How to fail an interview?

pendulum

F_T_Buyer wrote: »

I would say arriving late is an instant fail.

I've got away with this as recently as 2010 (but for a temp job). :rotfl:

I thought I knew where I was going, but the postcode on Google Maps related to the wrong building. After some searching on foot, I finally found the correct building and walked in over 5 minutes late, red faced and sweating, in jeans, new trainers and a good shirt. Their dress code was smart casual (I didn't know this at the time), and somehow I still got the job. :eek:

It was a nice place to work too, so I was very lucky.

heretolearn_2

Arriving late isn't an instant fail with us, but if it were a choice between you and another person, it might be a factor, depending on the reason and how you handle. Apologise and explain with a decent reason (for example someone recently looked for us on streetview, which was a good idea, except our building has been re-painted and looks totally different now, so they were looking for something else is fair enough. Just 'couldn't find you' isn't good enough).

Chickola

Tell them you are pregnant - I've been to a few interviews and I feel as soon as I am honest about my situation that is putting me at a severe disadvantage. I've been told several times recently I was their second choice, I just wonder if I hadn't said I was pregnant whether I would have been the first choice ...

mancitychick

Lith wrote: »

How to fail an interview?

Easy

Turn up in casual clothes (not a suit lol)

The normally of people that think it's ok to wear jeans to an interview amazes me. They justify it by saying oh but there black jeans.......er yes but they are still jeans!

lori64

mancitychick wrote: »

The normally of people that think it's ok to wear jeans to an interview amazes me. They justify it by saying oh but there black jeans.......er yes but they are still jeans!

I would rather employ someone wearing jeans who had the right temperament, attitude and genuine interest in the position, than some wide boy in a suit who answers set questions like a dummy!
I find there is too much emphasis on !!!!!!!! interview techniques, dress codes and ridiculous questions that tell an employer nothing about the person....but there again, employers hate non-conformists!

claire16c

anamenottaken wrote: »

Not so. I arrived late for an interview - before the days of everyone having a mobile phone and I was travelling by bus, unable to get to a public telephone box. Got the job - with a multi-national.

Same here. I arrived 15 mins late to as assessment centre day with a large retailer. My train was late, and then when I finally came out the tube station, I couldnt find the place for ages, and no one I asked knew the road name either.

Luckily the employer didnt care because the office they were using to hold the centres in, was in a tiny little alleyway, not even a proper road or lane and they said people get lost all the time going there.

The whole day all I kept thinking was Ill never get it, I was late, but I got the job.

A couple of years later I was part of the team who held the assessment days, and I also used to interview people in normal interviews for my team.

Things like arriving more than 10 minutes early is an instant fail are just a joke. When I had to interview people, I WANTED to find someone good, I wasnt looking to fail people - I wanted to find someone good, so I could get on with my day job! Especially if you have a team member leaving, you need to find someone fast so your team isnt left with an extra work load.

Their cv was a great start, and then I just needed to check they could back up their experience with good answers, and make sure they had researched the company and job (amazing how many people apply for jobs that they dont even know what they are!!) and had a personality that would fit in with the team.

I was working in fashion buying, so no one tended to wear a full suit to interviews, we just wanted them to look smart/casual. One girl did wear a floppy sort of hat though which we did think was a bit too 'cool for school.'

The worst people were those who made out they really wanted the job, but had no idea/wrong ideas, on basic questions like who our competitors were, our brands, and even the job description - which was very easy to research.

Oh and the worst thing I ever heard someone say at an assessment centre infront of the interviewing panel, was that her flat mates had helped her made her moodboard for her presentation! So definitely dont admit anything like that - although if you need that much help, perhaps you wouldnt be so great at the job anyway!

It sometimes really can come down to things like personality and how youd fit in with the team. For example we had to make sure that people we recruited would get on with the Buyer. Someone might say be great on paper, but if they were very shy and quiet, then they would have had a bad time at work with a loud demanding/scary buyer for example. So we would look for someone who could hold their own, and wasnt afraid to give their own opinions - in a professional way.

LadyMissA

F_T_Buyer wrote: »

I would say arriving late is an instant fail.

Not if you have phoned ahead or there was a train delay that wasn't your fault.

Having said that if you are in the tube you can't call and if you have no credit on your phone or no phone you can't call either.

Marie88_2

lori64 wrote: »

I would rather employ someone wearing jeans who had the right temperament, attitude and genuine interest in the position, than some wide boy in a suit who answers set questions like a dummy!
I find there is too much emphasis on !!!!!!!! interview techniques, dress codes and ridiculous questions that tell an employer nothing about the person....but there again, employers hate non-conformists!

Great post! That is the problem there are too many employers/agents unlike you, as with interviews they are often an act, and as you said you don't get to see the true person. It is really nice to see there are some who aren't superficial employers, who aren't preoccupied by social conventions, which actually don't mean much, rather than they act/answer how they believe they should. But then again, a lot of the labour market is a vile system which aims to strip individuality.