Being offered another role, on the back of an unsuccessful interview

[Quirkyme]

Good evening!

So I had an interview this week on Tuesday, didn't get the role... however, today I received a call from someone on the hiring panel, offering me another role, similar to the role I initially went for, but in another department, as she said someone had resigned today.
I accepted, and she said she would speak with HR and get the ball rolling - it's within my organisation, so an internal transfer.

Hopefully, it comes into fruition as tentative at the moment.

It just got me wondering if there were others who had been in a similar situation? Went for an interview , didn't get the role you applied for, but got contacted about a slightly different role?
And how did it work out for you?

Interested to hear others' experiences. Never thought I would be going into the field of the role I've been offered today!

My very first job interview as I was about to leave college many years ago. I applied for a job and like you, was offered another position instead. I took it and turned out I dodged a bullet as the original Manager was difficult, overbearing and liked to get 'hands on' with his staff...

I was once after an internal role along side two coworkers. I had the least experience in that function of the three. Right after the interviews a person resigned at the location from a different function. The hiring manager reshuffled existing people at the location and offered me the second position because of the three of us who had interviewed I was the only one who had experience.

in other words my entire career (which has been successful so far) can be summed up with the phrase… ‘Ha well that’s a funny story’ 😁 This was the least weird situation that landed me a new job.

Yeah it's happened to me a couple of times

Yes.

I saw a job advertised that I wanted to do. I wasn’t fully qualified. I asked if I could meet with the (small) company owner to talk about how to get the experience and complete my qualifications as I saw this is my career path. He hired me for the role on £2.5 less than advertised with a salary review at 6 months.

I’ve since changed careers and got my most recent job through volunteering.

I would make sure that you get a chance to find out as much about the role and the line manager as you would do if you were applying from scratch.
Don't think you have to be grateful - it needs to be right for you as well as them.

Sort of similar. There were two of us for the same role but they liked us both so made a role for each of us.

You must have impressed them then! In my organisation we would tell you we had a similar role and invite you to apply for it - then interview you against the other candidates that had applied. Go for it!

Not quite the same but the job I applied for had been incorrectly allocated on the recruitment system by HR so I ended up actually interviewing for a job I hadn’t applied for- was offered it, took a punt and it’s been really worth while!

Of course, I asked a few questions today - the call was taken when I was half asleep I wasn't working today!

Will ask some more when she gets in touch next week also

Yes, as a junior marketer I applied to work on a particular brand (a high priority, high investment brand for the company so quite desirable to work on). Didn't get the job, but was offered a job on another brand. Used it as a stepping stone to something else externally.
Funnily enough, I eventually ended up back at the same company, working on the original brand I applied to work on, only in a much more senior role. So I guess you could say it worked out in the end!

I'm on the other side of this at the moment.

I've just interviewed some really good candidates and had 4 great people but only 2 roles. So I've been picky over who I've put in post but one of the others has such good skills that I can see other ways within the business to utilise them so have introduced him to another manager in whose department he would fit really well.

Don't want to let good talent go somewhere else!

This happened to my DIL and it worked out really well. Recruitment is expensive so if a company/organisation can fill a few roles from one recruitment drive it makes sense. For DIL it was pretty much the same job just in a different location (that was actually more convenient) so a win win. I certainly wouldn’t be suspicious about the offer if I were you.

Yes. I was interviewed for a role I didn’t get. I had applied hoping to be able to partly work flexibly at evenings/weekends as I had a toddler. That didn’t fit with their vision for the job, but the manager wanted to drop an afternoon, so they gave me a more general role for about 4 hours a week. That role grew as my youngest got older. I was very lucky.

The job I didn’t get was a lucky miss, as the system it relied on was incredibly slow and frustrating.

It happens all the time, if they like you then they'll find a home for you within the business.

DH dad this straight from school and has a successful career in the same field at a senior level from this start.

I have confidence issues and tend to aim low to avoid failure.

I applied for a job and went for the interview. They told me I was over qualified but they wanted me in a higher position. I took it and it was double the salary from the position I had applied for.

Happened to me. I interviewed for a job that an agency put me forward for. Both me and the interview panel seemed to agree that it wasn't a good fit. However we seemed to click and they offered me a different role in a different part of the organisation. Worked really well.

I’ve had it happen as few times - for instance a second role came up shortly after the one I applied for and get brought me in rather than going through the whole recruitment process again. In the first case this was in a different department of the same retail organisation but still a related market which I knew something about. In the second it was an identical role to the one I had applied for. The least I can say is that they paid me a decent salary and the second got me out of a toxic environment I had been in.
In your case, OP, as an internal move, look at it as the company
seeing you as worth developing.

Make sure it’s not for less money and that there are good promotion prospects. Or just a good role overall. Good luck!

It's how the company I work for now employs people.

You apply for a specific job and if you're unsuccessful we'll say but we have this role we think you'll be good at

Saves time and money in the recruitment process

I have large teams in my role and I'd do this in a trice for a candidate that was really good who was pipped at the post in another role. Often we can candidates with so much relevant experience that others who are excellent too miss out, so just think you were a fantastic candidate and foe them to ask you to take on another role will mean the other person probably had such relevant experience they couldn't help but score more than you at interview - enjoy your new job! (Wait for the contract before you tell your current job of course!)

Yes, my current role.

I saw a job come up in a company that i knew had a great reputation in my industry so rushed to complete some portfolio pieces for the application. The job ad had about 6 things in the list of requirements, 3 of which were CAD related (my speciality) one was knowledge based which i wasn't so good at. I was honest with the interviewer and it turned out that that knowledge was actually what they considered the most important thing.

We got chatting about my experience and it turned out they were actually also looking for someone with those skills but weren't sure about how to hire them. they offered me a different job and now been there nearly a year. They still haven't hired into the original role!

I have also been in a strange position of working for a council as a contractor where i emailed out of the blue my interest in a job. It was only good timing as they had just been through a long (and expensive) interview process and ended up with zero viable candidates so they took me on. Every couple of years there would be a restructure and hiring process, people came and went. The job i was covering would get filled by a permanent hire and they would move me into a different empty role until the next restructure/they got round to hiring for THAT role.

i was there for nearly 4 years and changed jobs 4 times i think within the same 30 person department. Its the kind of place where if you weren't careful you could end up there 20 years and not really achieve very much. Great, relaxed work environment. I only left because i got pregnant. My new job is much more satisfying (but more stressful)

Oh, I forgot about this one!

I was interviewed by a recruiter for a job. I did so well in very awkward interview conditions that they offered me a job with them! I turned it down as the idea of sales and a low base salary with commission didn’t appeal. It was completely different to role that I applied for.

This happened to me, I wasn’t a great fit for the role I interviewed for but I was a great fit for this other role. Worked out well.

Same for my son, he applied for one job which he was vaguely qualified for ( but he was desperate to work!) and he was offered another which hadn't yet been advertised and was the perfect fit for him, just what he wanted. He is still there five years later and now professionally qualified.