READER SUBMISSION REGARDING AN INTERVIEW AT A "DIVERSE" COMPANY
NOTE: The reader, Ayo, has changed the original names . Her submission starts here:
I applied for a senior position in a similar industry in my field of expertise. I emailed the required documents and received a call approximately two days later. We scheduled an appointment for a face-to-face interview.
I researched the company prior to the interview by visiting their website. I reviewed the company’s mission statement, current client list, and key staff bios. By reviewing the bios, it seemed that there was one person of color in a senior role named Donna. Donna had been with the company for several years.
I arrived to the location 15 minutes early. Mr. Alexander spoke to me about the companies’ culture. He noted that they considered themselves a liberal company. He mentioned that a few people left because they were not receiving the mentoring they desired. He went on to say that, the position I was applying for was open because the person decided to leave and start her own company after being denied a partnership. According to Mr. Alexander, neither management nor he felt that she was ready. As he spoke about this person, I recalled reading some of the same attributes in her bio. You guessed it, it was Donna, the one person who I believed was an African American woman.
Mr. Alexander told me that they usually asked potential employees to take a test. However, in my case he did not think the test was appropriate because I would probably miss some of the nuisances since the subject area was new. He also did not believe that it was a fair assessment of my skill set because the task primarily measured one’s analytical skills. He mentioned that they had been thinking of revising the test, he would to discuss this further with management. In the next breath, he said that maybe it would be a good idea for me to take the test, just to find out how I would do.
Mr. Alexander called a few days later to ask if I could take the test that same day. I was told that the test would take approximately 3 hours to complete. According to Mr. Alexander, the purpose of the test was to gauge my writing skills, determine how well I could get the story of the data, and organize my analysis and thoughts by non-researchers. He wanted to know what time I would be leaving work, and could take the test at home. I am sure that he really did not want me to take the test at work because he probably thought that I would get help from a coworker. I suggested that he email me the test the next morning and I would take the test from home. He agreed.
I took the test the next morning. I did not hear from Mr. Alexander for about one week. I assumed they had found another candidate. When he called, he told me that he had been busy, but he would talk to me soon. He also told me that he had received stronger quantitative responses.
The next conversation was very interesting. Mr. Alexander told me that I wrote the memo exactly how they would, and that is was great. He also said that I could save them a lot of money; because they normally hire contractors to do the job that, I would be hired to perform. He noted that we had not discussed salary. He asked me what I was looking for. I asked him, “What do you have in mind?”
He then announced that the position would no longer be a senior position, because I missed some of the nuisances involved with the subject area, but that he felt that they could teach me these things quickly. He then offered me approximately $20,000 less then what I was currently earning. When I told him my current salary, he said, “Even our really good senior people do not make that type of money because we are a private organization.”
Mr. Alexander said that it would be nice if he had a video of my work to show to the other staff– something that was not part of the original requirement. He said that he would see what they could do. I told him that I was looking for an increase in salary and responsibility. He ended by suggesting that I stay at my current place of employment. I responded by letting him know that I would be more than willing to work as a contractor. The interviewer was surprised by this response and said that he would keep that in mind.
I applied for a senior position in a similar industry in my field of expertise. I emailed the required documents and received a call approximately two days later. We scheduled an appointment for a face-to-face interview.
I researched the company prior to the interview by visiting their website. I reviewed the company’s mission statement, current client list, and key staff bios. By reviewing the bios, it seemed that there was one person of color in a senior role named Donna. Donna had been with the company for several years.
I arrived to the location 15 minutes early. Mr. Alexander spoke to me about the companies’ culture. He noted that they considered themselves a liberal company. He mentioned that a few people left because they were not receiving the mentoring they desired. He went on to say that, the position I was applying for was open because the person decided to leave and start her own company after being denied a partnership. According to Mr. Alexander, neither management nor he felt that she was ready. As he spoke about this person, I recalled reading some of the same attributes in her bio. You guessed it, it was Donna, the one person who I believed was an African American woman.
Mr. Alexander told me that they usually asked potential employees to take a test. However, in my case he did not think the test was appropriate because I would probably miss some of the nuisances since the subject area was new. He also did not believe that it was a fair assessment of my skill set because the task primarily measured one’s analytical skills. He mentioned that they had been thinking of revising the test, he would to discuss this further with management. In the next breath, he said that maybe it would be a good idea for me to take the test, just to find out how I would do.
Mr. Alexander called a few days later to ask if I could take the test that same day. I was told that the test would take approximately 3 hours to complete. According to Mr. Alexander, the purpose of the test was to gauge my writing skills, determine how well I could get the story of the data, and organize my analysis and thoughts by non-researchers. He wanted to know what time I would be leaving work, and could take the test at home. I am sure that he really did not want me to take the test at work because he probably thought that I would get help from a coworker. I suggested that he email me the test the next morning and I would take the test from home. He agreed.
I took the test the next morning. I did not hear from Mr. Alexander for about one week. I assumed they had found another candidate. When he called, he told me that he had been busy, but he would talk to me soon. He also told me that he had received stronger quantitative responses.
The next conversation was very interesting. Mr. Alexander told me that I wrote the memo exactly how they would, and that is was great. He also said that I could save them a lot of money; because they normally hire contractors to do the job that, I would be hired to perform. He noted that we had not discussed salary. He asked me what I was looking for. I asked him, “What do you have in mind?”
He then announced that the position would no longer be a senior position, because I missed some of the nuisances involved with the subject area, but that he felt that they could teach me these things quickly. He then offered me approximately $20,000 less then what I was currently earning. When I told him my current salary, he said, “Even our really good senior people do not make that type of money because we are a private organization.”
Mr. Alexander said that it would be nice if he had a video of my work to show to the other staff– something that was not part of the original requirement. He said that he would see what they could do. I told him that I was looking for an increase in salary and responsibility. He ended by suggesting that I stay at my current place of employment. I responded by letting him know that I would be more than willing to work as a contractor. The interviewer was surprised by this response and said that he would keep that in mind.
posted by S. Mary Wills at 7:45 AM
1 Comments:
I went on an IT interview for a major company, nationally and internationally known. The hourly rate in the lower tier of my profession is 40 hr. I was offered $20 dollars an hour. I refused the position.
Post a Comment
<< Home