I haven't given many interviews in my life, but the few I have given were really agonizing. After going thru the entire interview process, there are just a couple of companies that I have felt bad about not being able to make into. For all others, I praised my stars for not 'making it' and joining those 'great' people(who interviewed me) in their work.
The first thing that you notice is the arrogance of people, especially Indians. However lousy the job, you see, you have made the mistake by applying and showing your interest. The fact that you are at their 'mercy' will be rubbed in at every given opportunity in the process. The first manifestation is the adherence to time. 80% of the interviews I gave, have started late. Late by a few minutes to half an hour. Worst still, a couple didn't start at all. I of course, was on time for 99% of them and had to while away (even as I write this, I am waiting for a call, its already 30 mins late and I guess it will never happen). 100% of all Indians who I met/talked to subsequently, after the delay, didn't apologize. And 100% of the Foreigners who I met/talked to subsequently apologized for the delay, some profusely. And mind you, the lowest rank any of these Foreigners was holding was that of a Country Director! I wonder when we Indians will start appreciating the value of time of others!
Then what hits you is the non existent HR. I think that HR in every company in India is populated with the most idiotic and lazy people on earth (sorry if you belong to that breed. I will hold my opinions till I find enough good HR people). The fact that the recruiting company itself doesn't trust them comes out clearly, when the only HR person person you hear from is on the phone scheduling interviews. I have had an experience when the HR person contacted me and sent me a case almost 8 months after I applied. Prompt action, I must say. Sample this gem, "Just Suppose, Clouds had strings attached to them which hang down to earth. What would happen?" Shows how much work they have been doing of late to dream up that question. Then there are the standard questions you would have tired of. (Business Week summarizes these questions and my attitude to these in a good way). Lastly, they have the liberty to come up with the most ridiculous statement to reject a candidate. Something like, "on the personal side... well... the bonding... it didn't click." What better do you expect from them - they are HR people after all.
There of course is the famed process of selection. If you are an MBA, take it that there is no process. Case studies, role plays, problems, psychometric tests, everything and anything can be thrown at you depending on the whim of the person interviewing you. The best thing to do would be, expect the unexpected - don't prepare. For a start, the processes I have given start from one interview to thirteen interviews (this could have been more). Totally personal to totally technical and in some random order. And every time, I have been told that this is a 'structured' process and has been carefully made for the company to screen and select the right candidates. Right then, the only question I have when I hear this is, why are there so many stupid people in your organization inspite of this process?
The last thing is the closure of the entire interview process. The thumb rule in India is that you will never be notified that the position has been filled. While I can understand that communicating the bad news that you haven't made can be tough. But, as I said earlier, its really insulting to leave people in the lurch after the entire process. Worst still, giving ridiculous reasons like, "Sorry about the delay in the process. We do keep the candidate posted about his/ her candidature. Unfortunately with this position, we seem to be stuck, since there is an organisational restructuring that is taking place. As of now, we are unsure about how long this will take. Everyday we are awaiting some news about the position. It is unfortunate that we are unable to do speed up the process. Please bear with us." Yeah, we will grin and bear it.
I don't think that most companies in India realize that this kind of behavior leaves really bad taste in one's mouth for a long time and they can loose some really good talent for a long time. Joel Spolsky summarizes it in a nice way in his article, "I always leave about five minutes at the end of the interview to sell the candidate on the company and the job. This is actually important even if you are not going to hire them. If you’ve been lucky enough to find a really good candidate, you want to do everything you can at this point to make sure that they want to come work for you. Even if they are a bad candidate, you want them to like your company and go away with a positive impression."
BTW, all things quoted in this article are my real experiences from a handful of interviews I have given to date. Watch this space for more on interviews.
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