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Re: Inappropriate interview....(Long but I'm venting so it's ok)
Subject:Re: Inappropriate interview....(Long but I'm venting so it's ok) From:"Wing, Michael J" <mjwing -at- INGR -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 23 Jul 1997 14:52:14 -0500
I'll throw a curve to this discussion. Suppose the intent of the
questions was not to evaluate the respondent on her past experiences or
handling thereof, but to gauge her reactions to the questions. Maybe
the job is in a pressured environment and deals with many irascible
people. By catching the applicant off guard with a series of negative
and probing questions, the interviewer may catch her in her natural
state rather than a prepared performance. Thus, the real test is in her
handling of the questions and not the answers or the amount/severity of
past incidents.
Maybe it's just me, but I bristle at people's quick and simple advice to
run away as fast as you can. It's so easy to give that opinion when the
giver is removed from the situation. It could only be the attitude of
just the interviewer rather than the general atmosphere of the company.
This advice is also given so readily without asking whether the
interviewee is currently working, has immediate financial needs, has
looked for a long time, is rooted to a small geographical area, and so
forth. Not everyone interviewing for jobs has more than one to select
from and thus can tell the interviewer to kiss off at the first
provocation. If the job's worth having (or keeping), have some
backbone. Answer honestly and ask some probing questions back.
"But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good"
-- Paul (1 TH 5:21)
> ----------
> From: Wayne Douglass[SMTP:wayned -at- VERITY -dot- COM]
> Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 1997 2:01 PM
> To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
> Subject: Re: Inappropriate interview....(Long but I'm venting so
> it's ok)
>
> At 02:28 PM 7/23/97 EST, Diana Moran wrote:
> > I'm kicking myself in the rear-end for actually answering these
> > questions (45 minutes worth).
> >
> These all sound like variations of "have you stopped beating your
> wife?"
> After this, can you *still* be interested in this company?
>
>
> --Wayne
> ---------------------------------------------
> Wayne Douglass phone: 408-542-2139
> Verity, Inc. FAX: 408-542-2040
> 894 Ross Road mailto:wayned -at- verity -dot- com
> Sunnyvale, CA 94089 http://www.verity.com
> "Connecting People With Information"
> ---------------------------------------------
>
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