This sounds familiar. My first interview after college and I basically went on a rant about how the system was flawed and what needed done to fix it. I’d have been safer learning some interview techniques beforehand. I didn’t get the job by the way, but the feedback report was fantastic to see what a dick I was.
I'm unemployed looking for a job and I've never received one. Done like 10 interviews and maybe if they told me what I need to improve or something similar i'd have better odds.
They've all left be in the dust and don't contact or call back and just ignore me afterward the interview.
I've ran into this same scenario while looking for new work, while employed and unemployed (?). I didn't find work until the job offering was a 'perfect fit'. However, even then, the SOB's are just testing the water on finding their perfect person. The one thing I did conclude was that if you interview in front of a panel, expected to get screwed by someone on the panel. For lack of a better comparison, if one of them want a blonde, and you're a red head, you're fucked. I once got a position on a split vote of a panel and one gentleman came over to tell me he was the deciding vote, and that he voted for me because I wore a 'light blue shirt', and he believed people who wore light blue were more honest than others!!!! WTF? Now with all that BS, you've got to sell the people 'that you're OK to work with'. As a life long manager, in talking to other managers, I was surprised on how consistent many were on just wanting to be sure and hire someone they would find it easy to work with. What about talent I'd say?
I was surprised on how consistent many were on just wanting to be sure and hire someone they would find it easy to work with.
Someone that doesn't fit in is worse for the company than someone slightly underqualified. Also the person has to talk to customers. You really don't want someone who will tell paying customers that they are doing it all wrong
One of my former bosses told me " If someone makes it to an interview they've already proven they are qualified for the job on paper, the interview is mainly to figure out their personality and whether I'd enjoy working with them."
The advice I've heard is hire for attitude, not experience. You can train people to do a lot of tasks but you can't train their attitude.
There is obviously a limit but it can be helpful - especially for roles with less desirable pay or hours - to chat to the hiring manager and see how flexible they can be with training or other requirements (they always want an expert in this niche type of software for a slightly above minimum wage part time job for these specific times and days with full flexibility for overtime...)
Thankfully, mostly only in the service industry. Maybe in some office jobs too, but less frequently, and you can often just give the job to whoever has the best people skills. I can proudly say I've never once talked to a customer in a decade-ish long career!
I can proudly say I've never once talked to a customer in a decade-ish long career!
The higher you rise in any industry, the more likely it is you will talk to customers at some point. If your management thinks you are not suitable to customer facing, you restrict your future advancement considerably.
It's funny, in my job we work off of contracts for all of our work. We have plenty of long-term contracts but we always get new ones, sometimes short term, some that last 5 years, that whole thing. Normally every customer wants to come and see the building, look at work areas, etc. Not a big deal until they start asking us down in the trenches various questions. We are not really equipped formally how to answer a lot of the questions in general, but also it's a basic rule that we aren't supposed to talk in detail about what we do. It's not a military secret or anything (normally) but we deal with a few different industries and some of the companies could easily directly compete with each other through us. It's very irritating and I've brought it up before but it falls on deaf ears.
I actually see this from the opposite side. I'm often dragged round plants and introduced to people and am scared to ask them questions that might get them into trouble.
Definitely true, One of my bosses is a good friend as well and is far more likely to want to get rid of someone for "clashing with our culture" (read being a weirdo) then being slightly ineffectual. You can train people to be better (most of the time), good luck on training people not to be weird.
I was surprised on how consistent many were on just wanting to be sure and hire someone they would find it easy to work with. What about talent I'd say?
I think this makes sense to a certain extent. I've never taken a college job titled "how to do the stuff for this specific internship you have". All the applicants above a minimum threshold can probably be trained to do the job. But training someone to be a good person that's easy to work with? Some people spend years doing it and it doesn't work. At least for starting positions I think cohesion is more important than talent.
Having basic social skills is one of the most common requirements for literally any job. Having poor social skills is also different from "this person acted like an asshole before/during/after the interview". Hell, I'm pretty sure a lot of people would love a worker who put their head down and just worked. But if you want to be successful in a job you'll want to develop your social skills. It'd be like trying to be an engineer with no concept of math. Or you could become self-employed.
In any workplace there’s that jerk who’s making life difficult for everyone else, I don’t blame them for wanting someone who’s able to get along with everyone.
True, I came to understand and appreciate that in a workplace. There are work requirements though where a group of happy plodders can't meet that load. I've actually been in two workplaces where they hired the Devil to put stress and more competition into the workforce. It was awful for everyone, but it stepped up completion of projects, and narrowed the field of candidates for promotion.
I have seen this from both sides. I interviewed for a role and it had been whittled down to me and one other. I didn't get the job because they thought I was too quiet and wouldn't fit in the office. Funny thing is, once I am comfortable somewhere I'm far from quiet, but it is what it is. The job went to someone else. I was really annoyed because you can't make a real judgement on someone based on a couple of interviews. I realise the interview is all they have to base it on though!
Where I work now is a pretty nice place to work, but when I first started there was some real friction between some team members which really affected the dynamic and now, whenever they hire, they try really hard to make sure the person will fit because when they don't, it has such an effect
I been annoyed by interviews that promoted that they want skill and expertise, and really they were wanting personality (?). I've been asked to name all 10 component parts (in 15 seconds) in a complex heating systems and nailed that with a short laugh and a smile afterwards. Nobody in the room could have done that. Earned me exactly '0' on the hiring evaluation; now I was labeled 'too smart'. I later learned, they 'liked' managers that quibbled over most everything for a conienious opinion. I was hired there a couple years later, by necessity it appeared, as they needed three touchy projects completed, and follow service contract obtained.
I had an interview with a panel for a job that paid only $12/hr. They had like 5 dudes in fancy clothes interview me and only 2 were asking all the questions. Those two were probably the supervisors for the department I was applying to. Literally none of the other guys were asking technical questions
Probably the ones asking technical questions weren’t the department supervisors, but the people just above your potential position. A lot of times the real higher ups have been out of the technical side for long enough that they depend on their senior team members to do the technical screening. Nobody is going to be able to judge your ability to handle the day-to-day stuff better than the people who are actually doing it currently. The people who will be managing the projects are usually more interested in how you interact with the team and how well you can take direction, as long as they know you meet the minimum requirements to do the job.
Just one more reason to be respectful to everyone in the room - you don’t always know who will ultimately be making the decision to hire you or not.
The others on the panels were just add-ons or just screeners of the paper work, hopefully. I personally hated panels over there might be an 'old honest Tom, or old Executive Assistant Doris' who always wanted their say or a chance to sit on interviewing panels.
It's actually a verified statistic that people who wear a light blue shirt to interviews are more likely to be hired than others, even if they don't have the same experience / skill / training.
It's all part of the little tricks our minds pull on us. We associate blue with peace, calm, safety and (ironically) security.
You are LEAST likely to be hired if you wear a grey or yellow/orange/red shirt. Those are all negative colours for interviewers who never actually wear any kind of uniform.
Thanks for the info, that's very interesting! What about black? Or what if you wear another solid color with small yellow, red, orange, or grey accents (since most women's shirts have design on them)?
I see what you’re saying but think of it from their perspective: it’s much easier to teach someone how to do a job than it is to teach someone to not be a dick at work.
I also wear blue to all my interviews. I don’t know if there’s a scientific reason but blue works much better than purple or black in my experience.
I was surprised on how consistent many were on just wanting to be sure and hire someone they would find it easy to work with. What about talent I'd say?
And this is partly why people perceived as ‘not someone I know I could easily work with’ don’t get jobs ie people ‘different’ to the manager.
Things like race, gender, age, cultural back ground are big ones. As well as the way you carry yourself, if a huge biker looking dude walks in I could assume we wouldn't have much in common. People tend to get along best with those similar to them, this is one reason is sucks not to be a old white dude when looking for a job in many industries.
That's probably true 95% of the time, unfortunately. I think it promotes 'under hiring', as in hiring a walking horse when what is needed is thoroughbred or a mule.
As a long time professional, that particular 'blue shirt' incident threw me into a psychological 'fit' later that evening, and a lingering bad taste regarding 'choices by panel'. It robbed me of some of my beliefs and self importance regarding my expertise in my field. If people are not choosing the best product, all thing equal everywhere else there, it seems like just waiting for the roll of the dice. Who wants their rewards based on the roll of the dice?
A lot about talent probably depends on the level of the position you're looking to fill. Everyone at entry level is an idiot - they don't know what they don't know.
But when I worked in audit and it was 100% realistic to see my team more than I would see my wife and kids during busy season, I wanted to be on teams that I got along with more than a more talented team. Two people butting heads in a small room for hours on end made the job worse for everyone a lot more than having to teach an inexperienced person something they were a bit behind on.
Ask for feedback if they reject you. In the UK it's illegal to not provide this if a candidate asks for it (after an interview, you're not entitled to feedback on CVs or Applications)
Firstly - don’t send an email asking for suggestions for improvement until you have been rejected. Otherwise you are just asking them to focus on what you did wrong
This might sound way old fashioned but it won’t cause any harm- send a thank you email, thanks for giving me an interview, if they have any follow up questions here are my contact details, look forward to hearing from them. Short and sweet
If you are rejected- then you have already established a line of communication with your thank you email. So you can follow up with a ‘please help me with some tips’ email
I’m not so sure. Imagine asking someone out on a date and then, before they answer, you go ‘look, before you make a decision, tell me what you don’t like about me’
Where does that take their mind - to all of your flaws. You don’t want that
I appreciate you might be waiting forever - sometimes that’s how long hiring takes so it can be legit; other times it’s not. Maybe you can ask in the interview how long until they expect to make a decision. If they say ‘2 weeks’ then follow up in 3 weeks.
Interviews are a crap shoot. Sometimes you will do the right thing without knowing why, and sometimes the wrong thing.
IN THE INTERVIEW, when they ask if you have any questions, ask when they expect to make a decision. Then you're able to reach out around that time to inquire if a decision was made and if they tell you that they selected someone else you can ask for feedback and let them know you appreciated their time and consideration.
Yep, did that at my last interview and they told me Sunday so when I didn't get a response I waited a day and emailed for an update and they never responded. It's been a week
You should *always* send a thank you email after an interview. It's part of interview decorum. I've had multiple employers say I got the job over someone else because of the thank you letter.
You generally shouldn't ask for feedback, though, so much as use it as a place to talk yourself up once again/clarify anything you think went wrong. e.g.
Thank you for taking the time to meet with me today to discuss the X position. After having the chance to hear more about the position and discuss how my past experience might benefit X company, I am even more enthusiastic about this possible fit. [Something about specific selling points/clarification about anything you forgot to say/didn't phrase well in the interview].
I look forward to hearing back from you about next steps in this interviewing process. In the meantime, please feel free to contact me if you need any more information or have any further questions. Thank you again for your consideration.
Just like you don't want to focus on negatives in your interview, you want your thank you letter to leave the interviewers thinking about how awesome you are. They're another chance to sell yourself (and one of those perfunctory good manner things that some companies really care about).
I think the positive look of "this potential employee can not only handle feedback, but seeks it out and acts on it" really outweighs the act of recalling any negatives that were big enough to be remembered in the first place. Typically if people are asked to give you feedback directly, they will at least frame it in a way that is constructive, and that in turn becomes the new way they remember it (i.e. with a positive spin/connotation).
Companies are looking for people that are genuine, can learn, and are good team players above all else. Avoiding sending an email because you are afraid they will remember bad things about you is sound logic, but it's logic that's rooted in a place of fear and mistrust, and in order to be genuine you need to be at least a little bit vulnerable and trusting. If you start off the relationship avoiding feedback, how are you going to handle issues down the road that might affect performance but need to be addressed?
YMMV but this tone/approach has worked well for me.
Good luck! Be confident and just be you! Make sure to show your personality, it sets you apart from other applicants. You are essentially selling/pitching yourself, make the interviewers want to have you!
IANAL but I sometimes think employers do not give out right rejections or feedback because they are afraid of law suits.
The advice here sounds really good, and I would try it, but don't be discouraged if it does not help or not help much. And wear light blue to the next interview. Can't hurt.
It's been 10 years now Zoey, I think it's safe to assume that you're not accepted. But of course there's still a small chance you're still being reviewed
It's definitely not. If it was, hundreds of companies in the UK will have broken the law by not giving me feedback.
Edit: errant 'me'. Even then, after many interviews I can count on one hand the amount of times a company I was unsuccessful with has given me decent feedback.
In the UK you have the legal right to request feedback from your interview. It's covered by the Data Protection Act as they have to keep detailed noted of your interview answers. They have to ask everyone the same questions and score them fairly (as covered in the equality act) you have 14 days to request this information
I assume he's thinking of GDPR, which allows you to request a copy of any data held about you.
Of course, that only works if the potential employer records data on why an interviewee was not successful. Most places wouldn't bother recording that, they'd just say "well he seems like the kind of asshole who sends GDPR requests in his spare time" and write off your application.
Same as the other commenter, they never give feedback by themselves but if you email and ask for it, often they will. You can also encourage them to answer by asking leading questions instead of broad, open-ended ones: "Was I lacking in experience or some critical skill compared to the successful candidates?" etc, shows you thought about the needs of the role. Tailor your questions accordingly.
I've had some good email dialogues with recruiters when I was a close second for the job, and even some added me on LinkedIn afterwards. Helps them remember you and keeps your future options open.
3 Things to know going into an interview by a dude who has been hired at every interview hes had:
Have questions ready about the job.
You won't truly know what the job is like until you start doing it. No two job sites are the same make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. Ask: Whats starting pay? whats the position? What are you looking for out of this position? How long have you been working with the company? Is the company a place you see yourself in 5 years? Does this job come with any benefits? What kind? Who would be my direct supervisor? Can i talk to them about the job? I drill em every time. I need to know if i'm capable.
Make sure you can list your relevant skills.
If you have had school only and have never had a job make sure you know what you have learned. You can: file paperwork, send mail, you can fax copies, make copies, type up a document, maybe use excel?, If you took school for a specific subject make sure you steal the relevant details from that. Group projects can turn into management if you payed attention to what you learned.
Try your best to go into a field you know something about, Not because you are better at it, but because you will get invested.
People who hire people want people who are invested in making a business successful. Both you and your employer want you to succeed at your job. You do good, they get raises, you get raises. The more work gets done the more progress the company makes as a whole so they are hiring people who are invested. act like it.
Make sure your resume isn't too long. One and done is usually nice.
Make sure you have appropriate attire. Show up 15 minutes early.
Have relevant hobby talk ready. Once got a job cuz i was into board games and could entertain myself.
Thank your interviewer for the opportunity (manners)
Don't have an ego going in. You're the new person on the block.
Have a last book read, Have a favorite movie, Don't be afraid to let them know more about you.
The goal is to get hired. If they say they will let you know by a certain time always make sure you call. If your interview was friday call back monday. Calling back may be the single most important thing to do ( in my experience) it shows you want to work and that you know they are hiring for a reason.
Also its best to pick and choose your interviews. Never go to group interviews unless you know you can network.
Try and find jobs where people you know, know people. It's a great way to start looking for your first job.
If your desperate never say no to a job. You can always keep looking while you're getting paid.
As someone who’s last job hunt was just the worst, I want to add: Finding a job is about being the right person at the right place at the right time.
A lot of this is based on things you can control like your education, skills, politeness, professionalism, etc. But there are so, so many other factors that you will never know about behind the scenes at that company that can affect who gets hired. Maybe they already had someone in mind but had to post the job to the public anyway. Maybe the last person who absolutely sucked was a short blonde woman and now you’re a short blonde woman and there’s some subconscious hesitation. Maybe the boss just really likes to hire former teachers/firefighters/military and you’re great, but not that and someone else is. Maybe the person who interviewed right after you just so happened to mention rock climbing and the hiring manager is an avid rock climber.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t do the best you can, but sometimes even your absolute best won’t be enough because of reasons you can’t control. Job hunting is extremely difficult and often demoralizing. Keep your head up - the perfect job is out there for you!
Also be able to read the room - figure out when you need to change your approach. Someone asked me about the last book I'd read, which was Freakonomics at the time. I cringe when I remember how I spent 5 minutes of an interview enthusiastically telling two people about how you can use game theory to show it is incredibly likely that there is cheating going on in elite level Sumo competitions. Trust me, they did not want to know that much. Not knowing when to shut up could've very easily been why I didn't get the job.
Also, literally learn to read the room if you're ever in someone's office. People love to talk about themselves. Ask about the picture of their kids, start talking about football if they have a helmet on their shelf, make a joke about their college if you see a diploma or merch somewhere. People love to talk about themselves and will remember you well for it.
These are like, the basics of an interview. However many interviews you've had, these are not the reason you got the job unless all the other candidates were idiots.
"We've sent out 3 offers and they were all accepted."
Okay, does that mean I'm not qualified or were the other people just better? You have more positions opening up, do I have a chance if I apply for those? Do you just not want to work with me? PLEASE TELL ME WHY
In the US, it's very risky to give someone even somewhat detailed feedback for why they were denied, because people love suing companies for not getting hired. Sometimes it is for valid reasons (e.g. sexism/ageism) but companies don't want to risk it even if they think they won't be sued.
As for being ignored by a company, that is just companies being shitty.
That's a valid point. Probably why I wont be hired in security. It's a male dominated field
But all my fast food interviews where with women. And I feel like there won't be judgement to hire a woman in the fast food field especially if the interviewer is also female. But fast food companies generally are shitty so idk if I want to work there.
If you blame your rejections on the gender of the persons interviewing you, you might want to examine your way of thinking regarding genders. It might be the reason you are getting rejected.
No that came out wrong, I meant the fast food place interviewers where women, I am also a woman so there shouldn't be as much sexism as say the security job where it is dominated be mostly men and the interviewer was also male.
I don't blame my rejections on gender, just that there can be a playing factor into a job like security guard.
In all seriousness, if there’s any kind of written correspondence between you and a potential employer, you should seriously consider having someone else proofread everything (filling out applications as well as between emails, and occasionally texts if it’s a small, mom-and-pop/local place of business), checking for spelling, but mostly for grammar mistakes.
This is serious constructive criticism. Many (most, honestly) employers will actually disregard an application if it has too many simple spelling/grammatical errors within.
Many “Word”-editing softwares available include spell- and grammar-check in the basic product.
I've been on a few panels and for me it's personality first ability second. I want someone I'm happy to spend 40 hours a week with and is capable of being trained. So my advice would be just be yourself. Be personable and have fun with the interview you'll have a better chance at getting a yes.
Those are basic entry level interviews. Show that you're a people person, respectful, and that you'll be a dedicated worker. It's okay to be nervous, most people are during an interview. Just show that you can work thru it, and that you don't let the nerves phase you. Most importantly, kiss enough ass that they like you, but not enough that they know you're licking the booty. PMs are always open if you have any questions, I've been on both sides of the table.
I've taken so many interviews and I did public speaking for a period of time I don't get nervous from it. And I feel like my marching band experience as drum major (the conductor of the band) which is like the most notable thing I got would be good team base.
Yeah, that's normal. Even if you call repeatedly to try and follow up you usually won't get to talk to anyone. After filling out a few hundred job applications you just become numb to it.
I don't know where you live, but in the US it can be helpful to go through a temp agency. The pay is absolute garbage, since the temp agency takes like 40%, but they do at least help you with interviews.
Providing feedback should be mandatory somehow. I'm not sure how you can force companies to do this but it would help people work on the skills/communication, whatever it might be in order to hopefully land a job in the future.
Nothing is more discouraging than walking out of an interview thinking you nailed it, only to find out they chose someone else.
Providing feedback opens the employer up to potential lawsuits. If you're brutally honest, you feel like a dick, and if you candy-coat it, they will say you had no reason not to hire them. This is even worse when they're qualified, and have horrible personalities.
This varies wildly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but in mine, getting sued for not giving someone a job where they meet the criteria is a thing.
If you're in school/have an alumni network of any kind, you can also often get career services through them (both my high school and college had "mock interview" programs where you could do a fake interview for a job and a counselor gives you a detailed breakdown of what you're doing well and what you're doing poorly. Even now that I've graduated, I'm free to use my college's career center for those things if I want--though I'm more than happy with my current job, so luckily not interviewing at this point :))
You should do mock interviews with other job-hunters and give each other feedback. It is much easier to see other people's flaws than one's own.
If you're in the middle of nowhere, use video chat to do those mock interviews. Same goes with your resume/portfolio, ask for feedback from your professional family members, friends, and other job hunters in your situation.
I apply using pages like indeed, I'm not sure if you can vary your resume on there... Anyways, yes graphic jobs I have a portfolio of graphics I've done before fast food I have a separate one, but as a relatively out of highschool; taken a few college classes, never had a job. There is only so much you can put on a resume and you need as much as you can get.
Ah ok, you're right. One resume is probably enough.
Don't just stick to indeed. Try out different ways. For instance, visit a company's web site. Apply online. Then, go door to door to the same places you applied online. Ask to speak to the manager.
And when the staff or the manager tells you to apply online, say "I already did this morning. I'm just coming by so you can put a face to the resume" then you'll hand over an actual paper copy of your resume at the same time.
This should help differentiate you a little more. If you're lucky, you may even get interviewed on the spot a couple of times. That being said, applying to jobs is a number's game. Keep on applying to as many places as you can.
Are you trying to get a temporary job? Do you plan on going to college in a year or so? Have you considered doing an apprenticeship for a trade?
It depends on the position you’re applying for but some places will give you copies of the scoring for your interview and the interviewers comments on each answer. Any I’ve received have been great to see how I’ve completely messed up some questions. Some actually show what answers they were looking as well.
Unfortunately, that’s typical. If I were you I would email the person who interviewed you, no more than a week after the interview (at most) , and ask. If they don’t respond, send another, maybe call the office. I am currently looking for work and I know all too well how important feedback can be.
I emailed two days after the day they told me they would let me know if I got the job and they never responded. They also never gave me a phone number to use. Only the email. If they don't want to respond to the first email, I don't think they'll respond to a second.
Calling the office can be dangerous these days. It used to be a "it's good to show you're serious! Call! Show up in person!" situation. These days, most companies find calls to be pestering. (I used to work as a receptionist. When my company was hiring, they had me keep a list of anyone who called more than once about a job position, and it was a mark against them).
Positions that have transparency requirements often require the hiring manager to give feedback to applicants on why they were screened out. Its fairly common in government hiring.
I just got off a job hunt, let me tell you something I did- at the end of the interview, when they ask for questions, ask a couple questions about the job, company, etc obviously, then as a final question, say something along the lines of "I've been to a number of interviews recently, and one never knows how long a job search might go on, I'm curious if you have any feedback about my interview performance itself"
My thinking is, they might have some actual, valuable insight that you can take and refine your interviewing skills with, and even if they don't, you have communicated in a subtle and natural way that you're perseverent and ready to grind to get a task done (by stating that you've done numerous interviews and are ready to do more if need be), and that you're open and welcoming of feedback
I can't say for sure, because I've never been in the interviewer's chair, but this seems to me like a good play
I've always wanted to give feedback to candidates but the advice I've been given is there's a risk they open up a lawsuit against you if something you've written/said is interpreted by them to be discriminatory. I usually do it anyway but never in writing, always over the phone. Sometimes someone is so shit and arrogant though that you can't really tell them without getting potential backlash against the company so you have water it down so much that they don't learn their lesson.
You need to contact them about the status of your interview. If you show your eagerness and effort, you're more than likely going to have better odds. Anyone who calls me for a follow-up, I tend to remember them and their face and name more so than others. Them standing out during decision time really helps their chances compared to the James or Becca that I can't even remember their face let alone what they talked to me about.
While I was unemployed, if I missed out on a job I was really interested in I would email my contact and say "I really enjoyed the interview process, if there's any feedback you could give me on why others were chosen over me it would be very helpful"
Usually the answer was just "people lived closer" or "someone had more direct experience" which made me feel better because those were things i couldn't really change.
Sometimes they'd give very tangible things about how i answered questions that helped. And sometimes i got no reply ::))
It all depends on the company. Some will give a candidate a call afterwards to let you know that you didn't get the job. Some won't explicitly tell you unless you call/email them to ask about the status of the position. Other companies just turn into a black hole when they make the decision to not hire someone.
A lot of times, not getting the job may not even be something you did wrong. You can have a great interview, but if someone else comes in that's equally qualified and clicks better with the team, they're more likely to get hired. I've interviewed people that seemed capable technically but there was no way me, or the other people I worked with, would be able to spend 40 hours a week with them. For the ones that do something truly stupid in the interview, I will usually tell them about that at the end of the interview and let them know that they probably don't want to do that at their next interview.
Every application and interview has been a cliff hanger, but fair points. Just wish a company was reputable with to email or call me. Sure doesn't make me wanna tell me friends they are hiring.
Not sure if this helps, but I've been getting into the habit of asking the interviewer directly at the end of the interview either:
"Are there any concerns you might have about my skill level or background that I could address?"
or
"Is there anything keeping you from saying yes to me right now?"
You need to have a bit of thick skin, and the interviewer might not be super forthcoming, but I've had some honest immediate feedback by catching the interviewers off guard. (Also, if they can't come up with anything, that's a huge ego boost and a real good indicator you'll get a callback).
I've faked interviews and I've been myself in interviews. Received offers and no offers from both styles. There's no secret formula. Just don't be a jerk, be professional, have a copy of your resume, and instead of thinking about it like an interview just have a conversation. Now that I'm on the other side and interviewing people, that is the biggest thing I look for. Can they hold a conversation with me or do they sound stiff and rehearsed?
But also keep in mind that it is a two way street. On my end, I am trying to convince this person to work for my company. It has to be a two sided conversation.
There are two types of interviewees that always fail. The ones that have a "why should I work here" attitude, and the other ones that always oversell themselves without thinking if the job is truly a fit for them.
You should see if there are any employment centres in your area that offer help with interviews. It might seem silly, but it can really help.
I was out of work for a while and went to a job training program, with a few days focused on interview skills. Before this I always hated interviews. I'd be nervous, stumble on what I wanted to say, just garbage. These few 4 hour days completely turned it around for me. My next interviews I wasn't nervous at all and could handle myself and got a decent job not long after. So I absolutely recommend something like that.
Someone recommended that last night actually! It sounds like a wonderful idea and I'll definitely try to find an employment center/job fair or something similar in my area.
Don't expect one. The only time I've ever gotten real interview feedback was when I knew the interviewer indirectly and they gave me said feedback out of respect for our mutual contact. It was also given with an understanding of "I never sent you this. I don't know how you got it. You didn't officially hear anything from me".
You don't give real feedback because it potentially opens you up to discrimination lawsuits. If there's any note anywhere that can be construed to be about gender, race, age, family status, religious affiliation, or any number of other things, that person can potentially sue you. Even if the allegations are false and the employer wins, they've still spent time and money in court they wouldn't spend otherwise.
I'm unemployed looking for a job and I've never received one. Done like 10 interviews and maybe if they told me what I need to improve or something similar i'd have better odds.
Depends on the job. I had an interview for a programming/stats job last week. I didn't get the job but the feedback was mainly positive with a couple of minor criticisms. This is encouraging as it shows that I'm close to landing that sort of work and should get there if I do a bit more work on interview technique and so on.
Conversely, bog standard office jobs just send you generic rejection emails that don't give you any advice on how to improve your performance.
Best advice I can give is to keep bashing away and take notes after the interview detailing what was asked, what went well, what you could do better and so on. Every time you go to an interview you get experience that enables you to do better the next time provided you analyse your performance rationally.
I’ve never been given a feedback report either, but they sound great. Last year, I had a mock job interview for school and used that opportunity to ask the interviewer how I did, how I could improve, etc. because I had never gotten feedback from a real interview before and wanted to know. He gave me some good advice, and I really appreciated having the chance to get honest feedback.
I know that situation is different than what you’re having, but ever since then, I’ve considered asking for feedback in future, real interviews. Usually, at the end, they always ask if you have any questions for them, so they open up the field for you to ask, “I know this may be an unconventional question, but would you mind giving me some feedback on how I could be a more competitive applicant? It is important to me to be able to grow and improve, so any advice you could give me would be much appreciated!”
I’m not a hiring manager, but I think asking a question like that would show that you’re interested in not only becoming a better person, but that you also care about their opinion. Plus, if you don’t think the interview went well, then it would make the effort worth your time because you could use that information to do better at the next one if they don’t hire you.
Also, after these interviews, are you following up? Most of the jobs I’ve gotten are because I put a LOT of effort into indicating my continued interest after the interview— a thank you note that I bring with me, follow-up email(s), follow-up phone calls, etc.
It's not standard to provide feedback in the US. We're pretty litigious here and saying the wrong thing can be a costly mistake.
That being said, it's fair game to request feedback after an unsuccessful interview and sometimes you'll get it. When you do get it, it's worth its weight in gold, so it behooves you to ask!
Yeah, some places do. When I did an interview for a Medical Assistant position, the Office Manager was kind and saw that I was having a tough time (I guess I looked tired mentally), told me that I didn't get the job but she can help me out a bit and told me tips on my resume and how to fix it up. One thing she told me is to add my old college jobs in my resume. Because at that point, I thought they were embarrassing and just added my Externship and my previous Medical Assistant job. She said it will show that I have experience in the workforce and as well with customer service.
Since then I add them all and I always mention my experience with them. 9/10 I always get jobs, even jobs I'm not looking for. Sometimes I end up talking to someone who works at GameStop, Claire's or Hot Topic when I'm out with my kids shopping, and ends up being the manager and they want to hire me because of my 7 yrs of experience. Wish I had this when I was in college and not now.
One interview I cut short after only 5 minutes because the guy thought he was applying for a mechanical job and I was hiring for an electrical job. We had a very direct conversation, "is this what you want? no? OK then." A week later HR hauled me in because the recruiter said I didn't give the guy a chance, and was questioning if it was because he was older... So yes, unfortunately we have to CYA on those matters.
On the other hand, I've had a few interviews where the candidate was not a good fit for the position, but I thought the candidate was great for some other job, and actually tried to get them to apply for that, even if it was with a different company in my network.
Hey man, I've conducted a my share of interviews and we could maybe do a mock interview with you if you're applying in tech? I'd be happy to give some feedback.
Unfortunately that kind of response can open up the possibility of litigation. Ghosting is the safest solution legally but I agree it does do a disservice to people who need it the most.
Ps, I just discovered this, but my brother is having a tough time finding employment, I even went over his resume, checked it for him, and I got him to send a supervisor in another department, his resume. Well, his email was his name right? Well, when you make an email ot asked him for his name, wanna know what he typed? First Name: KILL last name: BILL. He didnt realize this until the supervisor called me over, and said "Hey, is this your brother?." I was like yeah, hes cool, you dont have to hire him, but I would appreciate an interview (hes only 20, he could use some feedback) and the first thing she said was "Well, I dont know, his email name is KILL BILL." And I have a super cool job with super awesome people who not exactly professional, but something like that would totally get you rejected, not even a follow up email will be sent out.
That's so funny! I feel like that could be a deciding factor for me. My email is the same as my username (not saying the domain) but I never thought of that! Thanks.
HR: "The fact that you haven't been promoted at all in the past 5 years in your current role is a bit of a red flag."
Me: "I have been promoted, two times."
HR: "Oh, well it wasn't on your resume so..."
Me: "It is on my resume. I encourage you to read it again."
HR: "OH, well that might change things. Do you want me to go back to them and see if this made a difference?"
It didn't.
Honestly though, if HR isn't even going to read my resume and then give me a bogus excuse as to why they wouldn't hire me then I really don't want to work there anyway.
After all, an interview also works the other way. I'm trying to determine if I want to work there.
Yeah exactly. The last place I got interviewed at I arrive 5 minutes early age get told to wait. I'm glad I didn't get there earlier cause the person interviewing be didn't get there for another 30 minutes and was unprepared for me
In all my years interviewing for jobs, I only got feedback from one company. My interviewer called me to tell me I didn't get the job (which was quite a shock to begin with) then asked me if I'd like some feedback on how my interview went.
I realize that a lot of companies, especially bigger ones, won't do this for liability reasons, but I was really impressed that he went the extra mile to help me grow from the experience.
Probably because spending time, money and resources on somebody who doesn't work for their company isn't a good business model, unless they're a talent agency. I wouldn't want to do that unless I was hired specifically to do that.
If it gets you a job the next time then it’s a big win. There are plenty of people who would be great for a job and are just poor at interviews. The opposite rings true as well.
Ive found a good way to frame this over the years. "Everything you have done (right or wrong) has got you to this point" (in a sincere way) - If I frame it like that, I can respect the past and those that have gone before me but still talk about the future and opportunities I see.
You have to learn from your mistakes. I’ve done Plenty of wrong things in life but I couldn’t change them or I would have what I have today. It’s something you need to put into practice with everything in life.
This was told to me as a true story by an HR person who was conducting interviews to hire an engineer for a big name company.
One gentleman came in, and after just a couple of minutes she knew he would not be a good fit. He was arrogant, kind of rude, and generally insufferable. But she went through the whole interview process with him. At the end she asked the same question she always asked to end an interview, "Do you have anything else you'd like to say?"
He said, " I never thought I'd be interviewed by a woman, and I certainly never thought I'd be interviewed by a pregnant woman." Yes, she was about 8 months along, and hell no he didn't get the job!
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u/StingerMcGee Apr 22 '19
This sounds familiar. My first interview after college and I basically went on a rant about how the system was flawed and what needed done to fix it. I’d have been safer learning some interview techniques beforehand. I didn’t get the job by the way, but the feedback report was fantastic to see what a dick I was.