[Closed] Have you ever walked out of a job interview?

I've backed out of a few at the later stages. Once because I was made a better offer to stay, another because they announced a merger in the middle of the process and on the other occasion the move just seemed to have too many risks attached to it.

I'm Glasgow based. Give me a shout if you're ever over this way and I'd be happy to chat over a coffee if it will help with your dissertation. Email is in profile.

Back in the early 90s my boss and I I interviewed a bloke for a tech support role. He was the perfect candidate, but had exceptionally long hair. The manager advised him of the somewhat contentious company policy that men's hair must be shorter than collar-length. He immediately stood up, went "well, I don't think there's any point in either of us wasting each other's time any further" and walked out of the office without another word.

Did he swish it as he left?

I know someone (both parents were from Iran, but they moved to the UK years before he was born) who was in an interview when one interviewer turned to the other and said "this one's English is alright actually, isn't it".

The candidate promptly left the interview, while demonstrating just how many interesting words he'd picked up while 'learning' English.

I'm curious as to how that makes dissertation material. Once you get beyond the obvious (employer failed interview / better offer received / circumstances changed) you are going to just get weird ones like your example.

What do you envisage the result being? 'companies should spend money catering to bizarre candidates just in case their apparent odd personal priorities don't transfer to them being functionally useless in their job role'?

Or even said thanks but no thanks when a company was still interested in you?

yep, when I applied I didn't know who the company was and when I got the interview it was a somewhere I had previously worked so i went along out of respect. They were very nice and super keen but i had to say towards the emd that it was a waste of time and I wasn't interested.

funnily enough the interviewer, was a good friend of the manager where I was working at the time, though he said he would keep it confidential, I got a pay rise not long after. 🙂

I have yes. at a removal company. the blokes attitude changed when I asked how hard could it be carrying furniture.
I said I didn't think I was right for the job and got up and left.

Almost the opposite - I chucked a woman out of an interview many years ago.

It went thusly -
Her: You haven't done many interviews have you?
Me: You've come for a job pulling staples out of bits of paper, what do you want, a board of directors? (witty I thought). Bye.

It was a problem interviewing post-maternity-kids-now-grown women for menial tasks in the microfilm industry when you were a baby-faced 19 year old office supervisor. 😆

(Can I still send you my CV?)

Backed out of job after it was offered, better pay some £10k. Just couldn’t think of a good reason to join the company. They didn’t have the same work ethos or dynamic approach I have, Id call them risk adverse, dull process and driven. When I really thought about it I just didn’t really want to be associated with them. They didn’t give me any sense that I was joining an organisation that was valued within society as a whole or professionally.

Yep, long time ago - the recruitment agency lied to me about the job, lied to their client about me - it was an informal 'chat' but we both agreed it wasn't going to happen so we parted company on good terms, didn't so much "walk out" as end it early I suppose.

I've also turned down offers post interview, I've been unemployed twice in my life and I hate it, I tend to panic and apply for dozens of jobs a day until I get something> I was offered 3 jobs on the same day once - poor old Admiral Insurance, bless 'em they're always recruiting - I always apply when I'm panicking and they always offer me a job, I've never worked there.

When I've been recruiting I've had 2 people ask to leave because of nerves - some people get so tied up with the details, wearing the right clothes, using the right words, the right firmness of handshake and all that garnish - it's pointless, if they've got the right skills and attitude they'll at least be considered - but they were both very young, I asked them to relax, not worry about it, take 5 if they wanted too, but they both left. I once saw someone pull into the car park, sit there nervously for 5 mins, cry and drive out again.

I really feel sorry for people looking for jobs, especially for the first few years after school, they get their heads filled with such bullshit about unimportant stuff about the "right" things to say or whatever - most people will be better off just being themselves, you can always tell when someone is trying to act - what do they expect to happen, they give an amazing performance, get the job and then spend the next x number of years playing that role.

Truth is, when recruiting - you decide whether someone can actually do a job by their CV, the interview is about working out whether they'll get along with everyone else, and more importantly whether they'll be a **** up and make you look bad!

The convention in teaching interviews is all candidates are there at the same time, some getting culled at half time and they offer by the end of the day before you leave - and you are expected to accept there and then or they offer to the second in line etc. A couple of times I've made it to round two but withdrawn before they came to a decision after not feeling the love for the place. I just couldn't see me being happy with the place or the people I'd have to be working with.

I'm curious as to how that makes dissertation material. Once you get beyond the obvious (employer failed interview / better offer received / circumstances changed) you are going to just get weird ones like your example.

What do you envisage the result being? 'companies should spend money catering to bizarre candidates just in case their apparent odd personal priorities don't transfer to them being functionally useless in their job role'?

I was expecting this. The short answer is that he obvious reasons are so obvious that here is very little research on them. Recruitment processes are designed and refined by recruiters so I'm also interviewing them to see if their understanding of why people pull out is the same as the candidates who are actually withdrawing. I work in an industry with skills shortages and a lot of money is spent identifying and attracting candidates, and a fair bit on selecting the right ones. It would be good to know if the selection part of the process is working against the attraction part. It's a bit more complicated but that should give you an idea.

Hmm, I have done 'thanks but no thanks' a few times when I was younger. I used to work for an organisation I loved but was 'restructuring' and would only employ me on temporary contracts which would come perilously close to ending before being renewed.

I was constantly applying for jobs and had a pretty good hit rate at interviews / offers. As soon as I mentioned an interview / offer in the office, miraculously my contract would be renewed. It was a bit annoying but I became very good at interviews.

The jobs weren't quite as interesting as the one I had (international voluntary organisation vs national) but would have been ok if my brinksmanship hadn't worked. Any good? I can email you details!

Yes.

I walked into an interview for a senior position at an outdoor centre on Ullswater (having cut short family holiday due to the three days notice, and bought a suit) - to be greeted with [i]'We filled that position with the internal guy, would you consider a junior position in Wales? I know you are overqualified, but I can but ask...'[/i]

😈

I withdrew form another centre manage post in Biggar, as a fortnight after the interview they could not decide between me and another chap. The director called and basically asked what was the lowest wage I would take... (in the meantime, I had looked up their accounts online and decided the centre would be closing shortly anyway - I was proved right).

👿

On a related note, I was turned down by a centre at Helensburgh as I was 'too smartly dressed'. They felt I was more like a teacher than an outdoor instructor (this from a local authority outdoor centre, staffed with all teachers...)

👿

Oh yes, a few from me and lots as part of my job (recruitment).

Drop me a message, e-mails in my profile if you want specific info.

I've pulled a couple of times, at the point I've realised the corporate culture wasn't for me or the person interviewing was not someone I wanted to work with. I don't own a dog.

Interviewed by a Snr Manager at one of the big banks (Edinburgh) a couple of years ago.

He questioned my CV and said he was concerned that I'd not worked for businesses like theirs. I pointed out my FS experience and he said, "no, I mean successful global ones".

I then pointed out the global businesses I had worked for, but agreed that the ones I'd worked for in the past were all profitable and hadn't been bailed out by the Govt.

I then asked whether I should get my coat, as I stood up...

Went for a job interview just before my first child was born. The commute was, on average, an hour and a quarter each way. The money on offer was below the industry standard.

Me: "What are the working hours?"

Interviewer : "9 to 5...."

Me: "That's fine."

Interviewer : "... but here at (Name of Company redacted) we like to work hard and play hard. We're all here by seven in the morning and usually we start to pack up for the day about half six or seven in the evening"

Me: " That doesn't really work for me. I need to get home to my pregnant wife"

Int: " But, we need to make sure that you'll be able to keep up with the same volume of work as everyone else.

Me: " Do you pay overtime?"

Int: "No"

Me: " Thanks for your time". Exits stage left pursued by a bear.

The company in question have a reputation in the industry for burning out people within a year and the only people who'll work for them are those who are desperate for work.

Post-degree I had an interview for call centre job. At the end of the interview I got asked if I wanted the job. I replied not really but I needed the money.

I got the job.

Not happy in current job, being interviewed for more money and closer to home. Throughout the interview, it became apparent that these people had no idea what they were talking about, fair enough I guess that's why they were looking at taking someone on, but the feeling I got was they were stuck in their Victorian way of doing things and any suggestions I made were going to be ruled out. When they were taking of some convoluted way of sending accounting and production data to head office, I said there was an easier way, they said that was they way it had always been done and was likely to continue. I pointed out that the T in IT is for Technology and if they didn't want to use it there was no point in employing me as an IT person. Stood up, thanked them for their time and left. Funnily enough, whilst waiting to go in, one of my workmates came out. Back in our office it turned out he'd walked out at pretty much the same point in the conversation. Not long after, the plant was converted to a storage facility and most of the staff were paid off or redeployed after the company was taken over by a multi-national.
About the same time, I had another interview in the run up to Christmas. All seemed to go well. Asked back after the new year. Thinking this was good, a second interview, I got dressed up again and off I went. During the interview the words "second interview" were mentioned and it was pointed out that this wasn't a second interview, it was just such a long time since the first interviews they thought they'd interview everyone again. I told them I wasn't impressed by having my time and money wasted like this. They asked if I was sure I wanted the job, and I said that if this was how they treat potential staff, then probably not.
Another company made me wait at reception. After 40 minutes I left - same again, if this is how they treat potential staff, what's life like for the poor buggers who actually work there? Don't know if that counts as "walking out of an interview" though.
The common thread in all 3 cases was that they didn't seem to realise that this is a 2-way process. If I'm already working, I'm interviewing you to see if I want to leave where I mm and come here just as much as you're interviewing me

Went through a stage at one government department when surplus when you had to attend interviews for vacancies at your grade. I turned up to one where the office/building put me right off - net curtains, grey, old fashioned and the interviewer didn't help either. I think midway through I admitted I wasn't particularly interested in the role and we amicably ended the interview there and then.

I've also truned down decent job offers on basis of personal reasons i.e. the location was somewhere really I wanted to leave and I couldnt see myself starting all over again there. In hindsight I wish I'd have accepted at least one of those offers given what's happened in my recent 'career.'

Oh well.

once during third interview the director said he felt i was too young, to which I replied its the one thing I cant change and why did he not express those concerns in the cv selection process or before I had travelled to their offices three times.

I left

My wife and her female colleague interviewed someone the other week but promptly finished the interview when he asked, "So can I speak to the man who'll be deciding on my application?"

I went to a really weird one where the interviewing manager had decided I didn't have any relevant experience, even though I kept describing in detail the process that they did (I used one end of their service, they were at the other so I had a pretty solid idea of how it worked. She kept insisting I'd never used it even though I'd spoken to her on the phone the [i]previous day,[/i] and helped her fix an issue where her team had ****ed up. Just totally convinced her team were their own magic island and so specialised and uniquely skilled that nobody else even knew what they did, when it was just another boring everyday process for everyone else.

So after about 2 rounds of this I called her an arsehole and walked out. Which was awesome when I took another job in the company and we were working on the other side of a row of desks. But all her team loved me for it, on account of, she [i]was[/i] an arsehole. 😆

I once cut a phone interview short after being asked numerous questions about first line IT Server support. It was a web development role I'd applied for. Turned out the recruitment agent had lied about what the job was to reach his quota of candidates. The interviewer was livid with the agent and we had a good collective whinge about how recruitment agents are on the same food chain as estate agents.

Went for a job interview which went really well. Talked about money and they said they would give me what I wanted.
Just as I leaving they said the big boss would like to see me. First thing he said quite rudely "We won't start you on that salary no way". I glazed over at that point.

I remember there was a scandal a few months later over rogue companies. Apparently the boss I talked to was interviewed by the police for locking a salesman in a cupboard because he dared asked for his account to be paid.

I really dodged a bullet there.

The common thread in all 3 cases was that they didn't seem to realise that this is a 2-way process. If I'm already working, I'm interviewing you to see if I want to leave where I mm and come here just as much as you're interviewing me

This, absolutely.

So many companies think that recruitment is simply them looking for staff, and that the candidates will be grateful for what they get. There is a power imbalance because there's typically more applicants than roles, companies think they hold all the cards and the truth is that they don't.

It's no wonder candidates sit in car parks crying instead of turning up.

no walk out but a funny story.

I applied for a mkt planning role with a utility. I was in a similar role in an oil co so got an interview. Went to interview & it was a data based test, bleeding hard too but multiple choice.

Anyway, I struggled through the first page & it started doing my head in, it was really difficult. There were say 100 questions & I'd done say 10 in 30 mins, so I thought bolx I'm just going to randomly fill in the multiple choice answers.

So in exam type conditions, there were a few of us, I just filled in the answers making a pattern on the answer sheet, a sort of wave probably. I finished (obviously) in super quick time, handed it in & left.

Anyway, wrote it off as a waste of time & went back to work. Said company phoned me up to invite for an interview.

I really should have gone to see if my wave pattern was in fact the correct answers or they just wanted to see if I was a genius or a joke (the latter).

I turned down a job that I helped write the spec for for the company I was applying to. They just misjudged the remuneration package but also failed to convince me I'd have appropriate support mechanisms in the workplace. I was the only person doing what I'd be doing and managed by someone who didn't understand that.

I've nearly walked out of an interview when I was considering universities. It was for a course doing what my dad did and they spent ages asking about my dad's practice, his issues, how he managed things. In the end I told them if they wanted him to do the course then they should have invited him to interview and not wasted my time. Got a reduced offer too but turned it down.

Have you ever walked out of a job interview?

Yes. After about 10mins.
I decided I didn't want to work with the "interviewer" who was intended to be my new line manager.
I simply waited for them to confirm that they were, then waited to hear another couple of sentences about detail in the role then stopped them short and declined to be considered.
The interviewer was a little surprised but actually praised me for being honest and open. It almost came as a surprise to me that they then wanted me to be considered, even though I'd already said I didn't want to be 😕

I ended it, friendly and honest of course. Shook hands, walked out.

Yes I have walked out of a job interview. The interviewer asked me if I thought I had the necessary sales skills for this sales role (5 years sales experience) I said yes and asked them the same question, to which they said no!

I pointed out therefore that I shouldn't have been considered for the role and invited for an interview, so I packed my bag and left.

Also, it transpired that the interviewer hadn't decided on the geographical location of the role.

Complete time wasters, but eexperience I suppose

My wife was called to interview last year for a role in a national firm with a regional office localish to us that the role was based in but the national office in the midlands. She shlepped up to the national office and the first sentence to come out of the interviewers mouth was "Oh, we should probably have told you earlier - the regional office the role is based in is relocating next month to 70 miles further west. Are you still interested? It would be a bit of a commute for you." The interview ended there - 6hr (no expenses paid) round trip for a 30 second interview.

The common thread in all 3 cases was that they didn't seem to realise that this is a 2-way process. If I'm already working, I'm interviewing you to see if I want to leave where I mm and come here just as much as you're interviewing me

LoL - at the interview for my current job, the guy interviewing me asked if I had any questions at the end, I asked him why he thought I should come and work here...
Stunned silence... and I'm sure it is why I was offered the job.

I will ALWAYS ask that question at job interviews...

The convention in teaching interviews is all candidates are there at the same time, some getting culled at half time and they offer by the end of the day before you leave - and you are expected to accept there and then or they offer to the second in line etc. A couple of times I've made it to round two but withdrawn before they came to a decision after not feeling the love for the place. I just couldn't see me being happy with the place or the people I'd have to be working with.

I have had very similar experiences. I have left when I didn't feel comfortable at the half time point. I have also been sent away with "we will contact the successful candidate in the morning", overnight I had decided it wasn't for me and phoned them to decline only to be told "but we were going to offer you the job". They seemed quite miffed that I didn't want to join their school...
It is a two way process, sometimes the interviewer forgets this.

once, as good as...

Shortlisted candidate, interviewed by the Partners, one was nearly asleep, another seemed completely pissed, the others hassled.

When they asked me if I had any questions, I asked them which twit had chosen the colour scheme for the building. At which point the interview ended, and someone said to me as they showed me out that they presumed I was no longer interested.

Met the bloke I would have replaced a few years later. I'd made the right call... 🙂

I was offered an amazing job for a really interesting company. I was the succession plan for a retiring part-owner so there were shares involved etc.

I was getting married the following summer and was concerned about the amount of time away from home so was looking for some reassurance. One of the founders of the business told me "when I was in the Navy my wife always moaned that I was never at home. I spend less time at home now!"

I told them that it was the right opportunity but the wrong time and we went our separate ways. No regrets at all but it would have been an awesome job.

A couple I think ...

Only one I recall went something like..
After usual opening Q's turned to " how many days did you take off in your last job, did you take all holidays and how many times were you off sick?" After my replies, I imagine I wasn't sure of the exact figures the interviewer proceeded to tell me he'd never taken a day off "not even for family time " "I've never been sick" and so on .
(There are many things I value over religiously 9-5ing and this guy was obviously a complete dick)
I looked him in the eye said something like " I feel sorry for kids" as I got up and left .

No but I have asked "what role are you interviewing me for"?"

I gave it a halfhearted bash after "the advertised description had double the hours, 50% more pay and was not located underground, 20 miles away, between 8PM & 4 AM!"

I wish I suggested they advertised for a decent interviewer.

Two incidents spring to mind.

I didn't quite walk out of the interview in the first one but effectively did a "no comment" for most of it. The interviewing panel were just nasty, nasty people. The were aggressive towards me and were clearly making jibes at each other. I decided quickly I didn't want to work there so, when the technical part of the interview came around I answered "I'm afraid I don't know" to each and every question.

The main interviewer, the director, caught on as the previous month I had finalised a multi million pound case in which he had been working directly with me. He knew exactly what I was doing in the interview.

In the second instance I was offered the job. However, I just got a bad vibe from the business manager. I made some enquiries and "bitch on wheels" was the common response. One member of staff, a qualified professional, left and took an unskilled job just to get away from her. Thanks but no thanks.

Yes, I've decided against a job in or shortly before an interview. Once for an internal promotion. The other time I walked into the offices, noticed they were rather untidy and decided to tell them to not bother with the interview.

Rachel

In an interview with a consultancy in Abingdon: I walked through the main open plan office area, where all the men were wearing suits with ties and white shirts, desks in neat rows like an old schoolroom. I had an instant No thanks moment.

A friend of mine from Bolton, with let's say a very strong accent, walked out of her final interview with a FTSE 100 company when they told her not to worry about her accent as they would provide elocution lessons.

Another one walked out accusing her interviewer of just staring at her breasts. She was one of the most shy and timid girls I have ever known. Good on her I say.

Never walked out but have not pursued a few opportunities

When I was younger, over the top requirements for entry level jobs (like day long assessment centres, presentations in front of groups etc...). Plus deciding some roles were not commutable.

More recently, turned down a great role in London because my wife was pregnant (correct decision), and more recently an investment bank who once they knew my base (I was honest) would only offer a 20% increase despite the fact I knew that was just in the bottom of the salary band and they weren't taking into account things like final salary pensions.

Oh and the I expect you in 8-6 minimum and answer emails / calls at whatever time. even discussed how I would maintain an eye on things whilst on leave, delegating to an authorised person(s) and take emergency only type calls was not the right answer it would seem. Was offered but did not want to enter that culture when I just started a young family.

Also turned a job down because parking was a massive pita.

Turned down internal job because I knew the role was a loosing wicket and without massive change outside of the roles power it would fail.

Thinking about it, I seem to be quite a picky bugger. Then again I've never been unemployed.

In hindsight I should have. I knew right away the interviewer, who would be my manager, was a monumental bell end. However I was desperate so I kept my mouth shut. I made it 6 months into the role. Went in for my mid year appraisal. He got about 3 sentences in and I just stood up and told him I was off, swung by my desk to grab my bag and jacket and walked out. Most satisfying, especially his slack jawed face as I walked out the meeting room