I recently had an interview with an HR recruiter at Zeiss Group France that was highly disappointing.
It was, without a doubt, the worst interview encounter I have ever had.
To begin with, The recruiter's initial interaction was cold and impersonal, lacking warmth and professionalism despite my enthusiasm and relevant qualifications.
Furthermore, the interview itself was nothing short of a disaster. The recruiter displayed a complete lack of courtesy by being approximately ten minutes late without offering so much as an apology for the delay. Upon finally commencing the interview, instead of discussing the role as expected, the recruiter launched into a series of interrogation-style questions, such as "What do you know about Zeiss Group?"
Despite my extensive knowledge of Zeiss Group and its products within my field of expertise, the recruiter expressed dissatisfaction with my responses. He went as far as to berate me for not conducting additional research on Zeiss Group, insinuating that my failure to do so reflected poorly on my candidacy. This criticism was particularly unjustified considering that I had provided a thorough response based on my existing knowledge of the company and its products, especially for an engineering role related to my field of expertise.
Additionally, the recruiter didn't review my resume, claiming technical issues. And then he made unfounded assumptions about my profile, labeling me as "junior" without any basis or consideration of my actual credentials.
To top it off, the recruiter abruptly ended the interview, implying that my lack of prior detailed research indicated an inability to represent Zeiss Group effectively to clients if hired and that "he wouldn't trust me to do so". This decision was made without any meaningful discussion of my professional experience or qualifications, demonstrating a clear disregard for fair and thorough evaluation processes.
In conclusion, my experience with the recruiter at Zeiss Group FRANCE was highly unprofessional and left me with a deeply negative impression of the organization. It is disheartening to encounter such a dismissive and disrespectful attitude from a company representative, particularly during what should have been a standard interview process. It's important to note that the recruiter must also convince the candidate to choose the company ; it's a two-way street.
I sincerely hope that Zeiss Group adresses these issues and ensures that future candidates are treated with the respect and professionalism they deserve.