Property MaintenI arrived on the day of the interview and found the reception staff to be pleasant. They asked me to take a seat and wait for the interviewer to be notified of my arrival.
It was only a matter of around 5 minutes of waiting before I was approached by a guy who was personable and professional. I stood up, shook his hand, we introduced ourselves then we proceeded to walk up the stairs to the interview room.
When I entered the meeting room there was a woman sitting there who didn't bother to stand up and/or shake my hand. They looked like they were bothered being there to be honest. Turns out she was there as the original interviewer couldn’t make it.
The first question she asked me was why I had not mentioned a GCSE in my application form as this was listed as a requirement in the job spec. I explained that I had a HNC which supersedes a GCSE and I also have 20 years’ experience in a professional environment. She refused to accept this and argued a HNC did not supersede a GCSE. For me it felt like asking a bus driver for proof they could drive a car.
After this first awkward interaction she then asked me if I wanted to proceed with the interview. I knew at this point I wouldn't want to work with this woman but I spent 40 minutes driving there, so I said yes (interview experience is valuable).
Near the end of the interview, I was asked to guess what the team was responsible for doing. At this point I was just totally baffled by the question - the whole point of an interview is for the employer to inform the candidate of the job specifications and for the candidate to explain how their experience fits the role.
The very last question I was asked….. “are you still interested in the role”. They knew from the start they weren’t going to make me an offer. Know how when you meet a random person for the first time and somehow you get the feeling they don't like you. That's what I felt from her as I walked into the room.
It's the worst interview I've ever been to. The atmosphere in the room was horrible. I could sense that even the other guy felt awkward too because the woman was making it awkward. The skills and experience on my CV seemed a perfect match for the role which is obviously why someone made the decision to contact me for an interview.
To summarise the whole thing - I believe the attitude of the interviewer created an awkward atmosphere and made the whole 45 minutes a horrible experience. They were saying things like “my team” and “I tell them”. Unprofessional power trip type of person.