The job posting was confidential; I applied to the position in late December. On a Sunday in late January, I received a call from a consultant. He called to set up a formal phone interview the following week, which I did. Insisted on a land line for the call.
At the time of the scheduled interview, the consultant did not call. After 10 minutes, I called and left messages for him on his cell and office lines. He called back within minutes; running late. He discussed the company in general terms and inquired into my background. He was to relay our interview to the owners and see if they wanted to meet with me. He emphasized that organizational skills were critical.
Later that week, the consultant called back, and stated that I was 1 of 5 candidates still in the running. He finally shared the name of the company, and the owner / son who would interview me. The next interview would be a conference call with the father & son a week out, followed by a tour of the plant.
Finally having the name of the company, I reviewed the contents of the website, which were interesting, but very general. I prepared some notes for the next phone interview. At the hour scheduled, no call came. After 10 minutes, I called the consultant, who did not answer. At 20 minutes past the hour, I called the office number from the website. I was put on hold by a receptionist while she "would try to find them". After another 10 minutes, she returned to state that they would call me shortly.
A full 30 minutes after the interview had been scheduled, the owner & son called from their conference room. They took turns asking questions of my background, and discussing the importance of the fit with their vision of the company.
When discussing inside vs. outside sales, I was told their last sales manager had never been out to visit anyone in the last 3 years. I noted that I thought it good to have occasional in-person contact, since people buy from people. The owner stated that their customers felt that paying to have someone visit them meant JS & C was making too much profit, and the margins would need to be examined. At another point, the owner remarked about how they have been profitable for 30 years, and suggested that some of the employees have left for a dollar here or there, but usually returned after a period.
The owner wanted to know my suggestions on new business directions, which seemed inappropriate at this juncture. With so little information available through the process, particularly about their history, how was I to suggest where the business should go?
In closing, the owners promised to call by the end of the week. All 5 candidates would get a call, regardless of their verdict. I sent an email thank-you to the consultant that night, and called Friday. The consultant had no answer, and said he had a conference call scheduled with them. I called Monday, and he still had no answer, but stated he had a meeting with them tomorrow. 2 days later, I got a no-thanks letter in the mail.
Impressions:
# 1: The casual lateness & poor follow-up suggests the company is disorganized at the highest levels, which likely filters throughout the business.
# 2: By noting the customer feedback, this suggests that this is a commodity product, sold on price only.
# 3: The comment about employees leaving suggests that the compensation is less desirable.
