Couldn't it backfire if there were people who were not that keen on getting the job and thus wouldn't be under much pressure?
IBM's Asshole Test
131–140 of 604 posts
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#132Earlier quoted context omitted.
I once walked into an interview where some code was already written on a whiteboard. It was presented to me as a "find the problem with the code" sort of puzzle, and I pointed out the one big logic problem with it's algorithm and wrote a quick fix. The interviewer responded with "hold on", and grabbed a colleague, pointed at the whiteboard, and the colleague said "yes! that'll fix it!" and ran off. I was offered the…
> I was offered the job that I was clearly qualified for, but I declined. Out of curiosity, why?
Nothing to do with this event, I just had another offer from a company I interviewed at during the same period that was more interesting to me.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#133Earlier quoted context omitted.
In the age of "cracking the coding interview", glassdoor, levels.fyi, etc... it would only work a handful of times before everyone is in on the test and true assholes won't expose themselves.
Having been on the receiving end of this as a candidate (not at IBM), everyone was in on the test in the first 15 seconds, and it changed people's behavior instantly. It's fairly obvious if you're on the receiving end what the purpose of the test is when you're being observed (as with most interview questions, it helps to ask yourself why the interviewer asking me / having me do this?)
Like with those "personality tests" where anyone with decent perception and reading comprehension can easily tell which outcomes each answer's going to push them toward, and so obtain any result they like.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#134Decades ago, in the days before uber, my employer would fly in candidates from college campuses as part of an onsite interview. The candidate would fly in the night before and we relied on a taxi service to bring the candidate to the hotel. Then in the morning the same service would bring them to the onsite and of course bring them back to the airport at the end. It was a whole curated process. Little did the candida…
Hm, I don't dig this. I don't think it's ethical to evaluate a candidate's interactions when they weren't informed they were being evaluated. People are stressed heading into an interview, and may be upset afterwards. Unless they're interviewing for a public-facing role, I don't see how this behavior is relevant to the job; and discussing it with a hiring committee invites all sorts of "cultural fit" biases that make…
> I don't think it's ethical to evaluate a candidate's interactions when they weren't informed they were being evaluated.
That makes about as much sense as saying that you shouldn’t be held responsible for stealing office supplies because no one informed you that there were cameras installed.
If you treat cab drivers and other service personnel badly, that’s because you’re a shit person. It’s really that simple. I’ve been in extremely stressful situations in my life involving lots of travel and I’ve yet to “take it out” on a third party.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#135Oh, so _that_ is what the test was about?
In 2006 I went to a "new grads hiring day" at a large company, and one of the steps looked just like this, except I think we were divided in groups of eight.
My team solved the problem at the last second and we all passed to the next round.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#136Really wonder if this actually worked.
I don’t think we even care in this day and age with hiring if someone is an asshole. Most of the companies I’ve worked at have had many of them in various forms. (Or just simply - not pleasant people) It’s trivial to fake in any interview format.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#137Am I the only one that finds it slightly amusing that the test also makes sure that the supposed work task/puzzle doesn't actually matter? Perhaps an ironically appropriate test for hiring for a job at many offices/IBM (and exemplifying some of the problems with these bad faith test techniques).
Nothing in job interviews matters.
This is true. This past week, I coached a friend who is a new grad on a how to ace an interview. Going in, she was super worried, almost on the verge of tears.
The strategy was simple: right from the beginning, ask questions about the company and the interviewer's daily work, e.g. "Can you tell me about what you do?" Act as if every response is super interesting/inspiring, and follow-up with more questions, saying you are really eager to learn, etc. until the time runs out, so that they don't get a chance to ask her anything.
She got the job.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#138Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#139Earlier quoted context omitted.
I once walked into an interview where some code was already written on a whiteboard. It was presented to me as a "find the problem with the code" sort of puzzle, and I pointed out the one big logic problem with it's algorithm and wrote a quick fix. The interviewer responded with "hold on", and grabbed a colleague, pointed at the whiteboard, and the colleague said "yes! that'll fix it!" and ran off. I was offered the…
> I was offered the job that I was clearly qualified for, but I declined. Out of curiosity, why?
Not the OP, but for my money, a company that does that isn't a company to work for. I don't work for free and you shouldn't either.
Re: IBM's Asshole Test
#140Earlier quoted context omitted.
The post doesn't go into enough detail to be sure, but I think the "asshole" participants fighting for control of the whiteboard assumed that whoever would successfully lead the group to solve the puzzle would receive good marks and have the highest probability of receiving an offer. Furthermore, some companies, or departments/teams within companies, foster a corporate culture where "assholes" are more likely to be p…
I don't get it - in the recollection, the person leading at the front wasn't getting anywhere, so someone else stepped in to give it a go. Is that supposed to be an asshole thing to do?
The one time I've experienced assessing this type of thing it's very much something you have a natural feel for as you watch the events unfold. You can't really assess it in the abstract sense, it's all about the concrete interactions and how the individuals handle them.