Hiring Gone Bad

Job candidates need to realize that hiring managers may not know much about hiring. They may not be up to date on employment laws, effective interviewing techniques, checking references, or negotiating offers. In fact, the candidate may have done more hiring than the person conducting the interview.

What should a candidate do when an illegal question comes up? Or when the interviewer fails to ask the right questions or set the right tone to ensure a successful hiring conversation happens for both parties?

I see these as real concerns. Companies that put themselves at risk for Equal Employment Opportunity issues through sloppy recruitment processes will likely have other questionable practices as well. If the company does not provide training to hiring managers, they may not provide much training of any kind. Finally, if a company takes hiring the right talent lightly, how likely is it that the team you join will be excellent? Not very.

I also know that the market is tight and you may not have the luxury of being picky. Try to gracefully dodge illegal questions. Hopefully, you won’t have to go so far as to actually call the interviewer out on the issue. They may realize their faux pas and just move on to other topics. I would probe for information about the position and try to help the hiring manager by giving him or her as much information about me as I possibly could.

In the end, you are screening the employer just as much as they are screening you. Good hiring is often a very good indicator that the job is promising. Bad hires are made by hiring managers who have no business being in business.

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