Posted by denised in 
So you finally snagged that interview. You’re dressed to impress, know your five year plan by heart and are ready to accept your dream job offer. But before you do, keep in mind the old saying, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. If you’re currently dealing with a bad boss, the tendency is to jump ship at the first sign of smoother waters. But, to use another cliché, you don’t want to jump from the frying pan and into the fire.
So how can you be sure about what you’re getting into? The answer is, you’re never really completely certain about the company you’re joining or the boss you’re about to report to. But if you pay close attention during the interview process, you might pick up on a few signs that may indicate you’re headed for rough waters.
In part I of You Might be Getting a Bad Boss, I list the first three of ten indicators that might suggest trouble ahead…
1. During the interview, the interviewer contradicts him/herself frequently – When you first inquire about why the position is open, you’re told the company is expanding. Later on the interviewer reveals that you’re replacing someone who’s no longer with the company. Whether the person was fired, or left by choice, the interviewers contradictory response could indicate either a predilection to, let’s just say, being fluid with the truth, or general confusion on their part. Either way, it’s not a good thing. Other contradictions I’ve experienced during interviews is waffling about turnover rates, the length of time the average employee stays with the company, and surprisingly enough, something as simple as office hours.
2. The interviewer begins a sentence with “Family is important, but…” – I once had a promising first stage interview with a Human Resources manager who ended the interview by asking me how important family was to me. I thought it was an odd question since most people I know would reply that their family is very important. And that’s exactly how I responded. She responded that although it was important to her too, her job was more important. That response set alarms off. Although she hadn’t come straight out and asked me, I believe what she really wanted to know was whether I had children, and if they’d interfere with me doing my job. I didn’t and so they wouldn’t have, but that kind of inflexibility and probing on her part was telling.
Later on I found out that a friend who had accepted the position, routinely worked 70 hour workweeks, resulting in a nervous breakdown six months into the job. Would you believe that same HR Manager didn’t want to give her sick leave for the days of work she missed, and later terminated her for “lack of professionalism”? Be wary of illegal interview questions in disguise. Click here for examples of illegal interview questions.
3. The job has been open for a long time, or been filled and emptied in a short period of time – This happens in the hospitality industry pretty frequently, but if you’re dealing with a more stable industry, this kind of volatility might be a sign of bad management on a corporate level or a really bad boss on a more local level. At one of the previous companies I worked for, the customer service manager position had been open for over a year. In a period of less than six months, they hired two candidates. One left after being unable to tolerate the level of unprofessionalism showed by her manager and the other was terminated for repeatedly falling asleep on the job. Either way, bad management was at the root of the problem. The problem in this scenario was management, and no amount of experience, talent or skill could make up for what they lacked.
Wednesday: Part II – Rude, late and unprepared
