I knew something was amiss when I got the first phone call, inviting me for an interview. The caller wouldn't tell me what the position entailed, what qualifications they wanted or even the job title. Only that they were interviewing a number of candidates for a variety of openings and that "you'll be told what you're interviewing for when you get here." Huh? How do I prepare for that? But I was curious and figured, at worst, it would be interview practice.
First of all, the office is in a light-industrial business complex, not an office building. My "appointment" time was clearly shared by four or five other people. The receptionist was eating lunch at her desk while answering phones and flirting with callers. At one point, she told a caller she had good news, that paychecks had arrived that morning and would be in the mail (shouldn't that be a given, and not cause for celebration?). Bad impressions all the way around. It became clear this was a cattle call, not a professional interview. So, after a 40-minute wait, it was my turn.
I got a two-minute recitation that Endeavor is an "event-based" marketing firm that supposedly includes non-profits and "Fortune 500 companies" among its clients that she didn't name. She spoke quickly and vaguely, saying they "set up events" and then "meet with" attendees. To do what? For what objective? What sort of "events" would involve Nuggets or Rockies games (the teams aren't clients)? Despite several attempts to pin her down, I didn't get any more information other than "setting up tables and balloons." She could only offer specifics about DARE events in which, it turns out, an Endeavor employee is telling the kiddies how to be safe, not arranging for actual experts to do the "safety training." Finally, she sneaked in a quick "and of course sell products." And the interview was over. Wait, what products? For what client? Did I miss something? Tell me this isn't commission sales work...
Then I was told that if they were interested, I should expect a phone call that evening to set up a second interview (at en event site) and to wait by the phone.By this point, I had a bad taste in my mouth and was fairly certain this wasn't a job for someone with a professional background, experience and skill set.
More to the point, this isn't how you treat professionals. An interview appointment is (within reason) a firm agreement. When I enter the reception area, five other people don't need to know why I'm there; you never know when someone in the room knows someone who knows my boss. And you don't make me drive 45 minutes for a 40-minute wait and a 10-minute chat without fully explaining the job you want to fill. After all, in any employment interview, I'm interviewing them as much as they are interviewing me. How they conduct themselves and how they answer my questions determine if I'm interested in pursuing a position with them.
And, no, they didn't call. Not that I was holding my breath.
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