Am I JustifiedI recently had a bad experience with a company I interviewed with. I don't generally take rejections personally, but I'm finding it extremely hard not to in this case. I went in for the interview and it seemed to be going well. I had only been scheduled to meet with the man who would have become my boss, and we got along great. About an hour so into the interview, he decided to introduce me to his boss, who in turn introduced me to _his_ boss after speaking with me for 45 minutes. After a short conversation with him, I was given a business card, told that they were hoping to make a decision by the end of the week and that they would be in touch no later than that Friday. There were some interruptions during the interviews, which I found to be unecessary and rude. Three different people came into the meeting room at different times. One came to water the plants, and the others to ask questions of my interviewer like, "Hey, are we still on for dinner after work?" and "Did you know that we're completely out of coffee?" I was rather put off, but didn't show it. Other than that, I had a great time and left in high spirits. Those high spirits were dampened slightly the following week when I hadn't heard back, but I shrugged and continued to apply to and interview with other companies. When I was least expecting it, they called me back in for a second interview. I had reservations going into it because I had already moved on mentally, and also because it was scheduled for an odd time: 30 minutes prior to close of business. I met again with two people I had interviewed with previously and they told me that they had narrowed the applicant poole down to myself and one other guy and the final decision would be made the following day. I thought the interviews went even better than the first time around, there had only been one interruption, and by the end they're speech seemed to indicate that they were leaning towards choosing me. I then received a tour of the building, which was when we noticed that it was an hour past their close of business and everyone else had gone home for the day. They said they would be contacting me on Monday, whatever the outcome of their decision, and rushed me out the door. Monday came and went. As did Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I figured I hadn't got the job, but needed to know for sure, so I called on Friday. The receptionist gave me a bit of a run around and finally said that there was a big meeting and I should call back at 2:30pm. At 2:25pm, I received a cut-and-paste rejection letter through email from one of the admin assistants. I called back at 2:30pm anyway to try to get feedback from my main interviewer, but only got his voicemail. He never called me back. What's the deal? I continued on with my job search and have since taken a position elsewhere, but that whole experience continues to irk me. Am I justified in feeling a little upset? Did I do something wrong? Am I terribly biased, or did they show an extreme lack of business etiquette and courtesy? Let me know what you all think. -ETM Don't worry. Its is them and not you. You did everything right. Here is what the amateur detective in me thinks has transpired here: "After a short conversation with him, I was given a business card, told that they were hoping to make a decision by the end of the week and that they would be in touch no later than that Friday. " Translation: They thought they were going to hire you... "Those high spirits were dampened slightly the following week when I hadn't heard back, but I shrugged and continued to apply to and interview with other companies. " Translation: ...but then they found someone else. Probably an internal referral or some offshore deal... "When I was least expecting it, they called me back in for a second interview." Translation: ...but then the other candidate started playing games with them... "I had reservations going into it because I had already moved on mentally, and also because it was scheduled for an odd time: 30 minutes prior to close of business." Translation: ...so they wanted you to wait in the wings. Preferrably without the knowledge of the guy who suggested that they go with Plan B.... I met again with two people I had interviewed with previously and they told me that they had narrowed the applicant poole down to myself and one other guy and the final decision would be made the following day... They said they would be contacting me on Monday, whatever the outcome of their decision, and rushed me out the door. Translation: ...because they knew that if the guy who told them to go with Plan B found out that they were setting up a contingancy plan he would be difficult... The receptionist gave me a bit of a run around and finally said that there was a big meeting and I should call back at 2:30pm. At 2:25pm, I received a cut-and-paste rejection letter through email from one of the admin assistants. I called back at 2:30pm anyway to try to get feedback from my main interviewer, but only got his voicemail. He never called me back. Translation: ... but then everything worked out and they hoped never to hear from you again... There were some interruptions during the interviews, which I found to be unecessary and rude. One came to water the plants, and the others to ask questions of my interviewer like, "Hey, are we still on for dinner after work?"... Translation: [shaking my head] It's their loss. You're better off without them. They've done nothing wrong. They told you it was between you and the other guy, and they chose the other guy. It doesn't sound like you did anything wrong. They weren't misleading you when they acted as though they liked you. They probably did. They just liked the other candidate more. That's what interviewing is about--picking the candidate you like the most. So it took them a few days longer to make the decision. They had other things to do and it took longer than they had anticipated. Just because getting hired is a priority for you doesn't mean it's a priority for the employer. Once they made the decision, they let you know. There is nothing wrong with sending a form letter. Most employers will not provide you feedback on why you were rejected because of legal concerns. Those that do usually just say that they found a more qualified candidate, which was probably already in your form letter anyway, so you would've gained nothing from the conversation. It happens. Move on.
You made it to the final cut - that is more than most. some don't even get the interview. As far as the interruptions, not a big deal. Sounds like a casualenvironment that you might not have fit into. Congrats on your new job.
Crap interviews happen all the time for a million reasons and even if the reason was that they were personally discriminating against you because they did not like your 'size' however they defined it; there is nothing worth the energy it will take that you can do. Your employed now so forget it.
"Once they made the decision, they let you know. There is nothing wrong with sending a form letter. " Lola, I agree with most of what you've said. But the above statement is pretty naive. The would not have let him know if he had not called. Obviously. Once he called, they figured, "hey, we'd better respond in some way to this guy or we'll never stop hearing from him. Have one of the admin ass'ts send a rejection. We don't want to bother calling him ourselves." That was rude & unforgiveable in this instance. When a person makes it to the final cut, and has taken so much time out of his/her life to interview, and has been told he/she is one of the finalists, that person does not deserve the brush off, wihch is what this was. Either they, on making the decision, get on the phone themselves to inform the person, or they write an e-mail or snail mail letter. And it should be signed by one of the principals the person interviewed with. Very boorish, and personally I would not want to work for people who did not have the guts or common decency to personally notify me I did not get the job. Different if you only made it into the first round of interviewing, but anybody who was flatly told they were one of 2 finalists deserves a better/more personal/more timely response. Yes, they were absolutely unprofessional and showed a definate lack of respect toward you with the constant interruptions revolving around personal matters. I am in an interview for a reason and that reason is a job and not a dinner date. Watering the plants is not a high priority task and that interruption should not have taken place nor should it have been tolerated. They indicated they liked you and introduced you to various "higher-ups" which is good but also could have happened to other candidates, so I wouldn't really put much stock in that. Even though you left in great spirtis, you obviously knew or suspected that this company was going to take its time in deciding anything. When you were called back for the second interview, you did have reservations about going. Somewhere inside yourself you realized that this wasn't going to be a great match. The receptionist giving you the runaround could have been because she didn't know how to handle the phones properly. Yes, where I work there is a list at the reception desk with names of people who nobody wishes to speak with (maybe a dozen) but that is because they are problem individuals and have been for a substantial length of time and have proven that. We don't keep names of individuals that we don't want to talk to because we are chicken-#### and can't say sorry, you didn't get the job. So, I would go with the receptionist didn't know what she was doing. Actually, you are lucky to get the "cut and paste" rejection notice. Granted they should have contacted you ASAP and not messed around with you, but I have had interviews where I was told I would be contacted and never was, then when I contacted them (by e-mail or phone) never received a single word from them. (I hate that. It isn't hard to take 30 seconds out of your day to write an email that says we are sorry, but we have decided to offer the job to another candidate. See, that didn't even take 30 seconds.) My bet is that you wouldn't have been happy there and would have regretted your decision. 1 - It sounds like they were really interested in you. 2 - They were also interested in someone else. 3 - That someone else got the job. Bad news for you but it happens. 4 - The place may have been too informal for you. Personally the interruptions seemed very rude to me. 5 - Not sure why you think you got a cut-and-paste rejection letter. Was it addressed "Dear Applicant". However I have to say that at least you got a rejection, cut-and-paste or forced... it's better than most get.
Hey, thanks for the reply. I understand that an office may have an informal enviroment, and this one did. But regardless of the overall environment, a scheduled interview is a formal event, especially when you're told to dress business formal when the arrangements are being made. A closed door at least deserves to be knocked upon before being opened. That's how I feel, anyway. Maybe I'm just a bit too stuffy. I said cut-and-paste because while they had remembered to paste my name in the letter, the job title for the position appeared as "[job title]" and was signed "Sincerely, Hiring Manager". If nothing else, it's good for a laugh nowadays. However, I wasn't laughing at the time.
You're right. I think I knew going into the second interview that while I would have loved the actual work, I would have eventually disliked working with the people there. I'm happy where I work now, and the people are great. I guess that's all that matters. Thanks. | |
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