To turn down job interview

[ChangingWeight]

I had a chat with a recruiter. She had access to my CV (no embellishment) and I explained I was wanting to leave my public sector role for a more technical role within private sector, and that I maybe wanted to take a step down in my career in terms of not being a senior manager of data professionals, but perhaps being a data expert without managing for the time being then working my way up. I said I was rusty with certain software as a result of being a manager but wanted I get back into being more technical.

Anyway within 30 minutes she immediately secured me a senior data scientist job interview. She said I’m a perfect fit for a job and that she spoke to the job holder and they can’t wait to interview me etc. At this point, she drops in that they want the job holder to be an expert in certain software that I specifically said I was rusty in. She asked me to brush up on my skills ahead of the interview next week and that there will be a technical test.

AIBU to not go to this interview? I just feel like my technical skills aren’t there yet, and I don’t understand why she put me forward given I said I wanted to work my way up towards a senior position again to allow me to build my confidence being more technical. The job otherwise seems good and the company seems fine and the pay is same/higher than my current job. But the technical test seems tough, I don’t want to embarrass myself or waste their time.

That's what they're paid to do. They go through LinkedIn and anyone who looks vaguely relevant, gets a call and flattered and schmoozed into accepting an interview which in reality is usually just an initial screening call.
My son has recruiters like this on at least 3 or 4 times a week due to the industry he's in which is similar to yours. They're all unsolicited calls and follow exactly the same script that you've been given.
He had one a couple of weeks ago, the same thing, the company were very keen to speak to him blah blah blah. He said he wasn't a good fit because what they were looking for, he hadn't done in several years. He was assured he was just what they wanted. He knew it was a load of nonsense but given the salary was well into 6 figures he decided to play the game. Sure enough the company was looking for someone with up to date skills in the area he hadn't worked in for years.

Calls like this are the modern day equivalent of cold calls trying to sell double glazing or solar panels 😄

It's up to you if you take the call or not but just be aware that this is a script they follow and they get paid for people they persuade to go for the initial screening call so you'd definitely not be unreasonable to turn it down if you don't think it's a good fit for you.

Is the software something you could brush up on? Women often feel they need to be a 100% match for a job advert whereas as men are happy with 50%.

YANBU, but you may be underselling yourself. As long as your cv is honest, and you tell the truth about rustiness at the interview, you could still go for it.
If you are offered the job, you can also choose to turn it down if it feels too senior for what you want right now.
It’s really up to you! Stay true to yourself, but perhaps explore the opportunity? If they like you, there may even be a less senior role they’d consider you for!

You’re under no obligation to go. Don’t forget, recruiters get a commission on every successful placement, so it’s in their interest for you to go.

If you're job hunting anyway, do the interview. There's no pressure as you don't expect / want the job so its good practice for when your desired job comes up

so the technical test is on SQL. But I have no idea whether I share my screen with them, they share their screen with me, or I’m just supposed to speak the answers out loud and describe how I would approach something.

i have some knowledge of SQL but not enough to be listing all the steps to approach things off the top of my head. I did see loads of YouTube videos on prospective interview questions but I’m not going to remember all those steps in time.

I’m employed but wanting to leave my role asap.

sorry just realised my approach above sounds really negative! Didn’t mean for it to come across so defeatist.

I don’t think SQL is hard to get to grips with, I just don’t currently use it at work and haven’t really used it since university. I could try to memorise a bunch of stuff ahead of the interview, but I don’t know if that’s fair on me or the employer. Ideally I’d rather have a more junior role to hone my ability, before having a senior role interview. I do have coding, programming and stats software experience so I’m sure I would be able to learn and use SQL well…just not in the space of 3 days!

If you actually want the job, I wouldn't let that put you off. Companies rarely find someone who ticks every box and usually have to compromise. I would talk up other aspects of what you do and emphasise that while you have some experience, it's limited and out of date so you're not misleading them.

As a PP mentioned, women tend to think they have to hit absolutely every metric to be worthy of getting a job, men don't let this stand in their way.

Surely it’s worth a go? What have you got to lose ?

I just imagine getting flustered and saying the wrong thing which exposes my lack of skill I suppose! I know a bit about relational databases etc but I’d be waffling about that in an interview. In my current job, I am a manager as opposed to an individual contributor. Plus my team doesn’t use SQL.

@ChangingWeight "... I don’t understand why she put me forward ..."

Because she's paid on commission! She'll have targets for the number of interviews that she organises, the number of people like you who might be placed into a job and who are on her "candidates" list, and ultimately a commission target that is likely to be a big chunk of her remuneration.

Looking at the situation from your point of view, you have nothing to lose by doing the interview. When did you last interview for a job? Your interview skills might be just as rusty as your SQL skills. You already have a job, so you can treat this interview as a free shot and a refresher. If the company turns out to be really keen to employ you, you can use this to your advantage too by pushing for a good salary, good conditions, fringe benefits etc.

Recruiters are awful. I've had similar conversations with them and always get offered for interview at a higher salary job with more pressure / responsibility than I made clear I was interested in.

They're sales people. They talk a good game, but their commission is a % of your new salary so all they do if throw you out to the highest bidder that your CV can get. They don't take into account your requirements.

I use ChatGPT for creating SQL statements. I’m not a developer and never will be but it certainly helps a lot in getting things done.

The recruiter put you foward because they will get a commission. They don't care if you are a good person for the job.

Simple as that. Never yet met a recruitment agency with any moral fibre whatsoever.

I’d go for the interview just to get back in the swing of things, do you like the sound of the job aside from this? If not just decline but I

agree with pp you might tick all the other boxes and it’s just you need to brush up on sql then that’s easy enough to do

As a recruiter with over 15 years in the industry can I just correct a few misconceptions. I have never met any recruiters who are paid on the number of interviews they set up, recruiters in 99% of circumstances (some very senior highly paid roles are different think Director CxO level) only get paid the day someone starts a role. It is not in a recruiters interest to waste time putting people forward they don't believe will have a chance of getting the role.

More likely is that the hiring manager has told them "the spec says we need XYZ but we can be flexible and if you find us someone who has a little experience that would be fine"

Wishing you all the best with whatever you decide. You sound like you’d be a huge asset to any company.

Very broad brush there. The difference in commission for a recruiter between someone earning £70k and £75k will be minimal. We would rather get you a job offer you are going to take than a job offer at a higher rate you're going to turn down.

Some recruiters are awful the same as some shop assistants are terrible, some mechanics are terrible some accountants are terrible. Some are great, I have worked with some people for over 10 years now helping them move jobs 3 times. I have been sent bottles of wine from people who were so happy with the job I helped them get. We aren't all bad.

You really must be speaking to / working with absolute cowboys. Any recruiter who wants to make a career out of it needs to care if someone is a good fit for the role. They will lose clients very quickly if they are repeatedly sending the wrong people.

I will always endeavour to send a perfect match for a role (if the person is happy to go forward). If that is impossible I will discuss with the manager what they can be flexible on and what they are open to dropping of the spec, so there may be times I send someone who is only 60-70% a fit but that is pre discussed with the hiring manager and the individual is made aware that there are areas they will need to learn on the job. A lot of people like that a company wants to help them learn new skills.

DH is currently searching for senior developer/management roles and my god the amount of recruiters who schmooze on their initial calls and then ghost him afterwards!!

I think he even mentioned to one about it and they sympathised and said yeah that's really bad mate. As far as I know that recruiter has not been in touch again!

Absolutely no harm in going for it though, like pp said it's good for practise/refresher, you don't have anything to lose, and agree we tend to think we need 100% if what they want and don't bother if it's more like 90% which doesn't seem to phase blokes at all.

(but if you decide it's definitely not for you, then a very cheeky ask to let me know what it is please, we are getting extremely close to squeaky bum time for DH. Chances are he'll already know about it though, he is going for everything at the moment)

Is this an external recruiter?
You have to be careful, because they get paid a commission to place people (anyone) within a role. I'd be mindful that you could be a pawn in the process so that they can peg another candidate against you that the firm have also put forward. If you feel this might be the case, then I'd remove myself from the process (and have done in the past). Not all recruiters come equal unfortunately.

You need to read the JD carefully and be brutally honest with yourself. Do you have the desired skills being requested? Do you have many, and therefore can highlight the ones you don't have as growth opportunities? Are the company open to developing someone within role, and hence whilst they would love someone who could hit the ground running, they are also looking for other qualities which you could offer? If you think this could be the case, then don't self select yourself out of jobs - your position in all of this is to attend the interview and answer questions - it's for the interviewer to assess your suitability.

And finally, sometimes its good to go to interviews just for practice. It will mean you're more confident in the future. So even if you think all of this or some of what I've mentioned is true, it still might be worth your time to help build your confidence (and you never know, you might get the job!).

I've worked with several, both as a candidate and as someone looking for candidates.

Have not yet come across a recruiter or a recruitment agency I would trust as far as I can throw them. The whole business model is getting bums on seats.

There are good ones out there. I think you've been unlucky.
That said, this doesn't sound like one of them.

I am split on this.

I struggle with the recruitment industry as a whole. It is disingenuous. If you 100% don’t want the job - just turn it down. You are saving everyone time and energy.

However, if you are interested in the company and the role maybe you should get in touch with them directly. Ask them for more details of the role and be honest about what you do and don’t know and how confident you are you could learn quickly.

Like others have said employers put together a wish list, they often do not get a lot of what is asked for but will look at your future potential, rather than expect a finished package.

I always appreciate a candidate getting in touch with me prior to interview to ask any questions. It shows you are taking the process seriously and considering whether you really suit. The worst is when someone interviews well and starts and it is clear the role wasn’t really for them.

There’s a quote somewhere about the difference between the sexes when applying for jobs something like - men see the 3 things they can do and believe they’d be perfect for the job, women see the one thing they can’t do and don’t bother applying!

From what I’ve seen this stereotype does have an element of truth! So don’t let it put you off applying if everything else seems good.

Hope your job search goes well either way!

@Gustotonight "However, if you are interested in the company and the role maybe you should get in touch with them directly."

The recruitment agency will have a watertight contract in place with the company to prevent this - whether or not you agree with the business model they will want to protect their commission and won't divulge anything to the candidate that might result in them being cut out of the deal or even just being kept out of the communication loop.

"Ask them for more details of the role and be honest about what you do and don’t know and how confident you are you could learn quickly."

That's what the interview is supposed to be - a two-way conversation so that both parties can see how good a fit they will be for each other.