Re: Trouble finding work

[Bill Swallow <techcommdood -at- gmail -dot- com>]

> - role 1 - In the last stages of an interview for a permanent role as a
> Business Analyst, I was told that the organisation had someone in the role
> on a contract basis, and was offering them the permanent role - would I be
> interested in the contract role? (There was no mention of this is the ad or
> introductory discussions)

Bait and switch. ;-) I've run into this several times, and have walked
away with no regrets and with explicit reasons as to why. Not angrily,
not with an attitude, but very professionally and with dignity in
tact. I think I actually made a positive impression on one place, who
called me back a couple of days later to "re-open" the position I'd
been going for. I respectfully declined on the same grounds I left the
interview.

If you have to deal with this sort of thing in the interview process,
9 times out of 10 you have to deal with even more on the job.

> - role 2 - Technical Writer required (immediate start) - Interviewed with
> the recruiter and was presented to the client in 1 day, then was told the
> role was on hold for two weeks, the two weeks more, then indefinitely...

This is usually indicative of financial trouble of some sort. The
company might be solid, but they might also be trimming cost where
possible in order to continue to be solid. There could also be
project-related issues that had prevented the gig from
materializing... for example, ther could have been unforseen
complications in the development phase and they probably didn't want
to incur a contractor's cost with minimal work for that contractor to
perform. And, of course, the project could have been a miserable
failure and was eventually canned completely.

A question though... did your recruiter ever inquire of the company
the reason why there were so many delays and then pass that info to
you?

> - role 3 - Agreed to interview for a role. 30 mins before interview was
> given the position description which was totally different to the role I had
> agreed to interview for

Another ol' bait and switch... so many funtastic flavors! ;-)

> - role 4 - Role advertised as requiring Senior Tech Writing skills.
> Interview went very well. Feedback was all good - yes, I had the skills, was
> articulate, would fit in well BUT - the company chose to go with someone
> with no experience because they were willing to work for AUD$40,000.

Ah, the power of the almighty dollar. ;-) Of course, as we all know,
there's always a cost, and usually the lower cost is in the higher
salary for a senior position. I'm surprised you were able to learn of
the reason why you were not chosen. Did they tell you that, or did you
find out in a roundabout way? The former is quite unprofessional for
them to do.

Thanks for sharing your pitfalls! As I indicated earlier, I've
experienced the same. The trick is to not let it get to you and to
remember that it's not about you getting a job so much as you finding
the right fit for your talents and potential.

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