Have you ever heard of a “group interview”?
I have heard of the kind of group interview where the candidate meets with several of the people on the team they’d be joining, if hired. In the PhD world, it is a time for the candidate to give a presentation.
Since I was already working in the fitness industry (front desk at a gym part-time), I applied to a fitness franchise company’s corporate office for an admin position, assuming I’d at least have the field advantage. And it appears I did, because along came an interview request for a “group interview” to “save time.” By my numbers, only about one in fifty applications has garnered any sort of interview, so it was kind of a big deal!
The salary was lower and the location less ideal than any of the jobs I’d applied to so far, but hey, any port in a storm, right? I bought an interview outfit and made the trek into the middle of nowhere suburbs on the bus.
Then I discovered that the office park’s driveway meant about another mile straight uphill, after the stated half mile from the bus stop. Fun. Glad I left extra time. (Always be early! Ten minutes is ideal. Twenty is a bit rude, just in case you weren’t aware… Go get a cup of coffee. I speak as the receptionist/office manager who scheduled and greeted 90% of candidates for six years… trust me. Ten minutes is ideal, and for goddess’ sake don’t show cleavage.)
I walked into the conference room and found two twenty-somethings in identical black suit jackets. I was in a bright cardigan, by the way, because I haven’t had any luck finding a suit yet. Some hilarious (humiliating) confusion ensued as I tried to break the ice and offered them copies of my resume, thinking they were “the group” interviewing me, although suspiciously young and oddly doe-eyed and silent for interviewers.
“No, no, we’re here for the position, too.”
Sigh. How silly of me.
So the president of the company finally comes in and proceeds to talk at us for about thirty minutes about missions and yadda yadda. (Again: You want to make money. Stop beating around the bush.) They are all about “family” and “keeping employees long-term”… yet the total paid time off (vacation/sick/personal) is under two weeks, and they offer fewer than eight holidays (typical is eleven in Massachusetts). Yeah, that’s how I like to treat my family: work them into the ground and make sure they get less respite than most other people. Awesome.
After the lies and disappointments, he pits us against each other as we go around in a circle and answer the same question one after the other. Distasteful at best; more like disgusting.
I am certainly curious as to how he decided to “rate” us and what all of us could possibly have said that turned him off, but I know I certainly never heard another peep from them (not even a no thank-you!), and the position was listed again immediately! How on earth can they be that picky when they have such abysmal PTO and pay compared to most office jobs? As I say… what a world.
If you’ve ever been through something crazy like this, please give us the story in the comments.
I’m curious, too, to know how important you think a dark suit is. My old recruiter said it was crazy important. I can’t afford one right now… so I wear nice trousers and blouse and cardigan. Thoughts?
The Desperation Papers 