I must admit I was on a roll a few weeks ago and had most of the week booked solid with phone screens, interviews and occasionally a video interview or two. In this market, staying busy and being productive is well…a very good thing. I encountered a candidate that on paper had good stuff. Great background, solid educational credentials and this guy was not a job-hopper at all. His career progression was stellar in every way. I sent him the position profile well in advance of the interview so he clearly knew what the position was all about.
After exchanging brief introductions I was off to the races to learn more about Mr Wonderful. Five minutes into my call I heard this awful noise from the other end of the phone. It was Mr Wonderful screaming at me! ”STOP” he said! What? He went on to tell me (in the middle of my interview) that he would no longer answer my questions. What? “I’m asking the questions from now on” he shouted. He continued with his own rant on how he was sick and tired of search consultants leading the conversation and asking questions. He informed me he was taking over the conversation. I was amazed given the clear expectations that had been established for this interview.
He had days to review the specs and for whatever reason felt the need to take control and end my interview with questions of his own. I’m perfectly fine with questions and happy to give answers to any candidate that wants to find out more about the company, role, culture or other questions a candidate might have. What I will not do is stop my interview in mid-stream and let a candidate drive the conversation. That’s when the conversation is no longer an interview and there is no logical flow to the discussion.
Given the profile of the type of candidate my client was looking for I decided then and there this was not a good fit. While I was thanking him for his time and explaining why I was ending the interview he continued to scream and rant - ”I’m not finished”! I quickly replied - ”Yes you are”. I started to regain my sanity once I heard dial tone but still needed to walk this one off for a few minutes. Sometimes I stand back and ask myself why? Other times I simply shrug my shoulders and try to forget about what just happened since logic was never in play on this call.
The day ended, I had moved on and this encounter was now a distant memory. No – not really. It’s still lingering a bit…
I’ve had something similar happen to me. I contact a candidate for a quick phone screen, just want to give some info on us and make sure she isn’t crazy. She was crazy. About a minute into my spiel she tells me that it sounds like I’m reading from a script (I wasn’t) and that she wants to do this differently (I’m like huh…?) and just starts talking about something completely unrelated. I quickly ended the conversation by telling her I got all the info I needed (she asked me if I was sure a bunch of times, I was sure).
Being an IT recruiter, although now on the corporate side, I understand this type of “interview” fairly well. I have candidates try to “take the raines” all the time when they do not think I have the technical knowlege they do. Either they feel they should bve leading or they talk down to me. Which is worse? Talking down by far! As a salesman (this is what we all are corporate or not) I always try to create rapport with the candidate and get aquaited with the them. This usually gives me the clues I need to understand if they are crazy or overbearing in any way and I can handle it in the proper way. Sometimes to find the right candidate, you have to break a few nuts!!
Shawn:
Thanks for your post. Some candidates want to create their own set of rules for the interview process. It is a quick recipe to derail the interview and their chance to advance to the next round. Ending the call sometimes is the only way to wrap-up!
I think both are really bad scenarios. If I had to choose the absolute worst based on the choices on your menu – I would have to say having them “talk down” to me. I really think that has to be the worst. Maybe the next time that happens you should give them a fun riddle. How’s “What’s grey and goes click”? If the candidate guesses the word “telephone” OR “dial-tone” – they are the grand prize winner! Great post!
I’ve run into behavior like this from candidates (employed or not) that have been on the job hunt for a *long* time. With leads and interviews not going anywhere, they start to lash out. I’m guessing this candidate has been feeling very powerless lately (lets face it, unless you are recruiting some hotshot, job seekers are not the one with the power), and maybe he was tired of feeling powerless in his job seeking process and tried to turn the tables.
Except it didn’t work the way he hoped it would.
I’ve been running into more frustrated job seekers in my recruiting who are becoming very resentful towards recruiters and HR people in general. I’m seeing more sarcastic emails in response to rejection notices, angry voicemails from candidates DEMANDING why they weren’t given “the courtesy of an interview”, etc…
I’m not saying what this guy did was right or professional, just trying to offer some insight.
I have seen this movie over and over and over Hakkar. Just this morning I received a demanding e-mail from an unqualified candidate that was very hostile and angry at not making it past the screening process. I think it’s just a sign of the times and the frustration people are feeling in this down economy. Good News: We are finally seeing some good positive signs that things are turning around and that this recession may be over later this year. Maybe that will in itself help all of us to calm down a bit. Thanks!
I had one of these yesterday! I believe candidates (or suspected candidates) can disqualify themselves from my process in a number of ways. One of them is by demonstrating behavior which my clients would deem undesirable. In my call yesterday, I used the exact same phrase I use every time I’m confronted with such antics: “I’m professional – my clients and I deserve nothing less than high performance. In order for me to do my job effectively, I have to ask you some questions. Of course, you’re welcome to ask me questions as well. But that part will have to wait a little bit, shall we continue?” The candidate is yields or objects. I’d say in most cases when it gets to this point, I’m pretty sure the call will be ending sooner than later. And this guy did me and my client a huge favor. Poise, behavior, and attitude go a long way.
There is not much I can add to your post Todd. I totally agree! Super post!
I was a recruiter during the 1990-92 recession. I saw much of the same kinds of behavior–understandable, but inexcusable.
If a candidate doesn’t behave professionally while going through the process (even if it’s for the 100th time), he or she probably doesn’t behave professionally whenever things get too stressful. I often found that to be the case with the psycho candidates while backgrounding them.