A quick one - it's bugging me

cantdecide

I went for an interview with a major Cork based technology company (a VERY big one...) for the job of Buyer over the summer. There were a couple of similar roles and both a recruiter and recruiting manager both handled my application. I applied and they spoke to me on the phone several times. They arranged an interview with the department manager and I attended. I think it went as well as it could have but thought that the manager didn't think too highly of my experience, tbh, which is all fine and went home expecting the dear John letter.

After about three weeks, I wasn't really attached to the idea of working there but thought the result was dragging on a bit. So I emailed the recruiter and recruiting manager for an update and to know if I were still being considered for similar roles... nothing. A week later, I emailed them both again... nothing and about two weeks after that; a third and final contact happened and once again, no response from either at any stage.

I'm pretty surprised to be completely ghosted by a massive multinational after the effort I put in on my side and the formality of their regime. Is this normal? Only one other time did I go to an interview and never received any type of response, and that was with a very small SME.

NickNickleby

Terribly rude of them I think. However, to remain positive perhaps: they can't say yes yet, but they don't want to say no. Hedging their bets.

Or, you're definitely out of the running and they can't be bothered expending time and effort telling you. I'm sure we'd all like to think this is the least likely option and perhaps it is.

Whatever the outcome, I wish you the best of luck. I've known the frustration borne of sending many applications and receiving hardly any acknowledgements. But, it always works out in the end. chin up!

Esse85

Support the government in getting that €13Bn from them.

partyguinness

TBH.....I have found over the years you are more likely be ghosted by the larger firms.

Sorry to say that if you don't hear you didn't get it (99.99% of the time).

loyatemu

Esse85 wrote: »

Support the government in getting that €13Bn from them.

the govt is doing the opposite.

uck51js9zml2yt

Went for interview years ago for a job as project manager in rathfarnham.

I'm still waiting to be told I didn't get the job even after contacting their HR and getting a reply!
They had contacted me on linked in and wanted an interview within 24 hours.

Very glad not to be working for them

cantdecide

Alvaro Putrid Turnpike wrote: »

Very glad not to be working for them

It was the only time I walked out of an interview and thought 'f*** those guys'. Not just sour grapes, I went home after the interview and said 'I don't think I got and I'm sure I don't want it either'. It seems the culture is unnecessarily harsh.

I'm tempted to just keep sending them irritating emails asking for feedback.

Force Carrier

Esse85 wrote: »

Support the government in getting that €13Bn from them.

The govt is trying really hard to not get €13bn from them

We wouldn't be much of tax haven if we started taxing people now would we? And there'd be no jobs or job interviews.

NickNickleby

cantdecide wrote: »

It was the only time I walked out of an interview and thought 'f*** those guys'. Not just sour grapes, I went home after the interview and said 'I don't think I got and I'm sure I don't want it either'. It seems the culture is unnecessarily harsh.

I'm tempted to just keep sending them irritating emails asking for feedback.

Forget them, you'll only give yourself heartburn thinking about them. Life is funny sometimes, as though things happen for a reason. Perhaps you've dodged a bullet, and something better is just around the corner.

Keep at it, good luck.

Jim2007

Esse85 wrote: »

Support the government in getting that €13Bn from them.

If you're going to try a smart ass comment at least be factual.

OMM 0000

cantdecide wrote: »

I went for an interview with a major Cork based technology company (a VERY big one...) for the job of Buyer over the summer. There were a couple of similar roles and both a recruiter and recruiting manager both handled my application. I applied and they spoke to me on the phone several times. They arranged an interview with the department manager and I attended. I think it went as well as it could have but thought that the manager didn't think too highly of my experience, tbh, which is all fine and went home expecting the dear John letter.

After about three weeks, I wasn't really attached to the idea of working there but thought the result was dragging on a bit. So I emailed the recruiter and recruiting manager for an update and to know if I were still being considered for similar roles... nothing. A week later, I emailed them both again... nothing and about two weeks after that; a third and final contact happened and once again, no response from either at any stage.

I'm pretty surprised to be completely ghosted by a massive multinational after the effort I put in on my side and the formality of their regime. Is this normal? Only one other time did I go to an interview and never received any type of response, and that was with a very small SME.

****ty behaviour from them, but you should have rang the recruiter.

If it's important to you, you should call.

E-mail is very passive and you've no guarantee they even received your e-mails.

skallywag

Good advice above, in such a situation I would always call, you stand a much higher chance of getting the feedback that you are looking for.

In general the behaviour you describe is getting more and more common in my experience. There is absolutely no excuse for it. If you are not going to come back to someone with a decision by the agreed date, then it is plain common professional courtesy to drop a short email saying that you need more time.

beauf

cantdecide wrote: »

.... Is this normal? Only one other time did I go to an interview and never received any type of response, and that was with a very small SME...

I haven't done interviews in years. But even then it was normal.

partyguinness

beauf wrote: »

I haven't done interviews in years. But even then it was normal.

Same here. It was quite normal 10-15 years ago so why the outrage now?

If a firm wants you, they will act quickly. If you haven't heard then write it off and move on. Forget about it. Don't sit around dwelling on it.

If they happen to come back to you over the next few weeks then great.

cantdecide

partyguinness wrote: »

Same here. It was quite normal 10-15 years ago so why the outrage now?

Bemusement, yes but I don't see the "outrage" you refer to. There are several posts agreeing this is discourteous behaviour from a Goliath firm with huge dedicated recruitment infrastructure (two points of contact) having cost me most of a day's job-seeking for research, prep and travel and so on to not even be arsed with a 'dear John' C&P email. I didn't realise I was being a great sour-grapey crybaby.

skallywag

cantdecide wrote: »

I didn't realise I was being a great sour-grapey crybaby.

You are not, and any half way competent hiring manager will be very sensitive to this. It is very much a two-way street when looking for reliable staff who would like to retain mid to long term, and if demonstrate to a potential employee that I am unreliable then it is simply painting a very bad picture from the off, whereas a short two sentence email is all that is needed. I fully understand that more time is sometimes needed to come to a decision, but not getting back to a candidate by an agreed date is a serious lack of professionalism in my book, and something which I am going to reprimand someone for if it comes to my attention.

cantdecide

cantdecide wrote: »

Bemusement, yes but I don't see the "outrage" you refer to. There are several posts agreeing this is discourteous behaviour from a Goliath firm with huge dedicated recruitment infrastructure (two points of contact) having cost me most of a day's job-seeking for research, prep and travel and so on to not even be arsed with a 'dear John' C&P email. I didn't realise I was being a great sour-grapey crybaby.

You are not being a sour-grapey crybaby as you put it. I do a lot of contract work so have been on a lot of interviews in the past 5 years and standards for communication with companies, especially large ones is at an all time low. It has never been easier at any time in human history than it is today to contact people, and yet the number of places that I had to drag feedback out of is both incredible and and as you say bemusing.



One place I was given verbal assurance they had selected me, but they were waiting for the CEO to give official sign off, but "He's away on business in London and can't be contacted. I'll call you when he gets back". Three years on I'm still waiting for the call. Is there a city in Mongolia called London? Maybe that's where he was because why else could he not be contacted if he was in London, UK?


In my line of work I have chaired dozens of interviews and I generally know in the first 5 minutes if its a yes or no about someone. Either way, I submit the feedback straight after the interview. I then, don't understand why it takes a week for companies/HR departments to need a week to give feedback when they got the feedback from the interviewer 5 minutes after the interview ended.

partyguinness

cantdecide wrote: »

Bemusement, yes but I don't see the "outrage" you refer to. There are several posts agreeing this is discourteous behaviour from a Goliath firm with huge dedicated recruitment infrastructure (two points of contact) having cost me most of a day's job-seeking for research, prep and travel and so on to not even be arsed with a 'dear John' C&P email. I didn't realise I was being a great sour-grapey crybaby.

Oh I agree it is discourteous and it just leaves you dangling there after all that effort- trust me I have been in the same boat. But unfortunately it does seem to be the norm.

Although it is 8 years since I went for a job interview, when I emailed recruitment agents I would get back an 'Automatic Reply' saying that if you have not heard from us within say, 3 days your application is not being progressed or 'We will call you so please stop contacting us.'

If I was successful or being called back they were all over me like a rash within a few hours. I found the bigger the company the less likely to get any sort of feedback.

I remember in 2008, one interview going so well they spent a good portion of it telling me about the next interview stage and how delighted they were with me. Still waiting.

Mango Joe

This happened me in 2003 for a job I was very, very keen on getting.

I was on tenterhooks for weeks and didn't want to be phoning up in case I appeared to be too keen or whatever other nonsense.

A month later I called and was told another candidate had been selected and that they'd send a letter out.

Sure enough a crisp white PFO letter arrived in the post 3 days later....Ars3holes.

Company hit the wall 6 years later & its worth noting that my subsequent experiences with multiple HR Depts have been pretty much on par with this over this years.....

partyguinness

I remember going for an interview which was a farce. They wanted someone who could handle two different areas.

I made it abundantly clear that to the RA that I had more experience in one area more than the other. Told not a problem. Became clear within 30 seconds of the interview starting that they were looking for someone with more experience in the other area. I saw the the interviewers looking at each other as in "Waste of time." So they just spent the next 10 minutes cracking jokes and all just a farce.

Legged it. Oh and I got a parking ticket just to rub it in. I could have murdered the recruitment agent for sending me there and they were all apologies.

But anyway..that was a Tuesday. On Friday the RA rang to give the PFO news.

No- apparently I was their first choice and offered me the job and basically offered it to me. Me be like WTF? I asked for a second interview to get a better picture of the place and to stall as I had my eye on another place.

Anyway, I did take the job as the other role was not yet available but they came back a year later (2013) and offered me that role so I jumped ship and here ever since.

Turns out I was pretty much the only half decent candidate and they were desperate as my predecessor had walked out after a massive row with the bosses.