Harrods Sub Editor Interview Questions

Application

I applied through a recruiter. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Harrods (London, England) in August 2018.

Interview

Terrible experience. Recruiter contacted me on LinkedIn, said they liked my profile and that I'd fit the role well. They told me the salary range and scheduled a call a few days later. So far, so good.

Telephone call day and date comes... But I don't receive a call. An hour after the allotted time, I message the recruiter on LinkedIn, the medium they used to initially contact me. No response. Later, I give head office a call. They try and put me through the recruiter. Nobody picks up. 'Is she even there?' I ask, assuming they might be sick or otherwise occupied. 'Yes, they've swiped into the building today.' So the recruiter is at work, and they're just ignoring all contact?

The receptionist who I spoke to on the phone (who was very helpful) gave me the recruiter's email. I sent a message saying I'd be happy to talk if they're still interested; more than anything, I just wanted an idea of whatever was going on.

It's been a week now and I haven't heard anything. The entire episode was a complete waste of my time. It's not what you'd expect for a brand globally renowned for offering quality service, nor is it what you'd expect for an in-house recruiter. I wouldn't mind in most circumstances, but the headhunter was the one who made contact with me, and the least they could do is see it through. Don't schedule calls with people and ghost them later. It's incredibly rude.

I will happily amend or remove this interview if it turns out to be a misunderstanding, but given the recruiter's complete lack of interest in engaging with candidates they have spoken to I highly doubt this will happen. If this is in any way representative of the company's culture or what is acceptable, it's a damning indictment of an otherwise highly respectable brand.