The interview process for me started informally, as I was referred by one of the hiring managers who I know from a previous employer and I spoke to him and his manager first. I knew Appirio well; they're stable and reputable in the industry, have maintained consistent and sensible growth and until now was very attractive to me. They said I would be a great fit for their team and spent time working to convince me to apply, as I had the strength of skill and demeanour that would be appropriate in the business. They asked me to apply via Jobvite and explained I would need to have an initial telephone interview with HR, but that this wouldn't be an issue for me; it would be a chat and I'd be fine.
Despite my leaving a current and accurate email address, I was surprised when I did not hear anything for about 10 days, so i gave the manager a ring. It turned out HR lady had actually emailed me, but clearly not to the correct address because there was nothing in my inbox. Anyway we managed to arrange the telephone interview.
The time for the interview came and went, and again I had to chase when it got to 20 mins past the interview time and my phone had not rung. Apparently HR had emailed at the last minute to say they were running late; I never got the email in any of my inboxes so I do not know what happened. Either way I was far from impressed about the interviewer's tardiness, but willing to take it with a pinch of salt because you can't judge a company by its HR department, plus I was confident in my skills and experience and knew the hiring manager.
During the interview (when she eventually called me), we went through some competency-based questions; having been through this process before 3 years ago and presently working for a company with a very similar set of values around culture, I was able to answer the questions competently. It was a good conversation and I came away with a positive feeling, albeit wishing someone could have briefed me about the interview beforehand so that I could have answered with greater confidence.
Anyway 10 days passed and I didn't have any feedback. I had to chase twice; the first time HR was on holiday and the second time I finally got a response; by this time it was 2 weeks after the interview. I got a very brief email to say my application would not be proceeding. I was flabbergasted to say the least, since all calls I had had with both hiring managers and HR had been so positive, plus my CV is strong and well-endorsed in this area by a variety of clients, managers and colleagues.
I wanted feedback so I could learn from the experience, so after a number of emails being exchanged I eventually managed to nail HR down for a phone call. The feedback was that there was some kind of misalignment between me and the Appirio culture. I had to challenge that, since the very reason I had been referred was because the hiring manager had thought I would make a perfect fit within the organisation. I had to learn more about this, otherwise how could I work on it? But I got very uncomfortable and vague answers when I asked what specifically had I not been able to get across. I was also very surprised because during the interview I had asked the interviewer to tell me if there were any concerns that I could address and respond to. The answer was no at the time. So I cannot accept that the feedback was anything more than a cop-out. I also challenged that with the greatest of respect to the HR lady, how could she decide I'm not a good fit if both managers were impressed by me, my CV made complete sense for the role and these would ultimately be the individuals I would report to? She agreed that my skills were absolutely the right set they needed, it was just in terms of "the team" and "the culture". Having challenged that and continually asking for more detail, eventually I was told she was the HR director so the decision was hers to make.
My advice would be to swot up on the company culture, be prepared for a long process, chasing HR for answers, lateness and unhelpful feedback from HR. Don't be too complacent either.
Visiting the office, you really get a sense that it's a great place to work, smart and friendly people, enjoyable culture, hard working. Unfortunately in light of the two confusing experiences I have had trying to get a job here, it's not something I want to attempt again, which is a real shame.
