Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Sometimes You Just Can't Avoid That Awkward Momment

A few months ago my group was hiring. Interview after interview did I endure until one day I got to a self assured young man. The interview went well, really well, right up until he told me he liked our role, but of course he ultimate career goal was a position in a different group in our organization. Scrreeeetch.. Hold the phone. Has he never read an interview book? Beyond that: here is someone who lacks any semblance of common sense. You might think this was a slip of the tongue, a mistake. Later I discover he repeated this statement to each of the people who interviewed him.

In the debrief, my boss expressed a great affection for this young man, although he was aware of his true career goal. I had to cut this off - because if he were hired, I would be the one who would have to train him, invest my valuable time. I said to my boss: why should I do all that knowing that the first job opportunity in the other group that came up he would jump at the opportunity and I'm still not over that he's stupid enough to say it.

So he wasn't hired.

Yesterday someone brought him to my desk to introduce him as a new employee in her group. And it's not the group he wants to end up in. He was introduced and I wasn't going to pretend I didn't know him. I replied: oh, we've met.


Coincidently, for the next round of interviews, my boss didn't include me (he doesn't like being contradicted). And we hired someone with absolutely no experience and seems to be a tad lazy. And I'm stuck training him and dealing with all his inabilities to handle any problems.

You just can't win.