Anyone had a bad interview?

I recently had a bad interview where the interviewer stated that my past experience varied and he was looking for someone who would go for the long haul. I felt that he already knew that he wasn't going to choose me. He could of read my resume days before and not call me. Instead, I had to do the interview which would of lead to the same result of not being picked to continue on interview process. Anyone had similar experience that would like to share?

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cshkuru

I once had an interview at Microsoft that was going so badly I stood up in the middle of it, said "Don't know, Don't care" and walked out of the guys office. Needless to say I didn't get the position but I got a call from a friend who told everyone was talking about it all day.

sj4088

Fayz wrote: »

I recently had a bad interview where the interviewer stated that my past experience varied and he was looking for someone who would go for the long haul. I felt that he already knew that he wasn't going to choose me. He could of read my resume days before and not call me. Instead, I had to do the interview which would of lead to the same result of not being picked to continue on interview process. Anyone had similar experience that would like to share?

I hate when companies do dumb stuff like that. It's like when they call you in for an interview then tell you that you need a degree, cert or experience with whatever technology. It's like well you had my resume. It doesn't say I have "whatever(degree, experience, cert, etc)" so why the heck did you call me in for an interview. You are just wasting everybody time. How easy would it have been to have HR or the recruiter contact me and ask did I have "xyz"? Would of saved everybody a lot of wasted time.

In your case he had your resume so if he didn't like the fact that you were a "job hopper" he shouldn't have called you in for an interview in the first place. Also in this economy where contracting jobs are pretty standard it's silly to knock anyone for job hopping anyway imo.

Alexsmith

Like you fayz...I had a interview with HP one time in which I passed both interviews and both were long panel style interviews...just to be told I couldn't get the job because I didn't have a degree. I asked them did they read my resume, they mentioned that they assumed I had one already and just didn't put it on there..

I didn't put anything on there mentioning I had a BS degree.

zcarenow

I had an interview once where i interviewed with 10 people all at once in a conference room. It was a long 2 hours. Afterwards, i had to take a written test for another hour. I didn't get the job.

Russell77

Alexsmith wrote: »

Like you fayz...I had a interview with HP one time in which I passed both interviews and both were long panel style interviews...just to be told I couldn't get the job because I didn't have a degree. I asked them did they read my resume, they mentioned that they assumed I had one already and just didn't put it on there..

I didn't put anything on there mentioning I had a BS degree.

This reminds me of a story my sister in law told me. She was trying out to be one of the Rockets in Radio city Music hall. She got through 2nd tryout which would get her the job then one of the Choreographers asked how tall she was. There was a min height requirement and she was an inch too short.

gespenstern

It's actually beneficial for you. Try to land as many interviews as possible and each failed interview is a check cause it brings experience and teaches you how to conduct yourself better during the interview process and what to expect and overall makes you got used to the process.

Who cares what that guy was thinking and what his impression was? The world is large and there's certainly a place for you somewhere, you just have to find it and it helps in the process to make yourself familiar with how it goes and what to expect.

devils_haircut

I interviewed for a position titled "Network Engineer". The interview was with three people, the project manager and two other "network engineers".

Things felt funny at first, because the girl interviewing me had no technical background, a degree in Arts, and no certifications (technical or otherwise). The guy with her was maybe 22-23 years old, also a "network engineer", and I think he had his A+ cert. Not that certs mean much, but that's about the extent of his knowledge.

I started asking them technical questions because they were being fairly vague about the job duties, and I got a lot of pauses from them while they looked at each other, as if they didn't know how to answer. This was a contract position working for a state government agency, and the gist I got was that they went through all of this agencies branch locations around the state and quoted out new hardware. No configuration or design was done. Basically, someone else went in and decided what they needed as far as wireless, VoIP, networking, etc., and these two (plus whoever they hired) got quotes for the equipment and made sure projects were organized and completed on time. Lots of email and phone calls. No design, no configuration, no engineering. But they were "network engineers" making 70k + overtime (a pretty high salary for the area, even on contract).

I noped out of there pretty quick. It felt like a bunch of people scamming money from the state government and not actually doing any work.

LeisureSuitLarry

I've only had a couple bad interviews in my life, one being recent. I've been trying to get back into IT, and am rusty on a lot. I studied Cisco and security over the summer, and then got a phone interview where I was blasted with Linux questions. My resume shows Linux experience, but it's from the 90's, so I was only able to answer about half of their questions appropriately. This was all stuff that I could have answered in less than 30 seconds with a google search, and thus not that important in my mind regarding my ability to do the job. I went in with the expectation that it should be clear from my resume I'd be rusty, but also be more than capable of learning whatever I need to on the go. It didn't go that way and left me wondering why they'd even bother calling someone that's been out of the field for several years.

Another interview that went bad for me was with Bellsouth Mobility (cellular company in the 90's before they became known as Cingular). I went in to interview for a tech position, and I had a good foundation on cell phone tech and repair after having worked at another company. But at the interview, they didn't ask me a single tech question. They threw me questions like "Where do you see yourself in five years?" and "Give us an example of one time where you provided exceptional customer service". Around the third or forth question, I just said, "I think this interview was a mistake. Thanks for your time", and I left.

LeisureSuitLarry

cshkuru wrote: »

I once had an interview at Microsoft that was going so badly I stood up in the middle of it, said "Don't know, Don't care" and walked out of the guys office. Needless to say I didn't get the position but I got a call from a friend who told everyone was talking about it all day.

This sounds really awesome.

Mooseboost

Bad interviews are still interviews. It is still experience. The more you interview, the more comfortable you will be in them. I have been lucky enough to not have any experiences that could be counted as bad. I've had some odd phone interviews, but thankfully that was mostly with recruiters who didn't bother reading my resume.

MeanDrunkR2D2

I had one really really bad interview, and it wasn't that long ago. I was asked questions on many things that I wasn't prepared for and wasn't listed as duties for the position I was interviewing for. Of course, they were SQL based questions asked by the VP of IT, who is also a SQL MCM, and I honestly didn't know. I openly said that I didn't know the answer on that and was pretty honest that I wasn't aware of how involved the SQL was for the position as it wasn't listed.

By the time I got done, I felt like I had bombed the interview horribly, and wouldn't even get a followup due to that. Ended up getting called back for another interview with the head of IT, and he focused mostly on the history of the company and to gauge my interest. By the time all was said and done I got an offer and got everything I wanted and took it after I countered their offer and it was accepted.

dustervoice

I had a bad many bad interviews within the past 6 years one the flip side i had 2 great ones:

BAD:
(1) Interviewed for a security position. i was locked in a room with a 3 members of the team and was asked Linux questions for 3 hours nonstop. at one point i got upset as i realized that there "concept" of security is all technical. So i said if you all have been asking me so many questions and after 1 hour you cannot make an assessment of my skills then this is not the place for me to work. Didn't hear back from them neither did i care!

(2) Interviewed for a security position at a investment firm. As soon as i walked in i knew i wasted my time. When I looked at the employees there it seems as if all 45 people were a replica of each other.... no diversity! needless to say the interview lasted 20 minutes. I told the recruiter to delete my info from her database and never call me again as i found it insulting for her to send me to a place such as this.

Good
(1) Interviewed for a infosec position. No room was available for the interview so we sat in a break out area. The interview went on for 1 hours of just a basic conversation. There were no technical questions he basically asked me to describe what i do on a daily basis, books i read, what football team i support,etc etc. was offered the job but didn't accept as i didnt like the neighborhood

yes im picky !
(2) Networking position: During the interview the phone system went down and interviewer had to leave and asked me to join him. long story short i assisted him in resolving the issue. Was offered the job immediately. didnt accept as hours they wanted me to work was antisocial... 6PM-2AM

scaredoftests

I could write a book about my bad experiences.

What a lesson you learn in letting things go and finding humor in a situation.

kohr-ah

My life is a bad interview......... (I kid).

I had one interview I was going in for a network engineer position. They were grilling me on everything they could find in a Cisco book and wanted not a real life experience answer but the literal Cisco book answer.

I started to inquire how these technologies were integrated in their current environment where my experience with they could be leveraged as a benefit only to find out they didn't impliment 60% of the questions they were asking me. I politely stood up and told them that "I thank them for their time but feel this is going nowhere" and walked out.

Even at that point if it would of came back that they'd like to interview me again I would of declined. Sadly that is one of many I have gone on.

scaredoftests

There was an interview at a secure site on an Army base. Two people interviewing. The 'main' person, kept claiming she didn't have time for this interview and kept walking out of the room. It was a disruption and annoying.

One interview, the person interviewing me had sent me a personality test beforehand. I really hate those. It was second interview that day and even ran home and took a shower beforehand. She comes in, goes over the results and 1/2 hour later declares that we are too much alike, so we wouldn't be able to work together. I really felt like letting her have it, but I let it go. Some people are idiots.

One interview (this was the second interview). It was a family run business, the position I was interviewing for, the lady who was leaving was 'hard to replace' the 'best worker' yada yada. Anyway, the oldest son interviewed me at the first interview. So, the mom, dad, youngest son was at this one and the questions went like this:
The Mom: How long do you plan on working? Me: Until the day I die.
The Dad: Why do you job hop Me: thinking: Oh this guy does not know how shitty the economy has been. I reply: The economy etc.
The Youngest Son: How old are you? There was silence for a minute or two. The dad replies 'I don't think you have a right to ask that question'
I reply: Old enough to know better.
They then offer the job to me on the spot and want me to start right away. I can't because I am still in my other job (I was laid off, but we were allowed to stay for 2 more months). It was so bizarre and the son who first interviewed me can sense I am kind of shocked by his family and their behaviour. After touring their facility, the son and I walk out and he says 'I am sorry for they way they acted, please let us know your decision if you would like the job..etc'

After talking with my husband who agreed what a odd interview and go with my gut, I decide I won't take it. The next morning, I was going to call, but I recieved an email stating that woman leaving would telecommuting from Florida and so the offer is rescinded.

si20

I think you'll like my story guys.... here goes:

Approximately 1 month ago, I had an interview for LE (law enforcement). I drove 3 hours 30 minutes to the building and got their right on time. Their first words were: "wow, you turned up? I think everyone who has turned up is here" meaning that I was the only person who showed up that day. I thought: "great, I must be in with a good chance!".

I was taken to the interview room and sat across from a guy/woman in their early 30's. They said: "Let's make this an informal interview. It was scheduled for 1 hour 30 minutes but should only last for about 15 minutes". My heart sank. 15 minutes?? I'd just travelled 3 hours 30 for a 15 min interview??

They asked me ridiculous questions which were so easy that a child with no IT experience could answer them. Questions like: "why do you want to work for us?" and "we give mandatory counselling, would you take it?" The first thought that went through my head was: "well, if it's mandatory....I guess i'll take it" but I just said "yes" and they moved onto their next question. In total I had just 6 questions.

I walked out feeling like i'd answered everything as well as I possibly could have. There were no technical questions and nothing directly related to the job. They told me they'd call me later that day with results. I drove home (total 7 hours of driving) and when I got home, they called to say I didn't get it and that I came second in their calculations.

I was (and still am) convinced that they already had a candidate in mind before I turned up. Sorely disappointed. An extremely unprofessional experience...

dustervoice wrote: »

I had a bad many bad interviews within the past 6 years one the flip side i had 2 great ones:

BAD:
(1) Interviewed for a security position. i was locked in a room with a 3 members of the team and was asked Linux questions for 3 hours nonstop. at one point i got upset as i realized that there "concept" of security is all technical. So i said if you all have been asking me so many questions and after 1 hour you cannot make an assessment of my skills then this is not the place for me to work. Didn't hear back from them neither did i care!

3 hours non-stop seems a bit ridiculous but to be fair: security SHOULD be technical. When i've worked in a place where security has been about implementing policies and things like ITIL, the security is piss-poor. If that was an hour-long interview, it would have been a good place. 3 hours is what'd put me off, not that their concept of security is technical.

rsutton

Resume screening is only a small variable in the process. You may be "OK" from a resume screening standpoint, but when you have the interview, the interviewer might not like how you look/sound/smell/chew etc. They may feel like you would not be a good culture fit; there are lots of things the interviewer is consciously & unconsciously evaluating. Depending on why they choose to not move you forward, it may have been easier to say it was about your experience. This may be unfair & unhelpful (to you), but is often the case. You will need more data points, from multiple companies, to find out if there are weaknesses in your interviewing skills.

TacoRocket

Went through three rounds of interviews for a job. Did great on the personalty test (hate those, can't really tell which questions are tricks). Then the technical exam, he said I scored the highest. Then the final interview was with the Manager and then the Director of Operations. IT Manager was great, me and him kicked it off. The Director of Operations has zero technical skills. Went from high gear to low gear. Didn't get a call back which was weird since you think management two levels up wouldn't really care if the IT Manager vouched for you. I digress.

Or the interviews where anything technical is you. I've done two man teams for a mid size business, they aren't bad. It's just the shock in some of the interviews when you don't know the specific software they need (in this case it was some shipping software and ecommerce). Told them it would be no issue, and that I was a fast learner to catch up to speed. Guess I wasn't fast enough. Was told I came in second.

People really either go to specific for IT jobs (sometimes I don't blame them) or are to vague (then you have to guess what is relevant).

si20

I've got one other story to share... I went for an interview for my PhD in Digital Security... I was interviewed by 2 Dr's in Digital Security and one other guy who was educated to MSc level and working on his PhD. They asked me to do a presentation on security in general, so I did a 10 minute presentation on BYOD and some other relevant topics. I sat down after it and one of them said: "really good, I liked that". So then they grilled me with questions, I did OK - nothing special, nothing poor. I felt like I was on a 50:50 chance of getting the PhD place. Then they asked if I had any questions...

I decided this was time to pull out all the punches - I was going to ask them "what's the ultimate aim of this PhD? Why are you building this software etc?". When they answered, i'd be able to reel off all the things I could add to the project and all of my ideas and prove to them, that I was the right person to select.

So....I asked them: "what's the aim? What are we trying to achieve?" Silence. Absolute, stone cold silence. "Erm...."....they all looked at each other as if i'd just shot their pet cat. I'll paraphrase it:

Me: "What's the aim?"
Dr 1: "Erm?...." *looks at other Dr*
Dr 2: "Looks at MSc guy*
MSc guy: "Well...."
Dr 1: "There's no aim as such"
Dr 2: "We're just building it to see what we come up with. So there is no aim."
* all 3 now look at me, waiting for me to speak *

I was shellshocked. I literally didn't know what to say or do. I decided to try one last thing to get them talking about the project.

Me: "So is there a project plan? Are we going to use a specific programming language, and why?"
Dr 1: "....."
MSc guy: "Erm.....erm.......nothing has been decided yet"

I stood up and shook their hands and walked out. I knew I wasn't going to get it. I completely caught them off guard with my questions and they caught me off guard because I didn't expect their answers.

Nafe92014

Lots of great stories so far. Heres a bad interview I had in mid May of 2014 with a local ISP for a technician position (internet/phone/TV company):

So I arrive at their Head Office 15 minutes early. When I got there, they asked me to fill out an application form (name, skills, etc). I'm looking at it thinking: "Did you guys not read my damn resume and cover letter?" I filled it out anyway, then was called into their board room. Interview was with the Operations Manager and a HR Assistant. They started firing some technical questions, which I had no problem answering. Then they started asking me how comfortable I would be with going down man holes and crawlspaces to run fiber optic cables and other stuff. Told them it wouldn't be a problem. Then they asked me if I had a certification/training for that type of work. Needless to say, it wasn't on the job description when I applied. So when it was my turn to ask them questions, I reached into my wallet and showed them my A+ card. They looked confused when they saw it (hell, my current co-workers at my hospital term position at the time knew what the A+ was). Then we stood up, shook hands, and politely thanked for their time. They told me I will receive a call within the week. Next week came (which was also my last week at my term position), no phone call, so I phoned them and they were like, "oh....yeah um we found someone else with more knowledge." I just said bye and felt pissed that I wasted 1.5 hours of my day filling out another application and answering questions that weren't of subjective to the job. Clearly, they didn't read my CV/resume.

scaredoftests

Nafe92014 wrote: »

Lots of great stories so far. Heres a bad interview I had in mid May of 2014 with a local ISP for a technician position (internet/phone/TV company):

So I arrive at their Head Office 15 minutes early. When I got there, they asked me to fill out an application form (name, skills, etc). I'm looking at it thinking: "Did you guys not read my damn resume and cover letter?" I filled it out anyway, then was called into their board room. Interview was with the Operations Manager and a HR Assistant. They started firing some technical questions, which I had no problem answering. Then they started asking me how comfortable I would be with going down man holes and crawlspaces to run fiber optic cables and other stuff. Told them it wouldn't be a problem. Then they asked me if I had a certification/training for that type of work. Needless to say, it wasn't on the job description when I applied. So when it was my turn to ask them questions, I reached into my wallet and showed them my A+ card. They looked confused when they saw it (hell, my current co-workers at my hospital term position at the time knew what the A+ was). Then we stood up, shook hands, and politely thanked for their time. They told me I will receive a call within the week. Next week came (which was also my last week at my term position), no phone call, so I phoned them and they were like, "oh....yeah um we found someone else with more knowledge." I just said bye and felt pissed that I wasted 1.5 hours of my day filling out another application and answering questions that weren't of subjective to the job. Clearly, they didn't read my CV/resume.

Sometimes, I don't think they ever do actually read resumes (especially some recruiters..). LOL

dustervoice

si20 wrote: »

3 hours non-stop seems a bit ridiculous but to be fair: security SHOULD be technical. When i've worked in a place where security has been about implementing policies and things like ITIL, the security is piss-poor. If that was an hour-long interview, it would have been a good place. 3 hours is what'd put me off, not that their concept of security is technical.

Most of their questions started out as "How do you stop someone in Linux from doing XYZ?" My point is they didn't have a holistic view of security all they were focusing on is technical controls. We know that technical controls alone cannot make a company secure. This is where policy kicks in.. and you asks the question "Is stealing the piece of information worth my £250,000 a year job?" again i respected that this company is known for having some brilliant technical employees but couldn't imagine myself in a security role working with these people daily talking about Linux file permissions 8 hours a day. The question that really pushed me over the edge was one of the interviewer pulled out a python script and said it took me 6 months to code this can you explain to me what my script does? i was like FK u dude!! I politely said if it took you 6 months i think you should be asking a different question

si20

dustervoice wrote: »

Most of their questions started out as "How do you stop someone in Linux from doing XYZ?" My point is they didn't have a holistic view of security all they were focusing on is technical controls. We know that technical controls alone cannot make a company secure. This is where policy kicks in.. and you asks the question "Is stealing the piece of information worth my £250,000 a year job?" again i respected that this company is known for having some brilliant technical employees but couldn't imagine myself in a security role working with these people daily talking about Linux file permissions 8 hours a day. The question that really pushed me over the edge was one of the interviewer pulled out a python script and said it took me 6 months to code this can you explain to me what my script does? i was like FK u dude!! I politely said if it took you 6 months i think you should be asking a different question

I see what you mean now :P I don't understand how these places have the nerve to ask some of the things they do... If a script took 6 months to write, how can you possibly decipher it within a few minutes? I had another interview recently (can you tell i'm looking for a new job??) and was interviewed by a guy who liked the sound of his own voice. If anyone wants to hear it, I could type it up...it was a loooong day.

JustFred

dustervoice wrote: »

Most of their questions started out as "How do you stop someone in Linux from doing XYZ?" My point is they didn't have a holistic view of security all they were focusing on is technical controls. We know that technical controls alone cannot make a company secure. This is where policy kicks in.. and you asks the question "Is stealing the piece of information worth my £250,000 a year job?" again i respected that this company is known for having some brilliant technical employees but couldn't imagine myself in a security role working with these people daily talking about Linux file permissions 8 hours a day. The question that really pushed me over the edge was one of the interviewer pulled out a python script and said it took me 6 months to code this can you explain to me what my script does? i was like FK u dude!! I politely said if it took you 6 months i think you should be asking a different question

Hahahaha brilliant.

Danielm7

Nafe92014 wrote: »

So when it was my turn to ask them questions, I reached into my wallet and showed them my A+ card. They looked confused when they saw it (hell, my current co-workers at my hospital term position at the time knew what the A+ was). Then we stood up, shook hands, and politely thanked for their time.

I work at a very large company with a pretty big IT team. I still think our HR dept and Operations manager would be confused if you just whipped out an A+ card to show them.

On my first IT job interview way back I was sent by a recruiter to a company looking for IT/desktop support. The description was vague, all things I knew already. I sat down with the interviewer, his first question was on my experience with some imaging tool, must have been a late 90s thing because I had never heard of it and haven't since. I told him I don't have any experience with that, but I've used Ghost and was familiar with the concepts of imaging and could learn. He was understanding enough but explained that the entire position involved dealing with that software and he only wanted people who were really well versed in it.

If your whole job role is dealing with X software, maybe consider actually listing it in the job requirements?

dustervoice

Ive conducted interviews for most companies ive worked for and this is what i normally do.

* I have a conversation about non-technical stuff this gives me an idea if i can work with this person on a daily basis
* I generally ask all basic questions this is to give me a level of comfort that this person knows the basics. I figure that anyone with a bit of common sense can do a google search or phone a friend to find a solution to difficult problems.
* I then ask a very difficult question that i know its almost impossible for the person to know the answer to.. I do this to see if the candidate will BS. If he/she says "i don't the answer" i really respect such a person as it shows honesty.

For me its more about how someone fits in the organisation not how many linux commands you can memorize.

Blackout

I had an interview with the Department of Revenue, there the first thing he said to me was we have 50 Technical Questions. The first couple were normal then he started asking me super complex what if scenario questions in regards to Multicast distribution. Was like hey buddy hold up, This job only pays 60K a year, and this is what your expecting? Anyway end of the day I find out my neighbor is IT at the DOR and said this has been an ongoing issue, can't get anyone for the role because their expectations are really high and nobody with that level of experience is going to take a role for 60k a year lol.

greg9891

I have had that happen to me before. The Interviewer wasn't friendly at all and to make it worse he was in charge of the I.T. Department.... he wouldn't crack a smile....his attitude was terrible. other employees were in and out of the office lack of privacy..........glad I didn't get that job I pretty sure I would have regretted it!

dustervoice

Blackout wrote: »

The first couple were normal then he started asking me super complex what if scenario questions in regards to Multicast distribution. .

You should have responded..." Thats what you would pay me to come to work 9-5 to figure out the answers to these questions" I really don't get the point of people asking difficult techie questions in interviews... once some dude ask me some difficult questions then he said to me do you have any questions you would like to ask...i said yes "what is the square root of 3?" he responded i cant answer that .. i said exactly but i bet if you went back to your desk and google it you could provide an answer.

thats when the interview ended.

Blackout

dustervoice wrote: »

You should have responded..." Thats what you would pay me to come to work 9-5 to figure out the answers to these questions" I really don't get the point of people asking difficult techie questions in interviews... once some dude ask me some difficult questions then he said to me do you have any questions you would like to ask...i said yes "what is the square root of 3?" he responded i cant answer that .. i said exactly but i bet if you went back to your desk and google it you could provide an answer. thats when the interview ended.

I have always said being a good engineer is not about what you know, its about whether you can figure out how to do anything. I will never know everything but I have enough resources at my disposal to figure it out. Thats all Employers really want.