Job hunting

[Bleep1673]

Got a Job Interview next Wednesday with AXA/PPP as a Customer service representative in Tunbridge Wells. I REALLY want this job, it sounds great. Blue chip company, good package. Plus I can walk to Warrior Square Station, 45 mins later I am in TW, and 5 mins walk to work.

[Bleep1673]

17 hours ago, JohnM said:

You lot don't know yer born!! You're lucky. This is how it was in my day!

The year: 1962

The place: West Gorton, Manchester

The job: a place on the Ferranti Computer Equipment Group  (later to become ICT then ICL and now Fujitsu)  Graduate Training Programme.

The salary: £2  6s  4d a week rising to £11 a week after 6 years.

Three days of interviews, aptitude tests, teamwork tests, etc  travelling o three different premises around Manchester (West Gorton, Moston, Hollinwood)

40 of us chosen out of several hundred applicants. Got the job as a salaried employee and immediately sent for 6 years full time education - Odd, since I was only 16 having just got my "o" levels, most others were between 18 and 21.

When I was at Salford College of Technology (1978-80), studying electronics, there was a sandwich shop opposite the Adelphi St Campus called Aunties, someone started boasting they had a job working for Ferranti's, of course we all thought he was working "For Aunties" making sandwich's.

[Damien]

22 hours ago, Bedford Roughyed said:

No, but from the job spec and the first 2 video interviews I have a decent idea.  I just need to have an armoury of examples where I have done X or Y.  I can then shoe horn them into any scenario.  

Use STAR and get strong examples. Look at the effective behaviours needed for each competency and try to hit them all in your example. If it's government the framework used is much the same anywhere.

[Bedford Roughyed]

6 hours ago, MattSantos said:

What the hell is the job?

When I said 3 different interviews, I meant the 3 interviews with 3 separate companies!  Not 3 stages with the same one!  

[Bedford Roughyed]

6 hours ago, ckn said:

That many interviews suggests an insecure company with an inherent lack of trust between the different interviewers.

This latest job will be 2 x 1hr video interviews (done and 'passed') followed by the 5 x 30mins (in 2 weeks).  The 5 interviews are with someone the same grade/job title (the can we work with this guy test?), the ops manager (he was the 1st video interview), the ops mangers boss, the HR recruitment person and then a video interview with a director.  

They suggested at the first video interview, that if you get invited in to the HQ then they were very keen, almost its yours to lose territory.  

Location is OK (London, I did want to go back North ideally), money is good and the actual job gets much more interesting as I learn from the interviewers, a good chance of some travel.  Big step change from my current one, which could be a good change and get me out of a rut.  Downsides are they are a fancy start up throwing the cash so will they go the distance, big name competitors snapping at the heels, new tech, nothing yet in place as far as shifts and procedures.  However, I'm redundant from the end of October so its not like I'm jumping from stability into a job that might go south quickly.  

[Wolford6]

50 years ago, in my area of South Wales there were "craft apprenticeships" and "technical apprenticeships". Generally speaking, many technical apprenticeships required applicants to have five "O Levels". Craft apprentices could still progress within companies and attain managerial positions but their further education courses started at a lower level. This was a bit unfortunate for most of the kids in our village because the secondary modern school only offered most of them three O Levels to study.

One such friend had an interview for an apprenticeship at the local Royal Ordnance  Factory. He sailed through all the verbal and written tests but was rejected because he failed his "wire-bending". This was still a source of some humour when he became Chairman of the local Health Authority.

[JonM]

On 11/09/2019 at 21:08, JohnM said:

You lot don't know yer born!! You're lucky. This is how it was in my day!

Three days of interviews, aptitude tests, teamwork tests, etc  travelling o three different premises around Manchester (West Gorton, Moston, Hollinwood)

Different times indeed. I guess they thought they were hiring people for life.

My oldest son is about to start his last year of Computer Science at university. He's already had multiple job offers for next year where there was no face to face interview at all - just an online test and a relatively short video call.

I must've interviewed a couple of thousand people when I was working. Definitely if we got to the point of bringing you in for a face to face it was yours to lose.

[Bleep1673]

On 12/09/2019 at 14:59, Bleep1673 said:

Got a Job Interview next Wednesday with AXA/PPP as a Customer service representative in Tunbridge Wells. I REALLY want this job, it sounds great. Blue chip company, good package. Plus I can walk to Warrior Square Station, 45 mins later I am in TW, and 5 mins walk to work.

Interview went well, although I think I fluffed one of the questions, but I don't think I will get the job, looking around the rooms there seems to be a lot of 20-40 year old hipster types, rather than a 57 year old, white, straight, single, male, like me

[Bedford Roughyed]

Interview day over.  First 4 went well, and then the last one less so.  Fiddlesticks.

[Bedford Roughyed]

On 24/09/2019 at 15:01, Bedford Roughyed said:

Interview day over.  First 4 went well, and then the last one less so.  Fiddlesticks.

The last interview cost me the 'senior' role, but the good news is I got a decent offer for a role, with the expectation of promotion in the future if I prove myself.  So off to work in the big bad city.  

[Just Browny]

Completely failed to sell myself in an interview this morning. Fed up.

[Kayakman]

32 minutes ago, Just Browny said:

Completely failed to sell myself in an interview this morning. Fed up.

Their loss...never give up...keep the faith!

[Bedford Roughyed]

1 hour ago, Just Browny said:

Completely failed to sell myself in an interview this morning. Fed up.

I've had a few interviews in the last couple of months.  None of them went perfectly, practice does help though!

[Futtocks]

1 hour ago, Just Browny said:

Completely failed to sell myself in an interview this morning. Fed up.

My last job interview, which concluded 3 years' unemployment, was conducted while I was suffering from heatstroke. At a different meeting later that afternoon, I almost fell down a very long staircase when my legs folded under me. I still got the job from the interview without any follow-ups.

Sometimes the people doing the interviews read more from you than you think you have projected.

[BryanC]

On ‎12‎/‎09‎/‎2019 at 14:47, MattSantos said:

For my current job, i had a 45 min chat and that was that. Boomster

Interesting comment.

I've found over the years that the "interviews" that were just an informal chat turned out to be jobs that I actually enjoyed doing.

The ones with numerous layers of "competency based" interviews, aptitude tests, etc all sucked in a big way without exception (including my current one).

[ckn]

4 hours ago, BryanC said:

Interesting comment.

I've found over the years that the "interviews" that were just an informal chat turned out to be jobs that I actually enjoyed doing.

The ones with numerous layers of "competency based" interviews, aptitude tests, etc all sucked in a big way without exception (including my current one).

Today I held telephone interviews for a specialist job working for me. 15 minute slots, three questions to five candidates, each with excellent CVs and provable history.

1. Why do you want the job?

2. Tell me how you make sure you’re delivering what people want.

3. How should I check that you’ve delivered that?

Q1 is an icebreaker, just for interest. They’d have to give me an utterly stupid answer such as “your business manager is damn hot and I want to get closer” to lose on that.

Q2, it’s a tough project trying to get a bunch of doctors, managers and council folk all agreeing on the same thing and delivering it. I don’t want someone coming in and doing THEIR thing, I want someone who can competently do business analysis then turn it into a proper plan that delivers what we need. Four out of five candidates had their interview stopped here.

Q3, I want them to demonstrate that their plan is a fully testable one. If it’s not clear enough, or is unnecessarily vague, then how can I prove they’ve delivered it properly?

Candidate 5 starts on Monday. 

[Bleep1673]

A1, Because I need a job, and I am desperate.

A2. By asking them what they want, and delivering what we want them to have (as per NHS policies)

A3. By asking the client, and ignoring me (as per NHS policy)

[Bob8]

On 01/10/2019 at 11:33, Bleep1673 said:

A1, Because I need a job, and I am desperate.

A2. By asking them what they want, and delivering what we want them to have (as per NHS policies)

A3. By asking the client, and ignoring me (as per NHS policy)

I am a touch embarrassed, as I am I writing from a position of luxury.

I was job hunting last year and my union advised me to go through all my jobs, and write down:

- What points I enjoyed

- What aspects I disliked

- What I did well

- What I did badly

- A success from it

It actually helps build a story up. Of course, ultimately, it is nonsense. But, when you are asked why you want this job, you can come up with a story about what has lead you to this and examples of why you would be good at it.

The other questions;

2. Tell me how you make sure you’re delivering what people want.
3. How should I check that you’ve delivered that?

Are also ones where you suddenly will have examples. Successes where you were able to ensure you made sure and how you confirmed it.

[bbfaz]

I'm struggling at the moment with this.  Thought I could change careers but something has come up which will stop me from getting into that industry now.  I can't get a job as an IT BA right now (Brexit hiring freezes in the UK, my Spanish isn't good enough for Spain plus nobody knows what they'll do with us Brits in less than a month), changing career was my ticket.  I genuinely don't know what to do with my life.  Sadly, my business takes up loads of time but doesn't bring home the bacon.

[ckn]

59 minutes ago, bbfaz said:

I'm struggling at the moment with this.  Thought I could change careers but something has come up which will stop me from getting into that industry now.  I can't get a job as an IT BA right now (Brexit hiring freezes in the UK, my Spanish isn't good enough for Spain plus nobody knows what they'll do with us Brits in less than a month), changing career was my ticket.  I genuinely don't know what to do with my life.  Sadly, my business takes up loads of time but doesn't bring home the bacon.

The current lack of competent project managers who know their way around even the most rudimentary of requirements analysis means that quite a few places I've seen are taking chances on recruiting BAs as planning stage project managers for major projects.  That might be a "plan B" worth investigating.

[bbfaz]

1 hour ago, ckn said:

The current lack of competent project managers who know their way around even the most rudimentary of requirements analysis means that quite a few places I've seen are taking chances on recruiting BAs as planning stage project managers for major projects.  That might be a "plan B" worth investigating.

Do you know if there's a course or an exam that might make my CV pop?

[ckn]

1 minute ago, bbfaz said:

Do you know if there's a course or an exam that might make my CV pop?

Depends on your existing experience.  What'd round it out if you were the recruiter and your CV was put in front of you? 

Most recruiters like idiot stuff like PRINCE2, although it really means nothing as I know PRINCE2 practitioners whose most complex project ever is their weekly food shop.  That's usually enough to get past the 18 year old "senior" recruitment agent's desk.

If you're looking to impress people in the know then you need to be showing you know how to manage from vision to delivery and onto benefits realisation. Revise your CV to highlight when you've done that.

Ruthlessly exploit your contacts, those you've worked with in the past who know you. The last job I got without the benefit of pulling in favours from those who know how I work was 2001.

[Bleep1673]

On 12/09/2019 at 14:59, Bleep1673 said:

Got a Job Interview next Wednesday with AXA/PPP as a Customer service representative in Tunbridge Wells. I REALLY want this job, it sounds great. Blue chip company, good package. Plus I can walk to Warrior Square Station, 45 mins later I am in TW, and 5 mins walk to work.

Didn't get it. I got a phone call with feedback, at least.

[Bleep1673]

1 hour ago, Bleep1673 said:

Didn't get it. I got a phone call with feedback, at least.

No sooner did I get off the phone to them, I got an Email from Royal Mail offering me an interview for a Christmas Sorters post (evenings only) in Eastbourne!

[Bleep1673]

17 minutes ago, Bleep1673 said:

No sooner did I get off the phone to them, I got an Email from Royal Mail offering me an interview for a Christmas Sorters post (evenings only) in Eastbourne!

I have to take 20 pages of paperwork for my ID, most of which I have to print off from the Royal Mails own website, which they could do themselves.