I talked with DS more about this job he is interviewing for while he went with me at lunch time to run some errands....like what exactly the job is and what position the guy holds who got him the interview, etc. He actually knows 2 guys that work there. The one who he sent his resume to and got him passed on first to the company who does their hiring screening, is the head of the department he is applying for a position in. The other guy he knows is actually GM of this whole division of the company! (and both these men are friends with each other) The lady who phone interviewed him yesterday asked who he knew to get his resume sent directly to her desk, so he told her of the department head...then he casually dropped the name of the division head and how he knew both of them - so she was impressed, LOL.
The position is a tier 2 tech support. It is actually a night (graveyard?) position that is two 12 hour days and then two 8 hour days. So, with those hours he would have a much easier commute for the almost 50 mile drive -as in basically no traffic to deal with. I'm sure he could do the drive in 45 minutes each way, plus it's 4 days a week, so one less day of needing to drive/pay for gas. Living at home at least for the time being and making that kind of money would really set him up good.
He has his 2nd phone interview tomorrow. Gosh, I hope this pans out for him! This company is so huge/worldwide that he could even work in Australia eventually :-)
As I'm typing this post, DS told me earlier today he sent an email to the dept. head guy he knows, letting him know he got his first phone interview and thanking him and told him he has his 2nd phone interview with "so and so" tomorrow. He replied back "that is great. Let's just keep our association private during your interview". What the heck does that mean?!! I give up - geez - isn't that supposed to be what "networking" for a job is all about? So, if this guy asks, too, he's supposed to lie? Seems kind of a strange request to me, but then I don't work in a big corporate type world, so what do I know....
In my experience, one of the risks of referring someone is that the person does not work out and the "blame" for a poor hire lands all over me. Not saying the applicant I send is weak on skills or experience, but so often what makes a employment relationship work is the personalities involved. I think highly of the person I'm referring, but they could have quirks or habits that I do not consider important enough to even notice yet they drive another manager completely bonkers. I've hired and had to fire enough people to know these things are not always discoverable during the interview.
ReplyDeleteHopefully, that's all it is, a "CYA" type of thing. I'd hate to think it's because he doesn't think DS is qualified and just passed DS's resume on as a favor to him....not really expecting anything to come of it.
DeleteI have worked in very large corporate environments and am SO HAPPY to be away from it now. In my experience you don't refer someone to your own organization unless you have confidence in their ability. The referring party may not want to unduly influence another manager (they could be a subordinate or direct report) and to let DS move forward in the hiring process on his own merits. Either way, I wish him success with this next phone interview.
ReplyDeleteHe probably didn't want it to seem that he is playing favorites. I wouldn't worry about the comment.
ReplyDeleteWow this sounds like it would be perfect for him in SO many ways.. As to the comment that was made, honestly, I haven't a clue. I never worked on corporate, When I could work I always worked for smaller companies. I liked the personalization and atmosphere much better. Best of luck to him!
ReplyDeleteI think it would be an amazing opportunity for him and if he wanted to finish his degree the company would pay for it. I worked for a big corporation for about 10 years. Didn't really like it at all. I love the small (36 employees) company I work for.
DeleteI agree with 61scribbles....if things didn't work out (either the company doesn't offer a job, DS starts work and something happens, etc), the current employee doesn't want to be associated with it. It is great to know someone to get your foot in the door, but beyond that....most applicants are on their own.
ReplyDeleteI am curious about all the phone interviews....are they planning on a face-to-face interview at some point??? If this is just part of the vetting process, then ok. But part of me wonders if they are just interviewing this way because they aren't interested enough to bring the applicant in. I am cynical, sorry.
Also, if he does choose to go back to school, most companies require that 1) you have been employed for a certain period of time, and 2) you remain employed for a certain period of time based on the amount of money they have paid out.
ReplyDeleteBefore he starts this process, he needs to make sure he is willing to stay the length of time required, or have to pay the money back.
I wouldn't think much of what the guy said. As others have said, there are more negatives than positives on referrals. If the person ends up being a troublemaker, they will blame it on the one that referred him (even if he didn't do so directly). Also, though having such referrals is great, some may think you're forcing their hand that they have to hire DS just because he has the right contacts. I would have DS emphasize more on his skills and abilities/achievements than on his friendship. The interviewers will really be curious as to how good of a relationship they have with the GM, especially if they get the feel that rejecting this applicant may mean the GM will be ticked off at the recruiter.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about it more last night and agree - it's probably more like 61scribbles and Tanner say. The dept. head probably doesn't want the next interview level(s) to feel biased or pressured in their assessment of him. Mysti - there are 2 rounds of phone interviews. One with someone from a company they use for their hiring process, a second interview (I think this is with someone directly from the company) and if he gets past the 2nd interview then he will be invited in for an in-person interview. Phone interviews seem very common now in most of the jobs DS has applied for in the past year. They'll do a phone interview initially and then an in-person interview.
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