I'm not even sure to begin with this one. I spend a lot of time on Glassdoor, and I see a lot of things. This specific interview process was one like I have never witnessed however.
I initially received a contact through a recruiter. Discussed the position, agreed to a telephone interview.
Went through the telephone interview, with owner and high ranking technical manager. Seemed to go pretty well. Was then offered an in-person interview. I accepted. Over the course of about 3-1/2 to 4 hours, met with owner (twice), two high-ranking managers, and human resources. At the end, while meeting in private with owner, he indicated to me that he could not offer me my requested salary (this should have been something he considered before bringing me in) because of the fee he would need to pay the recruiter for finding me. This was an immediate red flag.
I left, feeling concerned, but still optimistic. Not long after, recruiter contacted me and indicated that the employer wanted me to prepare a marketing strategy plan (as the position is advertised and even presented as a very technical one, but this is not really the case). Basically, how would I personally go about creating a brand new department, marketing it, operating it, and acquiring clients. I complied, putting together an in-depth analysis, even including possible methods of evaluating regional competition (who had been doing this work for decades, while this firm had not offered it for one second of their existence).
A few days later, I hear back again. This time recruiter indicates to me that they would like a third interview, to discuss the plan I put together for them. Prior to doing so, they now want me to put together another presentation, that more deeply analyzes how I will target potential clients, and to provide a list of clients I would be bringing with me.
I raise severe objections to this, due to the fact that I am basically preparing a substantial amount of marketing work for them, for free, on my own time. Couple that with the low salary offering, I am concerned. However, I decide that I will do this, one final time. So I put another presentation together, similar in length, on my own time, at my own cost. This is then submitted.
Days go by. Nothing. I finally contact recruiter. He informs me they've passed, good luck. He did indicate that I did not offer enough clients, and ready-to-begin projects that I would be bringing with me.
First of all, I am certainly not offering all of my potential client contacts to them. Secondly, the idea that I can bring actual projects with me, ready to start, to a company I do not even work for yet, nor one that has EVER offered this service before is absurd.
It basically boils down to the fact that they just wanted me to feed them work. That's not something I am going to do. I mean, if you are a potential hire for this position, and you have 250 contacts wiling to give you work RIGHT NOW, then maybe this place is for you. However, if you really are in this situation, are you going to take those clients/projects to a company who has never performed this type of work before?
I have started seeing the position advertised again. I would warn anyone who decides to pursue it, not only is the job description highly misleading, but the description of the firm itself is very disingenuous.
There are only a few company reviews on this site; however, the few assessments that I have read are very accurate in regards to this company, how I would envision that they operate, and how I would expect them to treat employees.
