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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To be shocked I didn’t get the job

71 replies

Storm88 · 30/04/2018 22:13

I know, it’s life, but in this case I am so frustrated!

I applied for a job and was asked to go for an interview. Took the afternoon off work and met the owner. We got on well, and she was impressed with my experience. She also said she liked the fact I lived close to the office. She said she would let me know in about 3 days if I’ve got the job, after interviewing everyone.

In 3 days I got an email from her assistant asking me to complete a task. I was a bit annoyed as I bought I would have an answer by that point, but I did the task anyway. It involved writing three 400 word pieces, which I thought was quite excessive for the position.

I send the tasks within 2 days, and was told I would have an answer by the following week. A week passed and nothing, so I called to ask if there was any update to my application. I was told the owner was on holiday, but can I come and meet everyone tomorrow? I said yes, thinking if they’re asking me to come and meet the team I must be close to a job offer.

I went to meet everyone and it was a small team of four people. I got on with them and we chatted for about an hour, but I got a strange vibe off one of the women. She was close in age to me, unlike others who were a few decades older, and she came across really fake and kept rolling her eyes and making face at things I said.

I was then told I would here within a few days. A week passed and finally, I got an email. It said I had been unsuccessful.

I have had many job rejections in the past, but this felt different. I know they want to recruit the right person, but I felt they really dragged me along by saying I would hear by x date and then changing their minds. Maybe I am BU but It’s been a real waste of time

OP posts:

NotSuchASmugMarriedNow1 · 01/05/2018 08:43

Were there any internal applicants? I always ask this question before I attend interviews (and don't usually bother going if there on the basis that I'm just there to make up the numbers if that makes sense)

Fortheloveofscience · 01/05/2018 08:47

I had a similar experience - 3 separate interviews, the last being coffee with the CEO at the end of which he told me he would put together an offer. 3 weeks later, after daily chasing by the recruiter in the last week, they said they’d changed their mind and a (bullshit) excuse of ‘budget issues’ given as the reason.

bridgetreilly · 01/05/2018 08:50

Email them to remind them that you own the copyright on the pieces you wrote and that they do not have permission to use them.

Juells · 01/05/2018 08:51

I'd email back and ask them to forward your written work to you as you want to have copies, and to delete any copy they have on their own system. Give them some trouble

penguinsandpanda · 01/05/2018 08:51

I would suspect that it was either eye roll lady - in my field not getting on with the team at third interview would mean rejection or there wasn't a real job in the first place and they are just fishing for information on their industry / other businesses for free.

I had a similar experience two interviews went well including one with presentation, third interview going fine then guy comes in - its a US firm and he asks if I've been to the USA. I say no and he starts on you don't like American people do you? about 10 times I'm sure he was the reason I didn't get it.

OliviaStabler · 01/05/2018 08:51

I'd put my money on eye-roll lady sabotaging you. In such a small company / team, no manager can afford to have such a bad personality clash going on. This lady obviously took an instant disliking to you for whatever reason.

I know it won't feel like it now but she did you a huge favour. Can you imagine A) working in a team with someone like that woman day in and day out and B) working for management who allow such unprofessional behaviour when a potential new employee is introduced to them.

I had this happen to me once. I went for an interview at a major newspaper. I signed in at the front desk, took the lift to the floor requested and I was met by the woman I would be working with if I secured the job. Got out of the lift, smiled at her but she just looked me up and down and I knew right then I didn't have a chance at the job. I was dressed smartly and was well groomed but she clearly disliked me on sight. To this day I wish I had turned around and left. That is an hour of my life I'll never get back.

Chanelprincess · 01/05/2018 12:13

AnElderlyLadyOfMediumHeight

Three pieces would definitely not be considered excessive in my field, based on the number of anticipated hours to complete the tasks and the nature of the industry I work in. To me, it sounded like a two horse race and the other candidate was selected, nothing more.

Jamiefraserskilt · 01/05/2018 13:34

Pisses me right off how much time they think you have to waste on multiple hoops. employers! Make it clear from the start that you will have 2 x interviews lasting no more than an hour we may want the job but be real!
In my trade, interviews can extend. One job put me through a total of eight hours. Another took nearly ten. three calls to overseas personnel of an hour plus each. Six hours plus in face to face and they didn't even have the good grace to let me know. I wrote to them afterwards, claimed the call costs and suggested politely they may get a better response from candidates if they didn't change a major showstopping part of the job description three quarters of the way through. Think, locally based, covering the UK versus UK and europe, travelling to all countries and possibly far east too.

OliviaStabler · 01/05/2018 14:07

What's worse @Jamiefraserskilt is when you have to complete an application form and they also ask for your CV - which has exactly the same information on it!

Samantha77hat · 01/05/2018 14:21

You’re not actually serious? You think as the applicant you can dictate the terms of the interview?

And job application forms are because everyone formats their cv’s differently and often there are a lot to look at and they need to be easy to compare

Pair of lunatics

OliviaStabler · 01/05/2018 14:26

@Samantha77hat

Not a lunatic but thank you so much for your thoughtful and helpful reply. Really supportive to the OP

Dahlietta · 01/05/2018 14:42

Pair of lunatics

Eh? Olivia didn't object to filling out an application form - she objected to being asked to do that and then send a CV as well. I thought her point was the same as yours: that an application form replaces a CV (so why do you need to send a CV as well?). Not sure why she got the lunatic accusation!

saucepot8 · 01/05/2018 15:04

It would be hellish working with the eye roller. Lucky escape!

boywiththebrokensmile2 · 01/05/2018 21:19

Op, mmm this sounds very similar to a mysterious situation i was in several years ago. Basically, I was working through an agency at the time and did a day's work and was sitting completing paperwork at end of the day. The day had gone fine, no issues or anything I was made aware of and you were normally told by the agency if you did something wrong or if they didn't want you back. Places would ALWAYS say why they didnt want you back and you would be told.It was policy.

The place and the agency said the place needed me for a few weeks to cover a sick. Anyway, the boss walked in at end of the day and asked me how it was going. I was polite and responded well and then suddenly, he just walked out quite abruptly with no explanation and I could tell he looked pissed off.I hadn't said anything offensive or anything as were talking about trivial things like the weather so I was completely confused and still am. I was wearing the proper clothes etc. And if they had said they had not wanted me back the agency would have looked for a reason.

The next day I was sent to a new job and it was never explained to me by the place or the agency what had happened. Sometimes as my mum used to say ''1 person who takes a notion can cause alot of damage or.'' So seems to me that woman you mention took a dislike to you or something and got you out-as I said all it takes is that 1 person in the company with a bit of power to take a notion/dislike against you.

Samantha77hat · 01/05/2018 21:26

It’s not a lot of effort sending a cv is it, if that’s worth complaining about then they’re better off without you

OliviaStabler · 01/05/2018 22:25

@Samantha77hat It’s not a lot of effort sending a cv is it, if that’s worth complaining about then they’re better off without you

Who said it was 'effort'?

Being forced to include a CV when they make you fill out an application form with THE SAME identical details as on the CV is a waste of time / productivity.

Jamiefraserskilt · 02/05/2018 23:39

Pair of lunatics?
Interview 1, 3 hours, job sounded great. Positive feedback.
Call 1 & 2, went well, EU team, requested call was in the afternoon. Good calls. Positive feedback.
Call 3, US, call time was 10.30pm. Call went on past midnight. Tricky call. A few confusing details which I put down to a misunderstanding as to the role I had applied for. Weird line of questions. Asked me had I read the job spec?
Interview 2, two and a half hours in and raised this misunderstanding. Turns out between call 2 & 3 they changed the brief and expanded the role to cover EMEA because the feedback from the EU team was positive. That is UK job suddenly becoming an EU, Middle East and Africa with lots of travel. I told them in interview 1 I was primary carer of two primary school children so the lack of travel opportunities was good with me. They did not even mention this change until I brought it up and by that stage, it was a two horse race. They said that they would consider changing it back again as they were very keen to make me part of the team, apologised for moving the goalposts without telling me (and had already thought that may have been a showstopper for me) and said they would be in touch within the week but it looked very positive. Then nothing. No call, letter or email.

The lack of contact on the final straight was discourteous.
The about face on the job spec made call three confusing as we were talking at cross purposes. The line of questioning made sense after interview 2
The amount of resource time used their end was excessive considering the role and the salary band. We were not talking Global VP of Operations here!

This was not dictating interview terms. After ten hours of interviews spanning five members of staff in four locations around the world, the least they could do was to refund the £40 cost of the calls (which they did without question) and tell me the outcome which I prised out of them three weeks later. Lunatic over interviewing process for a pretty standard position more like.

Jamiefraserskilt · 02/05/2018 23:44

And yes, had I been picked, I still would have questioned whether ten hours was normal in their organisation!

Littlelondoner · 03/05/2018 00:19

This is common in my field. Hense why i now work for myself. It is a nightmare. Espesially if current employer doesnt know youre job hunting.

3 or 4 round interviews and several tasks etc to provide work for.

I have even been offered the job before twice then never heard from them again.

An other few times ive been through simular to yourself only to have a phone call week later to say you a very very close 2nd choice. Was hard to deside but other persons turned down the job so we would like to make you an offer now.

Point is it is annoyingly common. Domt beat yourself up over it.

JackieReacher · 03/05/2018 08:20

On the flip side, I can remember going through 7 separate interviews for a job I didn't get. No moan to hr, the better candidate got it. And three months later the CEO left and started a new company which he hired me for after a half hour chat- his former staff who'd done a handful of the 7 interviews gave him my details and recommended me. Great way to get a job as you can negotiate a better £ package when there are no recruitment costs too...

DSHathawayGivesMeFannyGallops · 03/05/2018 11:17

For those of you bitching about internal candidates, I've been one and got massively shat on by the company. Twice. I no longer work for them.

I am about to be an internal candidate again and I am genuinely worried and do not feel at an advantage.

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