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What's the weirdest thing an applicant has done to land a job?

By John Wilcox, Moderator
10/14/2008 - 9:00pm
Hiring

John Wilcox, Moderator

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John Wilcox is senior editor of 15 HR Specialist newsletters covering employment law, compensation and benefits, as well as theHRSpecialist.com. A journalist who has covered HR, training, organization development and business management for more than 15 years, John keeps his finger on the pulse of what’s working in HR through daily contact with some of the nation’s top HR pros, business people and employment law attorneys.

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A recent survey showed that job seekers will go to bizarre lengths to land a plum position. Care for a foot massage? Coming right up. How about breakfast every day? You got it! Surely you've got some stories of your own to add to the odd-applicant chronicles. What's the weirdest thing you've ever seen an eager applicant do to win a job? — John Wilcox, HR Specialist editor

Comments

I interviewed a candidate for an Account Technician position, and she brought in a baby kitten that she proceeded to hold and keep warm during the interview. She was "sitting" for the cat, as its mother had died and she was trying to keep it alive. She was helping out a local organization that rescues animals.

Very commendable of her - but thought for the interview, she might have found someone else to "kitten sit!"

Posted by: R. Dellenbach | October 14, 2008 at 12:55 PM

During an interview my applicant was paged to the reception area. I could not imagine who would have interupted but I excused him and then called the receptionist for details. She said the police were there for him and told her he probably wouldn't be back. On my desk sat his cell phone, wallet, and keys. Suddenly he reappeared and asked me how much longer the interview would take because he had to go pay on some fines. I told him to have a nice day, the interview was over.

Posted by: B Smith, HR | October 15, 2008 at 12:21 PM

During an interview, our hiring manager and candidate got into a personal discussion about cars. The hiring manager mentioned that his dream car was a bright yellow Porche. The next day, the candidate had a thank you card delivered along with a model of the exact type of car the hiring manager talked about.

Needless to say - the candidate was hired. He really was the best person for the job, but the car was certainly a nice touch.

Posted by: Shannon, PHR | October 15, 2008 at 01:56 PM

We had a candidate for our Director of Marketing position deliver her resume in a unique way. A big cellophane bag was delivered nicely decorated with ribbons and gold stars. Inside the bag was a big red & white striped box of popped popcorn. Inside the box of popcorn was the resume (proected in a sleeve) and a DVD. The DVD was a video resume of the candidate elaborating on the written resume they provided. It was pretty cool - and yes, they got the job. :)

Posted by: Whitney | October 15, 2008 at 01:58 PM

Tags: hiring, hr, HR Specialist, marketing