Taking cakes to job interview

[onesupplied]

My lovely friend had a job interview last week. Very large organisation, likely to be a strongly structured interview. I asked her how it went and she said well, and that she had baked a cake and taken it along to the interview.

AIBU to think that this has more likely hindered rather than helped her application?

Is this ever a done thing?

I'd have given her the job. Mainly because I'll do anything for cake. It might have been brought in regularly too. The risk of regular cake is worth taking.

:)

I agree with bbc. I spent 20 years in investment banking and it's tough enough trying to be taken seriously as a woman as it is, without having the rest of the team mentally ear marking you as the floor domestic. But in my old organisation you'd never in a blue moon get a job if you'd strolled into an interview with a cake.

The OP said: "I don't think she'd had much experience of professional interviews and I wish she'd had told me beforehand so I could tell her not to!

It's for a secretarial type role so office admin based. No requirement for cookery or to show creativity really!"

When someone comes for an interview, I expect them to show themselves at their very best professionally.

Bringing me a cake, just makes me think you're not someone I would introduce to my clients, as you clearly have no idea what constitutes professional behaviour.

OP, your friend has brought sunshine to my day :)

For an interview, too try hard.

For a first day, maybe not a home made cake but seem biscuits would go down well. I usually turn up with some biscuits on my first day and ask how the coffee/milk rota works. But then I'm a teacher and as other posters have said, teachers, nurses, midwives etc seem to really value that.

I haven't RTFT but has anyone pointed out that Caitlin Moran had a bit at the beginning of one her books where she made a lemon meringue pie and carried it around London on a hot day before taking it to a job interview?

There probably wondering who's are she's tryna crawl up lol

It depends. I interviewed for a company I work with frequently in my current role.
I viewed the interview as as much about contact building in the event I was unsuccessful and thus baked iced biscuits in the shape of the animal that features on their logo - went down a storm (though I didn't get the job)

Cringe.

Does she not realise how subservient she's made herself look?

What was going through her head?

I'm squirming!

You'll see this as a plot line in movies soon.
Yes yes yes... some absolutely hideous feel-good movie about an office of "mean bitches" whose hearts of stone are eventually melted by some newbie, who only got the job because no-one else turned up for the interview.

Every day, for her first week, she bakes a different cake, tailored/ shaped specifically to melt the heart of one of the damaged office workers. By the end of the week, all their lives have been changed, and she has to move on, so she can do good elsewhere... thus spawning a sequel.

"It can't be both unheard-of and corny at the same time"

Que?

reawakeningambition for some people mums cake's the word i get that i really do. are you the cake bringing interviewee?

If this job applicant genuinely thought offering home made goods would be a kind and caring gesture she is sadly naive and I feel sorry for her.

If she thought showing off her domestic skills is witty and smart and gives her an edge over other more experienced and qualified candidates she is ridiculously misinformed. Bless.

I so wouldn't be surprised to see this thread featured on Fail Online.

I'm just trying to imagine this. I think I would feel really uncomfortable about it.

Like a fairy cake godmother? Turns up to do good deeds and transform the lives of others bother mysteriously moving on.

Ehm... IDK!!!

In DH's case (professor/researcher) this would have given her an edge. But then again, he loves cake... Although, if the cake was awful?

In my case? Idk. I mean... I don't hire people (I'm not in HR)... But if somebody asked me whether I'd prefer to have a secretary that bakes awesome cake or not? All things being equal I'd go with the awesome baker, tbh...

But I've never heard of anybody doing that. I'm admittedly from Switzerland and imo British people are a good deal less uptight and more outgoing/friendlier than Swiss peope... So, I honestly don't know.

But I think it's better if she doesn't do that again.

But no, it's not the "done" thing...

I also work in investment banking and interview a lot. I sometimes feel like everyone I interview is the same person as they all give the same standard answers. To be honest, I might give her a try as she would be memorable and I have had great success in the past with people who are a bit different.

I also really like cake

British people are a good deal less uptight

That's not a line you hear often.

Demonstrates a generous and outgoing personality?

Oh God, how awkward!

I wish her luck either way. Sounds like a rookie mistake.

There is such a thing as the bribery act. It only really applies to when organisations are outsourcing through a consultant or an agency (and there's a monetary limit attached to it), but bringing a cake to an interview isn't far off an act of bribery.

"But bringing a cake to an interview isn't far off an act of bribery." It's a bit 'me, me, me' as in 'look how uneeeeeek I am and how very unconventional'. As an interviewer I want to be impressed by the candidate's experience and ability to engage professionally. I would expect the candidates to have faith in her own abilities and not feel it necessary to hoodwink me into liking her by means of cake.

This reminds me of the sexist cliché saying "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach". Even worse if the interview panel was predominantly male.

Seems a strange thing to do. Even in the first couple of weeks of starting a new job.

That's what I was thinking phyliss- given all the training in FS at the moment I can imagine it might make the interviewer wonder how she views bribes