STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

SienaSera · Nine West

Timeline question

Andrea Julia · Coach

I think it's great that you have been so conscientious in following up. Sometimes that is a key factor in someone getting a job over another person.

I think that the woman you would be working under would definitely know who had been chosen. However, maybe she can't say anything because the HR person is the company's representative and they have to be the one to tell you (whether you did or didn't get the job). I don't know. I couldn't imagine that the HR person would make the final decision. I think it would be the person you would be working for that makes the decision. Not that I have that much to base it on. That's just the way it is done in my company: the HR person interviews you first. If you really suck, you never meet with anyone else. If HR likes you, you interview with your potential boss and some other key people you would be working with, but not for. Either your boss (or the dept. as a committee) decides who they want to hire and then they let HR know and HR calls you and sends the offer letter.

Maybe they are giving you the runaround, maybe not. There are still 2 days in March and always figure if they say end of March, it could really turn into middle of April if people's schedules are hectic. Just keep following up. A girl I work with told me she just kept calling our HR rep after she interviewed. She said she would have kept calling until she was either told she got the job or told to stop calling.

Dizzy · Marc Jacobs

I don't want to read too much into it, but, um, it kind of sounds like the woman knew you didn't get the job and didn't want to be the one to tell you. That doesn't mean stop trying, though. But I wouldn't recommend continuing to call and say 'Did I get the job, can you tell me?' That makes you seem like an obligation. And no one wants to deal with an obligation. Also, that constant calling thing can make it seem like the person feels entitled. Which can put off some potential bosses. But some industries like the hard-driving types, so do what you think is best.

For what it's worth, I used to have to screen people who wanted a job in foodwriting, and NO ONE ever got anywhere through force. I just didnt' have time to deal with the "I'm energetic and hardworking and blah, blah, blah..." I know that sounds mean, but I think a lot of people feel the same. No one wants to do you a favor because they don't know you.

What does work, though, is kissing up. And sometimes a little lying. A good friend of mine had almost the exact same treatment from our paper. They had her meet all the editors. Flew her out from California twice. And then never told her she wasn't hired, for four months. Because HR didn't have to and the editors didn't want to.

So she never pushed the issue, but kept in touch with the editors in a FRIENDLY way (Here's an article that reminded me of our conversation - Congratulations on your sports team making the playoffs... whatever) Then she called and said she had an interview with another company in the area, but still really liked our paper. And she used her mom's frequent flyer miles to visit. (She was lying about the interview, and just kept it vague, which made her look good anyway, like she didn't want to gossip).

They hired her for a different department. And she came in as a star that the editors wanted so much they basically created a position. (Of course now she's blowing it by overworking on low-prestige projects, which hurts her ability to do high-prestige projects, and she didn't get a good raise - but that's another story...) The editors also played it like "look at how on top of talent we are... we were going to hire her all along..." which made them look good to the publisher. I think my friend suggested that angle to them when she figured out the talent search was something that mattered at our paper.

This is the trick: instead of begging insistently for a favor, she offered to do them a favor out of the goodness of her heart, simply because she liked them. So much more charming. I would have fallen for it too. Good luck!

SienaSera · Nine West

Thanks for the replies guys. I guess I'll know sooner or later because the company sends out rejection letters. I had a friend that once interviewed for a position and the entire hiring process took about 3 months. so who knows?