An interview should be a two-way street – the candidate demonstrates why they would be a good fit for the organisation, and the potential employer shows them a few good reasons why they might like to work there.
But, that’s not always the case – sometimes, the employer makes a misstep so bad the candidate decides the place isn't right for them.
This reflects badly on both the company doing the interview and the recruitment firm that scored them the interview in the first place.
Below, we've rounded up some of the worst interview experiences candidates can recall - experiences that caused them to do a 'Craig David' and walk away.
1) Know your business
We always tell candidates to do a bit of research on the firms they are interviewing with – but you too need to know about your business. Reddit user alternate_ego_acct met a hiring manager who somehow knew less about their organisation than their candidate did.
“Interviewing at Freebirds (a restaurant) I was asked, ‘We believe there's a lot behind a name. Do you know where the name Led Zeppelin comes from?’,” they wrote. They eagerly launched into an explanation that a Led Zeppelin can’t fly, when the supervisor interrupted them.
"Actually, Led Zeppelin was named after the gym teacher of the founding members’,” they said. “He didn't believe in them, and they knew they were going to be a success. Not only that, but this restaurant is named after one of their songs. And I really recommend you do your research to get to know the company if we do end up offering you a position.’"
Ouch! But it’s actually Lynyrd Skynyrd who were named for their gym teacher and wrote Freebird… Not knowing a crucial fact about their own chain cost this manager a hire.
2) Bragging about a poor work-life balance
’We don't force you to do overtime, but we encourage it’,” a hiring manager told Redditor mattcollins84. “’I was here at midnight on New Year’s Eve.’
“This was for a web developer position and he actually looked smug about it, like this was a no brainer,” the Reddit user added. “I mean, it was, but not in the way he thought.”
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