is it fair to reject these two job candidates? by Alison Green on September 23, 2013 A reader writes: Our HR department is pretty lousy, despite us being a large organization and a big name in the industry. And so I ended up dealing with applicants we were interviewing for a position in my team directly. These applicants are all fresh graduates and have given me serious grief. Throughout the process, […] Read the full article →
can we forbid employees from bringing their wives with them when they travel? by Alison Green on September 23, 2013 A reader writes: Our company is located in California, and sometimes our employees have to spend the night at a job site and the company pays for their hotel room and meals. Can we forbid an employee from having his wife/girlfriend come out and spend the night with them? I would like to make a […] Read the full article →
how to talk about your weaknesses in a job interview by Alison Green on September 23, 2013 How are you supposed to answer the super-common job interview questions, “What are your biggest weaknesses?” After all, what job candidate wants to give an employer a reason not to hire them? When you’re focused on trying to convince an interviewer that you’re right for the job, the last thing you want to do is […] Read the full article →
managing a lying sister-in-law, unsigned letters of complaint, and more by Alison Green on September 23, 2013 It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go… 1. I manage my sister-in-law, and she’s going to skip out on work Through a set of unusual circumstances, I have wound up supervising my sister-in-law. While this is not in line with the policy of my organization, management has taken a blind eye […] Read the full article →
what does “we’re ironing out the details” mean when I’m waiting to hear back about a job? by Alison Green on September 22, 2013 A reader writes: I have recently interviewed at an amazing company for an internship program that they have open for this semester. I had two phone interviews on the same day and had two in-person interviews the following week. After each interview, I sent a personalized thank you e-mail within 24 hours. A week after […] Read the full article →
was this raise rescinded as punishment, publicizing employees’ ages, and more by Alison Green on September 21, 2013 It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go… 1. What should I say if my manager asks if I’m job searching? I work in a large department in a nonprofit with a fairly high turnover rate. In this department, i work in a small team of four plus my supervisor. I’ve been […] Read the full article →
by Alison Green on September 20, 2013 Olive — now officially adopted and fully ours — and an olive. This is what you get when I’m too busy for a fourth post today. Happy Friday! Read the full article →
I gave my boss’s credit card info to a scam company by Alison Green on September 20, 2013 A reader writes: Every year our company sends a team to a national conference, and I help coordinate the room reservations and registration for this event. A couple weeks ago, I got a call at work from a woman calling on behalf of the conference. She wanted to know how many people we were sending […] Read the full article →
should you add IQ or Myers Briggs to your resume? by Alison Green on September 20, 2013 It’s Flashback Friday! Here’s an old post from February 2009 that we’re making new again, rather than leaving it to wilt in the archives. A reader writes: Applicants always want their resume to stand out. Well, I know that a few of the companies I have worked for know of the Myers-Briggs Personality Type test. […] Read the full article →
helping a quiet new coworker, cc’ing the hiring manager, and more by Alison Green on September 20, 2013 It’s seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go… 1. How to talk about what I liked at my last job, which I hated I need some advice about answering the interview question “what did you like about your last job?” This is the first time that this has happened where I absolutely […] Read the full article →