Show up for the interview…12 Nov 2007 09:33 pm
Work-Life 
So, I wrote about how so many job candidates are skipping out on the job interview today on MSNBCcom.
That’s sort of disrespectful, and pretty crummy if you don’t show. If you make an appointment to meet someone you show up people. Is that a lot to ask?
I know, these head hunters screw you and treat you like crap, but come on, we’re better than they are!
If you commit, then you must show up!
My dad would have busted my ass if I didn’t show up to an interview, even if it was for a pan washer at the local bakery.
November 13th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
To me not showing up for the interview is the flip side of HR not telling a candidate a job has been filled. What ever happened to basic common courtesy on both sides?
November 13th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Hey Amy,
You’re exactly right. I got an earful from job candidates who have experienced horribly rude behavior on the part of hiring managers and recruiters.
November 14th, 2007 at 12:05 pm
I just had to respond to your article given the experience I’ve just had over the last year job hunting. I’m completely unsympathetic towards the companies in your article, but it also includes any recruiting firms. The lack of courtesy in the job market today is not just pervasive amongst the interviewees, but also the interviewers. Not one single job (and I’ve either applied for and/or interviewed for more than 50) has shown the courtesy to do any follow up.
Here’s some examples:
Two companies failed to return phones calls after interviews. After much chasing I found out both companies had reorganized and were having a hiring freeze due to this.
One company failed to return emails or calls. They ended up with a budget freeze.
Two headhunters called me when my resume was found on an external jobs database. My resume had been on both firms’ databases for at least three-six months.
Another headhunter had not called me back after the initial follow-up post-interview (and this interview went well). He called back a month later (a month!) and said that the company was still extremely interested and ready to schedule the next set of interviews.
One company said that they were desperate to get me in and then didn’t follow-up for 2 weeks!
Another said that they wanted to hire me and then did not return phone calls or emails for a month (they never did get back to me).
A whopping twenty-seven never replied at all when I applied for the job. None replied when I applied for their jobs on their on-line applications. I was able to chase down the internal contact person on two of the jobs which brought my resume to the top of the stack. Needless to say, I don’t have contacts like that in all companies.
Every single interview I follow up with a thank you note. If I haven’t heard back, every single interview I follow up for at least 3-4 weeks in a row. Now this might all be understandable if I was an hourly worker, but I’m a senior level executive. The most common complaint I hear from headhunters is that capable senior executives are hard to find. I have impeccable references and all feedback from ALL interviews has been extremely positive.
If companies can’t find people, they only have themselves to blame. I don’t think that it’s just the baby boomers and Gen X & Y growing weary of the market. If you couple that with the fact that most interviewers are poor at interviewing, this situation will only get worse.
I hope this gives you at least a little insight from the other side
November 14th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Mel, this kind of behavior does breed anger among job candidates, in some ways justifying why many are opting not to show up if they don’t feel like it.
I just wish we were all more civilized these days. It seems we are increasingly forgetting about common courtesy.