Early Risers.

[PhilJ W]

37 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I had an interview for a head of department post at a school in Essex. They were planning to introduce the same sort of IT curriculum I had been supporting in London. It was going really well until they asked if I had any questions. So I asked when the other PCs would be arriving and who would be installing them. The chair of govenors said there was to be no more expenditure. So I gently pointed out the software for the courses they intended to implement would not run on their existing workstations . The chairperson told me I was wrong and she had seen all the software demonstrated by their current head of dept whom had specified the system. I said she must have seen it running on the server as a standalone, not on their network stations. They didn’t offer me the job although the county advisor rang my boss to say if I wanted a job don’t tell the chair of governors they don’t know what they are talking about. He said apart from that I did very well. 

I think you dodged a bullet there.

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[zarniwhoop]

2 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

 

I arrived home yesterday to find a package left outside on the doorstep.  That's a fairly secure location here as it's not in line-of-sight from anywhere other than for someone approaching the door.  And inside- having been thoughtfully popped through the letterbox - was a "Sorry We Missed You" card.  Which identified the location of the package not as "returned to depot" nor "with a neighbour" but "On doorstep in grey plastic bag".  Which was absolutely correct.  I just wonder why they even left the card but hey.  That's life. 

If you had been inside, and not heard them, you would not have known the package was on the doorstep. Someone delivering won't know if you were in, but incommunicado, or out.

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[Barry O]

Me and my big gob...by some use of more electricity we approached Leeds Station 5 minutes early.. held by a signal.so ended up 5 minutes late..pah! Which meant I missed a bus and spent 11 minutes waiting for the next one... PAh!

 

I attended a panel interview for a post in the civil service. I was asked questions which I wasn't allowed to answer.then I had a sensible interview and got a role at JET..it caused a problem when one of the interviewing panel in the UKAEA was asked why I hadn't been selected. He thought I knew diddly squat..to be told I had all the right knowledge and technical ability to run rings round him..

 

Baz

Edited April 18 by Barry O

[jjb1970]

An interview is also about the candidate finding out about the company, it is a two way thing. I suspect some of the car crash interviews are the result of the candidate deciding the job or employer isn't what they want and just finishing the interview for politeness. I have had a couple of interviews where I decided it wasn't for me pretty quickly.

 

The worst interviews tend to be if some smart Alec interviewer uses 'gotcha' questions, or if the candidate provides answers based on what they think the interviewer wants to hear. When I used to do interviews I never used trick questions, and made of point of saying we weren't trying to trip people. I think most interviewers are also smart enough to adjust their selection criteria to the role. For example, for a shop floor fitter I  wouldn't be worried if they struggled to articulate their thoughts or were a bit shy. However,  if it's an external facing role or one where they'd be put on a spot and expected to deal with complex problems and make decisions and then be able to support why they made that decision then an inability to articulate thoughts or deal with interview questions confidently is a bit of a problem.

[jjb1970]

And for some roles being able to blag your way through a difficult situation is actually an essential skill, so someone who can nail an interview through their soft skills and blagging is demonstrating the right skills for the job. 

[zarniwhoop]

37 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

And for some roles being able to blag your way through a difficult situation is actually an essential skill, so someone who can nail an interview through their soft skills and blagging is demonstrating the right skills for the job. 

You've dealt with Public Relations people and Project Managers!

[jjb1970]

25 minutes ago, zarniwhoop said:

You've dealt with Public Relations people and Project Managers!

 

I work in advocacy, I  swim in a sea of blaggers💪🤣

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

14 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

Hence the decline in in-person interviews.

The use of Microsoft Teams (or equivalent) is vastly more efficient. No travel expense, easy to accommodate schedules of different interviewers - both still have the opportunity to 'see' the candidate / interviewer. The end of the meeting is scheduled - so no awkward looking at your watch for an interview that is not going well.

 

Person-to-person, virtual interviews are the new normal and are very common.

 

More concerning is "AI" résumé/CV screening for keywords.

[Ozexpatriate]

6 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

the red traffic light showing 39% salt

39% salt? What does that even mean? Can't be 39% by mass surely?

[zarniwhoop]

41 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

39% salt? What does that even mean? Can't be 39% by mass surely?

Probably 39% of your recommended daily intake. But the measurement is per-serving for however many portions the package claims to serve.

[jjb1970]

I eradicated salt from my kitchen and refuse to allow it in my kitchen,  MSG is much better💪

[Ozexpatriate]

1 hour ago, zarniwhoop said:

Probably 39% of your recommended daily intake.

Thank you. That makes sense.

[polybear]

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

An interview is also about the candidate finding out about the company, it is a two way thing. I suspect some of the car crash interviews are the result of the candidate deciding the job or employer isn't what they want and just finishing the interview for politeness. I have had a couple of interviews where I decided it wasn't for me pretty quickly.

 

The worst interviews tend to be if some smart Alec interviewer uses 'gotcha' questions, or if the candidate provides answers based on what they think the interviewer wants to hear. When I used to do interviews I never used trick questions, and made of point of saying we weren't trying to trip people. I think most interviewers are also smart enough to adjust their selection criteria to the role. For example, for a shop floor fitter I  wouldn't be worried if they struggled to articulate their thoughts or were a bit shy. However,  if it's an external facing role or one where they'd be put on a spot and expected to deal with complex problems and make decisions and then be able to support why they made that decision then an inability to articulate thoughts or deal with interview questions confidently is a bit of a problem.

 

Some people go to interviews purely to practice their interview technique - they have no interest in the job.  Timewasters.

 

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

And for some roles being able to blag your way through a difficult situation is actually an essential skill, so someone who can nail an interview through their soft skills and blagging is demonstrating the right skills for the job. 

 

Though if their technical knowledge is lacking then it won't be long before they fall over.

[jjb1970]

You can't fool all of the people all of the time. Despite the efforts of politicians, marketing people and the media to prove otherwise.

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from the Charente.  Whose stolen the sun.    I've had to skip a few pages as stuff got in the way. However I had a very good evening trainspotting on Tuesday. Yesterday was spent fitting steel replacement feet to the 6" square wooden supports for the verandah roof.  Much rot was found but work is in progress.  I even learned a new word.  Pied de poteaux regulaible which means an adjustable pillar foot.  

 

Today is much cleaning day as we're are having friends to stay over the weekend. 

 

Regards to all. 

 

Jamie

Edited April 18 by jamie92208

[Barry O]

Ey up!

Busy day ahead Including (hopefully) a pleasant time zooming with some like minded people.

 

Teams is an awful package.. Microsoft have now 5aken it out of Office. Big problem is its old and creaky. Using it for interviews means it's hard to pick up on body language. I have used it for this purpose but I prefer face to face interviews.

 

Time to geronwithit  as O have a lot to do!

 

TTTFN

Baz

[New Haven Neil]

Morning, from a rock that surprised us early doors by being 2c and frosty.  Eeuww.

 

Not sure about the morning's activities, it was going to be making a start on pressure washing the garden paths as they are getting rather slippy, but it needs to warm up a bit first.  Then some drivelling with friends, which I will have to leave early to attend my diabetic eye review in the Big City.

 

I see the see the speel chucker doesn't like 'slippy' - both it and 'slippery' are in the Oxford English......checked it years ago as a (southern) mate insisted it wasn't a correct word and I should say slippery, so presume it is a north/south divide thing?  Regardless, they paths are slippy!

[TheQ]

Worst interview.. with the police comms section. Radios repair, setting up remote incident transmitters etc.

3/4 of the interview was race relations obviously by someone in HR who'd never worked with other nationalities...

Thing was, it wasn't a customer facing job, and the percentage of other races in Norfolk is tiny, this ain't Leicester or London.

 

I have turned down other posts, twice because of pathetic pay offers, twice because when I got there, I thought... What a dump.... Also turned down interviews a couple of times when offered, because they were honest and said the pay band before the interview...

 

Mooring Awl, and to the thrower of the Awl.

4 hours plus 2 hours plus 2 hours sleep..

 

Ben the surprised Collie had both swmbo and myself on moving patrol, it was capture a sample day. I'll be delivering that later.

Blue welkin,  light breeze, hint of frost at the most likely area. Weather wombles says high winds return tonight and through Saturday..

 

I was going on to a big orange shed , but instead I'm off to the MRC. We are re engineering the loo room, it's about 8 ft square so there's plenty of room.. we are going to add  a dirty sink, next to the hand washing sink, for brush washing / liquids disposal and a rack for sheet materials.. Today is only clear the junk and measure up day, so I still might get to go to the orange shed later.

 

Time to finish this muggacoffee 

 

Oh idiot TV environmentalist Steve  something, this morning was saying the levels of pollution in some samples were so high the lab technicians wouldn't open the sample bottle test it....

Yeah? So how did they know they were so high?,

 

Edited April 18 by TheQ

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

A bright sunny start to the day here in the northwest corner of England. I normally drop Sheila off at her Zumba class on a Thursday, but today we’re off to the Christie for my post blood test consultation. The appointment is for 12 o’clock, so there wouldn’t have been enough time for her to do her class, get home, shower and change before then, so no class for her today. My consultations are normally on a Wednesday, but for some reason it’s a Thursday this time. Hopefully we’ll be back in time for a late dinner before Charlie gets here for his afternoon model making session. 
 

At my interview for the roll I took in 1990, I worked for this company until I retired in 2017, I was asked what my thoughts were on planned maintenance? My answer was I thought it was essential, if breakdowns were to be kept to a minimum. I was then asked to explain my answer. I simply said, that only a fool would drive about in a car without maintaining the brakes or engine, that was just asking for trouble and even possible costly repairs. 
 

Back later. 
 

Brian 

[Winslow Boy]

37 minutes ago, TheQ said:

Worst interview.. with the police comms section. Radios repair, setting up remote incident transmitters etc.

3/4 of the interview was race relations obviously by someone in HR who'd never worked with other nationalities...

Thing was, it wasn't a customer facing job, and the percentage of other races in Norfolk is tiny, this ain't Leicester or London.

 

I have turned down other posts, twice because of pathetic pay offers, twice because when I got there, I thought... What a dump.... Also turned down interviews a couple of times when offered, because they were honest and said the pay band before the interview...

 

Mooring Awl, and to the thrower of the Awl.

4 hours plus 2 hours plus 2 hours sleep..

 

Ben the surprised Collie had both swmbo and myself on moving patrol, it was capture a sample day. I'll be delivering that later.

Blue welkin,  light breeze, hint of frost at the most likely area. Weather wombles says high winds return tonight and through Saturday..

 

I was going on to a big orange shed , but instead I'm off to the MRC. We are re engineering the loo room, it's about 8 ft square so there's plenty of room.. we are going to add  a dirty sink, next to the hand washing sink, for brush washing / liquids disposal and a rack for sheet materials.. Today is only clear the junk and measure up day, so I still might get to go to the orange shed later.

 

Time to finish this muggacoffee 

 

Oh idiot TV environmentalist Steve  something, this morning was saying the levels of pollution in some samples were so high the lab technicians wouldn't open the sample bottle test it....

Yeah? So how did they know they were so high?,

 

Decided before hand as they are 'scientists'.

[Gwiwer]

9 hours ago, Barry O said:

ended up 5 minutes late..pah! Which meant I missed a bus and spent 11 minutes waiting for the next one... PAh!

Come here and Pah. If you miss a bus the next one is two hours away. 
 

Good morning all from a sunny but cool Distant (Signal) West. The site has kindly allowed me in now after an hour of intermittently receiving a “Community Unavailable” message or just a timeout. Someone somewhere must be doing a LOT of muddling and is telling us all about it! 
 

The day requires Domestic Engineering which must include removing the encrusted salty carp from the windows.  That’s the residue of the last two stormy things. The lawn needs some re-seeding in thin patches and shopping must be done though that’s a local in-town job needing less than half an hour. 
 

In short I had better get off here, get off my Gluteus maximus and get on with it. 
 

Here’s the Cape as that big yellow thing rises from behind it 

 

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Slept well last night but when I woke up at six the joints were stiff and had to be eased into use. BIN day today and I'm expecting a parcel so I'm keeping an eye out for the bin lorry and putting the black bin out at the last minute and then taking it in as soon as its emptied. I got the NY Times Wordl again today, that's the sixth one in a row.

[Andy Hayter]

2 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

Good moaning from the Charente.  Whose stolen the sun.   

 

Jamie

 

 

At the risk of Monty Pythonesque escalation:

 

Stolen the sun - you were lucky.  We woke up to 4cm snow.

 

Now melting but it's pretty nippy and indoor "work" is called for today