5 ms·

It's probably some poorly implemented HR policy that if there's a job opening they still have to publicly post it even if there's someone internally who fits th

by beeboop 11y ago

It's probably some poorly implemented HR policy that if there's a job opening they still have to publicly post it even if there's someone internally who fits the bill and wants it. I ran into something similar at my first job out of college (which was a shitty place to work in many ways). There was a job opening, they posted it, and even as an existing employee they wouldn't interview me for it because they already had someone in mind internally that was essentially going to be a shoe-in. Requiring a public posting is a good idea in theory, but in reality it seems most places are just wasting people's time because external candidates are never seriously considered.

p4wnc6 11y ago
But what was weird is that they did go through a non-trivial amount of the initial interview process with me, then became silent for 3 weeks, and then said that they had an internal candidate. (It sounded to me like the internal candidate applied for the role after my first interview, but I can't say for sure). That's why it struck me as so strange.
- beeboop 11y ago
  Sometimes the job posting is done for the reason of renewing a worker's visa. Maybe showing there was some real action taken towards considering other candidates (15 minute phone screen) helps cover their ass in case the government comes knocking on their door.
  - p4wnc6 11y ago
    That makes sense. The most egregious interview hassle I had was with a large insurance company based in Connecticut. They had me do 1 HR phone call and then a difficult 1-hour technical phone interview. After that interview they gave me a lot of positive feedback and said they wanted to proceed, but then pressured me heavily that in order to proceed past that point, they needed a lot of specifics about my desired salary. Foolishly, I agreed to share, thinking that I didn't want to miss the chance for additional interviews. I did not hear a word of reply from them for months, at least 4 months. Then, out of nowhere, I received what was clearly an automated email sent to many people, which said basically the following: "Thank you for participating in our exploratory market survey for the role of 'Data Scientist' -- regretfully, we have decided to move the company in a different direction and so the position will not be filled." That dramatically changed my perspective about how to approach job interviews, how to relentlessly avoid ever sharing salary data, etc.
ozy123 11y ago
Yup. I saw this happen at my last company. They knew exactly who they wanted to hire internally but were under pressure to recruit externally so went through the rigmarole of advertising, interviewing and rejecting people only to give the job to the person they were already pretty much decided upon.

by beeboop 11y ago

p4wnc6 11y ago

But what was weird is that they did go through a non-trivial amount of the initial interview process with me, then became silent for 3 weeks, and then said that they had an internal candidate. (It sounded to me like the internal candidate applied for the role after my first interview, but I can't say for sure). That's why it struck me as so strange.

beeboop 11y ago
Sometimes the job posting is done for the reason of renewing a worker's visa. Maybe showing there was some real action taken towards considering other candidates (15 minute phone screen) helps cover their ass in case the government comes knocking on their door.
- p4wnc6 11y ago
  That makes sense. The most egregious interview hassle I had was with a large insurance company based in Connecticut. They had me do 1 HR phone call and then a difficult 1-hour technical phone interview. After that interview they gave me a lot of positive feedback and said they wanted to proceed, but then pressured me heavily that in order to proceed past that point, they needed a lot of specifics about my desired salary. Foolishly, I agreed to share, thinking that I didn't want to miss the chance for additional interviews. I did not hear a word of reply from them for months, at least 4 months. Then, out of nowhere, I received what was clearly an automated email sent to many people, which said basically the following: "Thank you for participating in our exploratory market survey for the role of 'Data Scientist' -- regretfully, we have decided to move the company in a different direction and so the position will not be filled." That dramatically changed my perspective about how to approach job interviews, how to relentlessly avoid ever sharing salary data, etc.

ozy123 11y ago

Yup. I saw this happen at my last company. They knew exactly who they wanted to hire internally but were under pressure to recruit externally so went through the rigmarole of advertising, interviewing and rejecting people only to give the job to the person they were already pretty much decided upon.