Sucks to be YOU

So I was at my Internship the other day and it came to my attention( I was told) that we were going to interview someone that day for one of our 2 openings. I had seen a few people come in already, so I wasnt too surprised. I figured the interviewing person would come in and meet the group around 1045 or so since that is the time we have our daily meetings and its a great time to meet the group. When i was inteviewing, I met the group this way and so did every other staff member that worked with me.

So 11 comes and goes(the meeting ends at 11) and the new person does not show up. My indirect supervisor(the boss) seemed dissapointed the person did not show up and told us that it would appear that person would not be there. The person finally showed up around 12(almost 2 hours late) and said that she was sorry but she had taken the wrong bus. The boss ended up taking the person to interview, but it was fairly obvious she was not particuarlily thrilled when this person arrived so late with such a feeble excuse.

I ended up meeting her and afterwards, the boss asked my opinion of her. I simply told her this. "Clearly "Kate"*(*not her real name) has good credentials if you are interviewing her. I spoke to her and she sppears to be very interested in this population and even has some expierence in the area. The problem is, she showed up really, really late. I know that at a place like this, where such a team forward technique is used, being that late is an absolute no no. I mean, your chain is only as strong as your weakest link afterall. I have no doubt she would be great at this job, but showing up that late can mean a couple of things..." After asking me to further elaborate I said, "well if she is that late, the question is why is she that late? Does she not care enough about the interview to be on time? Does she subconsciously not care enough to get in on time? I really cannot answer these questions, but it is somethign to consider when looking at her application." After that I was thanked for my input and went back to work.

I was called into my supervisor's office later in the week. She thanked me for my honest opinion and let me know that the rest of the staff felt the same way. In fact apperently this "Kate" was on the short list of candidates, but lost her chance when she showed up so late. While she did call, being that late(or late at all really) was inexcusable. I would not have hired her and I am glad that my boss didnt.

For your information, another great person Sarah* came in and she has been hired instead. I look forward to working with Sarah.

Kate* screwed herself over by showing up late. My boss was nice enough to even interview her considering how late she even showed up. In my mind a late interview is a sign of non interest and more important rudeness. Kate got exactly what she deserved(well not really, she should have been shown the door posthaste). Kate's* loss is Sarah's* gain. And you know what, it SUCKS to be her!