I had a phone interview with a field recruiter who in turn forwarded my information to the Area Manager whom I was told would be in touch with me to set up a 1:1. I waited a week and had not heard anything. Phoning the field recruiter, she was was surprised I hadn't heard from the Area Manager and took it upon herself to schedule my 1:1.
That interview lasted nearly two hours and it was quite painful. The woman didn't seem to have any idea what to ask me. Still, I managed to share with her what I felt were my most valuable qualifications. She asked me if I would be available the following week for a two-hour interactive interview. She said I would meet with her in one of two store locations on either Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, most likely Tuesday. We confirmed my email address, shook hands and went on our way.
Leaving my calendar open for those three days as she had requested, I never heard from her. Come Tuesday, I phoned around, looking for her. I found out she had actually been in one of the stores that Monday. I left messages for her at both locations and still, I heard nothing. That Friday I called the field recruiter to see if there had been some confusion. Perhaps my resume had been misplaced, email lost? I didn't hear from the field recruiter, either.
I could only assume that the area manager had changed her mind and didn't have the courtesy to let me know that I could have opened up my calendar for the three days she had asked me to set aside for her, so that following week, still having heard nothing, I phoned the field recruiter, shared that if I was still being considered for the position I was now rescinding my application, and let her know that I was confused by the lack of follow through and the disrespect of my valuable time. I had thought more highly of their organization.
I also reminded her that while I was conducting interviews throughout my eighteen years in retail management that I was always very aware that the candidate interviewing was also a customer, and though they may not have been a perfect fit for the position at hand, I wanted their interviewing experience to be a positive one, consistent with company culture.
I am not sure if my negative interviewing experience with BCBG is indicative of the company on a whole or if I was observing a regional, district or individual problem, but what I do know is that I don't operate that way and clearly my potential area manager was lacking in follow-through and had little to no respect for her potential employee's time management or personal life, and that can only translate into one thing in the fast-paced, highly demanding environment of retail... Misery!
I will note that the field recruiter was very apologetic and did advocate on behalf of the company, sharing that there had been a surprise corporate visit that week and "though that was no excuse," that may have been the reason the Area Manager had failed to get back to me. She also shared that she would be bringing my not -so-pleasant experience up with the appropriate District Manager.
