Tardiness Sucks. Like Big Time.

I created this blog for job seekers, people who need some extra guidance and / or help navigating the recruitment process. But my advice could also be heeded by those who are actually hiring, like managers, HR professionals & other fellow recruiters.

One piece of advice I'd like to share with those who are hiring: for the love of Serena Williams, be on time! My #1 pet peeve is tardiness. Why? Because it's so freaking disrespectful. I understand that sometimes meetings run over their allotted times, or you might need a few minutes to call the pet-sitter to check on Daisy the Calico but in my opinion, an interviewer should NEVER be more than 10-15 minutes late to an interview. And if you are running late, seriously ... have someone, a receptionist, a team member or HR explain to the candidate the reason for your tardiness.

A former client of mine had a terrible habit of running 30+ minutes late. For everything. This gal couldn't manage her time to save her life. Once she left a candidate waiting in a huge conference room by himself for almost 45 minutes. It was egregious. It was after hours (the interview started at 5 PM) so the receptionist had left for the day. Dude made the decision to leave his cell phone in his car out of respect for the interview. Needless to say, by the time she showed up, he was beyond livid. The interview didn't go well. Both the candidate & the manager had choice words for me (about the other) but it could've all been avoided, had she been on time.

I'm sorry but in this day & age of technology, with Outlook reminders, Google reminders, iPhone & Android reminders, there's ZERO reason why you should be running late for an interview (or anything really). Again, we all recognize there are extenuating circumstances but, if you want your candidate to have a positive experience, you need to get your A into G.

This week's post is dedicated to the punctual people; those who arrive 15 minutes early or on time, making everyone's life a little easier. I applaud, high-five, fist-pump & thank you!

Happy job hunting!