Quid Pro Quo

Our 1 year old high tech washing machine broke down this week.  Since it was still under warranty, I called and set up an appointment to have it repaired.  See if this sounds familiar:

• 2:30 Saturday - call to set up appointment
• Earliest available appointment  - Thursday, between 1:00 and 5:00
• Thursday, 4:54 pm - Technician shows up, takes less than 20 minutes to repair (drive belt failure due to a loose fitting)

Now, we have all had to set aside a block of time for some sort of home based appointment - cable installation, carpet cleaning, delivery of some sort, etc... It can be moderately frustrating to 'waste' hours of time for a stuff like this , but 99 time out of 100, the appointment is kept within the given time frame.  Similarly, we have all spent WAY too much time siting in a doctor's office waiting as the scheduled appointment time goes whizzing by, and the 5 minute follow up is 2 hours after you arrived.  Still, the end result is that you have seen the doctor.

After taking some time off from the "rodent completion", I have been on the hunt for new employment opportunities for the past several months.  During the process, I have set up dozens of appointment, meetings, phone calls, lunches and coffees.  I can say unequivocally, that I have NEVER missed or even been late for any of these events.  It is not a source of pride...it is just who I am .  If I say that I will be at  Jerry's Deli at 12:30 on the 15th...I'm there at 12:15, just because I left early so as not to get hung up in traffic. On the off chance that I am being held up, or have a conflict, a text/phone call/email is sent with as soon as I am able, allowing the party I am to meet with adequate notice of the change.

The interview process is a roller coaster.  With numerous hurdles to overcome just to get the interview - going thru multiple levels of technology to get your name in front of a human being, pre screening with HR/recruiters, coordinating time to have the call/meet in person - the interview is almost a relief.  

It is a common practice to follow up an interview with an email, thanking the interviewer for their time and  (if appropriate) to make a reference to 'next steps' in the process.  This is especially true when at the end of the interview, the interviewer references the next step, ie.."I'll follow up with you next Monday"..or .."We need to get you in hear to meet the rest of the team next week.."

I wish the response process was 1/100th as dependable as the washing machine repair process. 

I have lost count the number of times that I have waited for, and never received the promised follow up.  I'm not counting the soft.."we're looking at other candidates, and we'll get back to you..." or ..."don't call us, we'll call you..." variety.  I'm talking about the hard date, sometimes even time specific statements. 

In once instance, I had 2 separate phone interviews, was told at the end of the second call that.."I want to get you in here next Tuesday to meet the other members of the group.." only to have 3 weeks go by, with 4 unanswered emails, 3 phone messages left, and find out thru an industry web site that the position had been filed.

The very type of behavior that would keep me from getting an interview, or a best, indicate what type of employee I would be, seems to be an common practice from the other side of the desk, and I'm not sure why.

Say what you mean, keep your word, follow up and keep all parties as informed as possible.

I get that I am not going to get every job that I interview for. If I'm not a match, let me know.  I'm a big boy, and you won't hurt my feelings by telling me 'no', for whatever reason.

If you can't make an appointment or circumstances change, a simple email, text, phone call is all that is needed. 

However, don't take the easy way out and just go radio silent.  Call it courtesy or respect, call it professionalism, call it whatever you wish.

Ah, job hunting...it's like jr. high dating for grown ups.