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l_steele · New User Joined: 28 Sep 2008 Posts: 8 Career Advice: +0/-0

I just read an article where it states how a follow up call wins the interview. It fails however to address the frustrating situation where the company listed in the job posting is “confidential”. I just applied for a job and the information about the “confidential” company wasn’t enough to find it through various web searches or by anyone living in the city where the job was listed. So clearly a follow up call can’t win the interview when calls are not welcome!

jb · New User Joined: 29 Sep 2008 Posts: 8 Career Advice: +0/-0

It’s either one of two things, either the company plans on being very selective or the job doesn’t exist. You can send a resume, but don’t expect a response. If you do get a call, consider yourself lucky. In this case, a follow up call won’t win the interview.

brad_25 · New User Joined: 30 Sep 2008 Posts: 5 Career Advice: +0/-0

I’m with JB on this one, you have to take these “expert” articles on some of these job boards with caution. Many of the techniques they give are very outdated. One of these being that a follow up call wins the interview. Most times these old techniques no longer work.

jb · New User Joined: 29 Sep 2008 Posts: 8 Career Advice: +0/-0

In my experience with job hunting, follow up calls not only don’t win the interview but are not welcome by hiring managers or HR recruiters. This is especially true for mid to large companies. The calls get stopped at the receptionist if they know you are checking on a job application. They won’t connect you to the hiring manager. I’ve seen this with both private and public firms.

brad_25 · New User Joined: 30 Sep 2008 Posts: 5 Career Advice: +0/-0

What about when the ad says “no calls”? do they want you to be the individual who breaks the rules and goes on through or would follow up calls put your resume in the garbage?

mistro · Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2008 9:21 am Post subject:

To be honest, I'd play it safe and not call.

There might be a small chance they want to be a rule breaker, but ultimately I'd say the vast majority of companies who say 'no calls' mean it. They just don't have time - I know I don't like it when I say something in a job ad and people ignore it ... I just throw their CV/Resume in the 'NO' pile.

Randy

Rule #1 re job searches:

Never, ever apply to a "blind ad," one as you've described in which the company is "confidential".

The reason takes the from of a question:

What are the chances that company would hire an applicant who applied as "Anonymous"?

I'm sorry that I'm old, bitter, cynical, cranky, and loathe big-business with every breath I take. But I refuse to go through life letting there be two sets of rules in place--one for you and me and another for the "them's" of the world.

Their arrogance is boundless and unless and until everyday and "average" folks like us stop taking their bullshit, it won't be long before we're back to the days of the old south, working for the massa who, in return for our servitude, will provide us with the necessities of food, clothing, shelter, and health care in order that we live to labor one more day so he can do neat things like, oh, run billion dollar corporations into the ground and then run to the government and beg to be saved from his own greed, incompetence, and stupidity.

Oh, wait. Food, clothing, shelter, and healt care pretty much sums up all most of us do get in return fo that continuing myth of "a fair day's pay for a fair day's work". About the only added "benefit" would be education and anyone who thinks THAT'S free is living in a cave and eating sabertooth tiger steaks.

Oh, what's the use?

l_steele · New User Joined: 28 Sep 2008 Posts: 8 Career Advice: +0/-0

Some employers want to remain confidential because they don’t want the employees knowing that they are looking. I remember one ad I answered said that it was a confidential ad, but didn’t say anything about no phone calls. I did web searches and found who the employer was and did a follow up call. It didn’t win the interview because the employer was trying to replace someone without her knowledge. She found out about it from my call and it caused all sorts of trouble.

Needless to say my follow up call didn’t win the interview. The point I was making is that not all confidential ads are bogus.

timmy_28 · New User Joined: 02 Oct 2008 Posts: 5 Career Advice: +0/-0

What you say is really true. The company I’m with now hired me to replace someone. I was hired two weeks before he was let go. He didn’t know anything about it until his last Friday. I started the following Monday. Needless to say, I saw firsthand how sneaky the company is and won’t let my guard down because of it. It wasn’t the follow up call that won the interview for me, they just wanted him gone.

jb · New User Joined: 29 Sep 2008 Posts: 8 Career Advice: +0/-0

Another possible option could be to develop relationships with a bunch of recruiters from employers which interest you. You would simply apply to several jobs with companies of interest. Save all the phone numbers and emails from recruiters to build a network. Every so often I contact them to express interest in a position I find available. When I contact them I stress the point of my being willing to develop long-term relationships with the company and becoming a valuable asset. It’s not the follow up call that wins the interview sometimes, it’s the content of the call.

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