Watch out for warning signs when you’re interviewing. When you are searching for a job, it can be stressful and anxiety-inducing, especially when you’ve either been downsized or are stuck in a bad situation and desperately need to leave. People also seek out opportunities when they are happy at work, but looking for a change or higher compensation.
It’s a nice feeling when you’re sought after by a recruiter to interview with a company or are chosen to meet with the hiring manager after submitting your résumé online. There is a feeling of exhilaration. You’re flattered and excited to be considered. It’s natural to feel a little nervous about the hiring process.
Hopefully, everything will work out well. You want to think positively about the outcome; however, you need to stay grounded and realistic. Don’t let the marquee name of the organization blind you. Starting now, you must be vigilant. Carefully watch out for all sorts of signs and red flags that signal there is danger and run away.
Warning Signs In The Job Description
There is a growing movement to place pressure on companies to include the salary range in job descriptions. If there isn’t any mention of a specific salary or there is an excessively wide compensation spread, ranging from $85k to $175k, it is a red flag.
A job hunter will anchor their expectations to the higher end of the salary band. Meanwhile, the company offers the higher end to entice more candidates to apply for the role. After going through 10 rounds of interviewing, the internal recruiter says, “We’re delighted to offer you the role at $87K!” You’re left feeling that you’ve been played and taken advantage of by the misleading compensation range.
It’s a big and bright warning light when the recruiter starts pushing and pressuring you into accepting the low end of the compensation offered. After some back and forth, you realize that the company was trying to get you to take the lesser amount the whole time.
Transparent and empathetic companies clearly cite all of the tasks and responsibilities that you’ll be responsible for in this new role in the job description. Keep an eye open for things that don’t look right. For example, the company requires a lengthy laundry list of tasks and responsibilities that are nearly impossible to meet. You’ve seen similar job postings and feel that the pay offered doesn’t match up with similar jobs elsewhere. There is no mention of whether the role is remote, hybrid or in the office. The corporate title is missing or vague. You can’t find any information regarding benefits, the company’s mission statement, culture and anything else that would help you know more about the business.
Trying To Upload Your Résumé Is Painfully Annoying
Submitting your résumé should be one of the easiest things to do in the hiring process. If the company demands that you fill out a lengthy, time-consuming, privacy-invading application process, then also requires you to upload a résumé, it’s a sign that the firm doesn’t respect your time.
The résumé will be uploaded to an applicant tracking system. If there are glitches, crashes and too many hurdles to jump over, once again, it shows that the company is not thinking about the candidate’s experience. This doesn’t mean you should stop the process; however, it’s one of the many points that you need to keep in mind as you’re going through the interview process.
What To Watch Out For In The Interview
The polite thing to do is for the company to ask what days and times work best for the job seeker. If the human resources professional or internal corporate talent acquisition recruiter pushes for slots that don’t match up to what you’ve requested, but heavy-handedly forces you to rearrange your schedule, it’s not a good way to start a relationship.
Canceling an interview a day or few hours before it was supposed to be held is a glaring warning sign. It shows that there is little regard for the applicant’s time. It also highlights that the people involved in the interviewing process lack empathy.
It can be infuriating when the interviewer shows up late for the video call or in-person meeting. To add insult to injury, they don’t apologize or explain why they made you wait more than 10 minutes. Watch out for the manager and interviewers who are obviously unprepared. As the hiring manager looks at the résumé you hand them, they look confused and you realize that this is the first time they’re seeing it. You pass it off, making an excuse for the offense.
When the interview mispronounces your name without saying sorry, it’s another strike against the company. No one could blame you for getting heated, as the interviewers cannot clearly articulate what you will do in this role and come across as disinterested and bothered by having to have this conversation.
We can all understand undergoing a few interviews, including a meeting with the human resources person, the hiring manager and maybe a couple of people on the team or with other divisions that you’ll regularly interact with. The mood shifts as the company makes you go through a gauntlet of six to more than 10 interviews over a three to five month period. The never-ending interview cycle reflects, once again, that the company and its representatives don’t value your time. Too many interviews suggest that the people responsible for the hiring process lack confidence. They are obviously afraid to make a hiring decision and need to hide behind a consensus vote.
During the drawn-out interview process, if the company stops communications and doesn’t offer feedback or constructive advice, it’s a warning sign of how they’ll treat you once you’re onboard. The bells and whistles go off when the manager speaks in a derogatory manner regarding the person who previously held the role. You should start considering wrapping up the interview when the manager disparages the company and the top executives and starts sharing internal gossip and rumors.
Getting Lowballed In Salary Negotiations
You’ve endured the hiring process. The recruiter emailed you writing that an offer will be forthcoming. The message implied that you will be very happy. All of the warning signs start fading from memory. You rationalize that they were testing you and clutch onto the positive news from the recruiter.
Then, the final red flags wave. If an offer is made far below what the job description cited and lower than what you asked for, be leery of moving forward. They may be trying to lowball you into accepting a lower salary. Then, they start gaslighting you, trying to make you feel as if you’re in the wrong and don’t deserve the upper end of the pay scale.
You valiantly try to negotiate the compensation, but the company doesn’t budge. They say they’ll need to go up the chain of command and will promptly get back to you. Days, then weeks, go by without any contact. Out of the blue, you get a call from the internal recruiter. They happily state that they’ll increase the compensation. As the conversation progresses, it turns out that the enhanced offer is minuscule.
You can tell that the recruiter knew that you’d be upset, but tried to strong-arm you into accepting it anyway. This is the final warning sign. There is no reason to continue negotiating. The company isn’t the right fit. Cut your losses and move on to a place that will appreciate you.
Source: Forbes
