried about your employee's reaction. Guess this job is not for me, and seeing as you are chosing an internal candidate, and I have no chance of getting it anyway, let's not waste anybody's time." I would have then turned around and walked out the door. Then you wonder why everyone is so fed up with job hunting. The unprofessionalism is rapant in the hiring companies. Good luck on your job search. Wow, I totally agree with Maas--that is one of the oddest things I've ever heard of! Doesn't the internal candidate know that external ones are being interviewed? And the hiring manager didn't want to "upset" her? Does this mean that she has already been told she "has" the job, but that they "have" to interview people from the outside? I think I'd be really wary of working for this person, in this sort of odd environment!!! Actually, that is common. It is not common to parade other candidates (internal or external) in front of people that are also applying. How would like to be the internal candidate sitting in the cube next to the manager' s and see a line of people flowing in and out who want the job you' ve applied for? Who needs a big uncomfortable thing when you see that Mary in accounting is also up for it and the two of you eat lunch in the same breakroom every day? I don' t agree with this at all. First of all, I have had interviews where they were replacing someone, and that person didn' t know, so I was asked to be discreet when I contacted them. And, usually, the company made the interviews for after hours, so the person/people affected wouldn' t be there. If it was during working hours, you just tell the receptionist you have an appointment with whoever it is, and leave it at that. Otherwise, unless you are introduced to them, how do these "internal candidates" even know you are interviewing for the same position, unless they have been told such by someone in the company? They should not even be aware of what is going on. As far as how would I feel if were the internal candidate and I saw a line of people flowing in and out who wanted the job I' d applied for? I' d feel smug, because chances are they are only interviewing outside candidates, due to company policy, and they aren' t going to hire any of them, and she has the job sewn up, anyway. She feels "uncomfortable"? Too bad. She needs to grow up. By the way, we, as "outdside" candidates have to face that humiliation all the time when we are waiting to be interviewed, and there are a half dozen other candidates sitting next to us, also waiting to interview for the same position. I guess OUR feelings don' t matter, though. Just once, I wish you would see the hiring process through the eyes of a normal candidate, and not just from a Hiring Manager' s prospective. This is one of the reasons I won' t work for large companies. The politics are BS.
I wasn't too bothered my it, I just didn't know if the reaction was typical (as I've never experienced it before). I am under the impression that while they interviewed one internal candidate there were several internal candidates who applied. And while I suspect that the position will probably go the internal candidate (as most of the time these types of positions do), I also get the feeling that perhaps the hiring manager wasn't as impressed with the internal candidates as she had hoped, and wanted to interview a few people from the outside, to better gage the quality of the internal candidates. I know if I was out of work, or in a job I loathed, this would bother me, but as I'm not, it seems like a good opportunity to meet someone from the organization. And who knows what will happen? I've been at other organizations where internal candidates applied for positions, but the person hired was an outsider. So I definately don't think that because there is an internal candidate that automatically assumes that the internal candidate will be offered the job. But, I do think that it's more likely.
Just a quick note here: I was hired for a position several years ago for which there were several internal candidates. Normally this place did like to hire/promote from within, but I got the job. So, it's not always a given that the insider will win out. I know most people assume it will be so, but you have to still go out and interview as if there were no internal candidates.
Thanks for the encouraging words. I figure with any interview I' ve always got some type of chance even if it' s slim. Many positions have internal candidates, and I actually appreciate the interviewer telling me that there internal candidates. I actually relax a little bit more when I either don' t need the job that much or I figure I' m not going to get the job. As a result, I generally do better in those types of interviews. The air of desperation isn' t clinging to me. Which, I can only hope is a good thing. We' ll see. If I don' t get the job, it' s not a big deal. It just means that there is something better out there for me. Of course, I' m also in a good situation where I work now, so I' m sure I' d feel differently if my current situation wasn' t as good. I think you' d be a nut to tell the interviewer that. You can' t assume they' re going to hire the internal candidate. The reason she' s interviewing you might be because she' s hoping to find somebody better. While generally speaking this wouldn't bother me, it is what the hiring manager said that does bother me. "She told me that she didn't want the internal candidate getting upset that she was interviewing someone from the outside." 1 - It tells me that the manager may not have control over this employee. 2 - It tells me that this employee could be trouble. I have interviewed away from the office at times when I am going to replace an employee and need to keep it quiet (and I have been the candidate in those situations, too). But this sounds stranger to me. | |
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