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?

If I ever baked a cake to take to an interview it would 100% guarantee that I wouldn't get the job, I'm really rubbish at baking. I could take a round of bacon sandwiches, I'm great at them !!

thus spawning a sequel which would be called;

"Damaged hearts and diabetes type 2"

"I'm intrigued by the number of people who think it's unprofessional to bring a cake to an interview. "

I think it's verging on bribery to bring any kind of gift to an interview. It's trying to gain an unfair advantage over other applicants.

"EAs/PAs are often asked to go above and beyond in a quasi-maternal capacity"

Hopefully my refusal to bring a cake will help me avoid that kind of shit.

"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... blush"

That would be unfair recruitment and if I was the other candidate I would look into suing you.

Oh yes, I get the bribery point, and would certainly be wary of it. But it's only bribery if a bribe was intended, surely? I think it's the kind of thing that requires intent. Which you could establish quite easily with some cake-based chat at the start, I would think.

"But it's only bribery if a bribe was intended, surely?"

You give a gift with the intention of an unfair financial gain from it? That's bribery, isn't it?

NinonDeLenclos

Well, it's true. Imo you guys are on average (of course there are exceptions) super friendly, sociable and just really out going. It's really great. (but sometimes also a bit tiring, tbh...)

"But the EAs of our management board do everything for them, that's just the role. "

You seem to be approving of it. If I wanted to be someone's housekeeper, I'd apply for that.
Asking a specialist for a recommendation's not quite the same thing. Asking him to come round to fix his home computer during his free time would be a different matter.

I've not done this but I have brought in home-made cake on my first day in two jobs- I thought it was a nice gesture to the rest of the team Won't do it again, MN jury!

I did that once.never again either. It was awkward, people were like 'oh, um, er that's nice' I think I'd read it as a Cosmo or Marie Claire tip.
Not a cool moment.

I take stuff into our team meetings - the cake incident was several jobs back. Our meetings are totally informal. Before the meeting starts our manager usually makes us something and our deputy manager brings in a selection of cakes and he has got it down to a fine art about everyone's tastes now.
How ever I can imagine what they would say if they just interviewed someone that had rocked up with a Victoria sponge.

You give a gift with the intention of an unfair financial gain from it? That's bribery, isn't it?

That's one interpretation. I took it as "remember me, I'm the one who brought the cake". As I said, I think you could establish how innocent the gesture was with some cake-based chat.

The bribery is intended as I'm sure she hoped it would give her an edge

And pa and ea must be maternal? Dooms the next generation of women to support jobs I guess. And any man wanting to enter that field has more stacked against him

Oh no cringe! was my first thought.

It's not "just being nice", of course it's not. It's attempting to influence people by making them think you're nice, and also to manipulate them because it would be very embarrassing to have to refuse it. It's really inappropriate - unless the job is as a pastry chef or something.

Cake is nice, I like cake and I bake cake. BUT there is a kind of weird pressurising "eat my cake!" phenomenon you get from some people, especially since the whole cupcake/bake-off megatrend started. And in the workplace it can become kind of a PITA. And I think one reason it makes me uncomfortable is there's often a kind of "women compete to make cake for men" vibe to it (though not always - men can be as bad)

So I would think the woman was an office cake-pusher type and that would put me off.

You seem to be approving of it

No, I just pick my battles these days! Some of the EAs are men, if that makes a difference.

I think cakes on the first day are fine though. Can be a nice way to get to know people as you have something to say to them.

Asking him to come round to fix his home computer during his free time would be a different matter.

The CIO? From what I gather he doesn't have "free time". If the CEO called, he would answer. And then yes, if it was a home computer issue he would probably deputise one of the local managed workplace team to fix the problem. They've been asked to do it before in non-office hours apparently.

Would I personally do it? No. But some roles are just like that. Do I agree with it? No. But as I said I pick my battles. The people who work in those roles aren't being forced to do it, and they're very well remunerated so I don't think they're being taken advantage of.

We also pour each other coffee without worrying about domestic servitude
We are like this at work. If we start work at 13.00hrs and our manager is in she will more often thann not have made lunch for us in our handover session. Around the meeting table male staff will make brews for everyone in the 10 minute time out. Everyone is just kind to each other. We don't feel 'below' or 'above' anyone. I don't need to worry about domestic servitude because it's just not there.

I feel sorry for these PA's to CEO's who think they're going in to do diary management and minute taking, only to find out that they're organising their manager's private life. One told me that she had to scout for a holiday home and arrange the Christmas shopping. I find those situations very sexist, particularly when it's a young girl working for an older man. It usually tends to happy in the private sector, particularly in banking.

Women coming in with cakes they've baked gives me a very 1950s vibe that doesn't sit well with me. Times have moved on - it's 2017!

That reminds me of a story my DM used to tell of when she was a PA in the civil service in the 1950s. Her boss asked her to pick up a present for his wife. She was outraged enough about that. Then he asked her to choose a present for his mistress...

I know of a friend that was asked to bring a dish to interview that was representative of themselves in some way, it was for a training role ( non food related role). I can't remember what she took, but suffice to say she never got the job.

I thought it was immensely cheeky of the interviewers to ask prospective candidates to take food, greedy bastards.

I went to an interview with a huge box of cupcakes.

I had literally just left my old job on my way to an interview and someone had baked me load of cupcakes so I had to bring them along. There was no way in hell was offering them around!

It's definitely an odd thing to do for a couple of reasons at least!

Looks like sucking up.
Suggests the interviewee thinks an interview is just a cosy chat.
Gives the impression that the candidate is a bit clueless and mistakenly thinks the interviewers can be manipulated by "bribery"?

"If we start work at 13.00hrs and our manager is in she will more often thann not have made lunch for us in our handover session"

How does she know what you want to eat? I find that really odd. Tea and coffee are completely different.

Loving the bonkers bribery meme.

A great plot twist for my Working Girl/Devil Wears Pravda movie. :)

Also loving the bacon sarnie idea.