About Blank

Mr. Blank got in the car,
He hummed his favourite songs on the way,
His spirits were high and he laughed a lot,
He had no idea how long would be the day.

Mr. Blank worked there for 7 years.
He was considered a Star.
A lot of appreciation and a fat pay package;
The promotion- not so far.

Mr. Blank entered the premises
And started to work with his habitual zeal.
As always he skipped breakfast;
He preferred a quick meal.

Mr. Blank’s work was his passion.
He had given his best all the time.
His wife had finally left him a year back.
She had felt he didn’t love her; that he did not give a dime.

Mr. Blank thus was a lonely man
Who dedicated his life to his work.
Every night he went back to a cold home,
His social life gone horrendously berserk.

Mr. Blank though had no regrets.
Every second he worked was a joy.
His boss was a very happy man.
He had never seen anyone work harder than this old boy.

Mr. Blank however felt, the office was a bit quieter that day.
People around seemed nervous, the morale was low.
He knew recession was in boom.
But he was confident that he would never feel the blow.

Mr. Blank continued with his reports
And in the noon his boss called.
“I am sorry, we have to let you go”, he said carefully.
But he looked neither sorry nor appalled.

Mr. Blank felt dizzy.
Surely this was a joke not so funny.
He had always worked there for the job satisfaction.
And never for the money.

Mr. Blank was laid off that day along with 10 others
and daily the number would only go on rising.
The company simply flushed away years of his service
On the pretext of justified down-sizing.

Mr. Blank now is jobless.
He thinks he will soon snap.
He wishes he had his family and friends to pull him through
And that he had not been such a crap.

Mr. Blank’s phone is ringing.
He asks...“Hello! Who’s there?”
Mrs. Blank’s comforting voice whispers
“Honey, it’s ok. I am here”.

5 SIMPLE REQUESTS OF A RECRUITER

Being a senior recruiter in a well known & reputed IT company in India, I have to deal with different people all the time. Some are good, some are bad. However, I feel that the professionalism amongst job-seekers is dwindling down drastically. A lot of candidates do not understand that what they do and how they do it has a direct impact on our performance, our job-security. Hence, I thought I will pin down some pointers which hopefully job-seekers will understand & implement. These are just some requests from us humble recruiters.

1. Please “Be serious”:
Are you really serious about a job-change? Are you sure about the role and responsibilities you wish to undertake? Are you serious about relocating to another city? Would you be burning any bridges by moving out of your current job?
Please introspect over these questions and only then start applying for a job change. A lot of times we interact with candidates for weeks only to be told at the end that they are hesitant about moving to a different city or that they want to stick to their current jobs, etc. It’s a huge waste of time for recruiters.
Also, this could make the recruiter distrustful of other honest candidates keen on making the move.

2. Please “Be reasonable”:
If you are expecting a 100% hike, please ensure that you have sufficient reasons to justify this kind of an unreasonable expectation. Do not say that your expected salary is ‘negotiable’ or ‘according to company standards’. These terms mean different figures for different candidates. For some, it’s a 30% hike while for some it’s a 70% hike. If you are playing the role of a team lead for 5 months, do not expect to get a role of a Project Manager in your next job. Think twice before stating your expectations. A lot of times, the recruiter will just drop your candidature if you expect the impossible and you may thus loose out on a golden opportunity. Hence, be reasonable with what you expect.

3. Please “Be professional”:
I have had candidates who happily accept the offer and confirm that they would be joining on a ‘so and so’ date. Then 2 hours before they are supposed to join, they send an email saying they have decided not to join stating personal reasons or that they got a long-term onsite opportunity in the current company or a better pay-package in another company. They think that by just signing off the email with an “apologies for the inconvenience caused”, they are undoing the damage…but… they are not. Please understand that the recruiter has invested significant efforts to get you on board and all of that is just flushed down the drain when you decide to pull a ‘no-show’ (a word dreaded by all recruiters).
If you are not sure of the offer, take your time, think over it. If the pay-package is not satisfactory, speak out frankly. Say that you will still consider other opportunities meanwhile. The recruiter may be hesitant, but in the long run appreciate your honesty and be prepared with back-ups (which he/she should do in any case).
Also, do not pass false information through your resume or any documents that you are asked to submit by the company. Please note that a lot of companies are now sorting help of external agencies to have a thorough background check and you can loose your job if any discrepancies are found in the same.

4. Please “Be punctual”:
If your interview is scheduled at 5 PM, do turn up at 4.45 pm itself. Most of the times, you will be asked to fill different forms which will take another 10-15 minutes. If due to certain reasons, you are unable to make it to the interview, please inform the recruiter in advance. Do understand that the recruiter has also taken some time off from the busy schedule of a technical interviewer, who is naturally not going to be thrilled to know that he/she stayed back late in office for an interview… which did not happen.

5. Please “Be polite”:
By attending an interview, you are not doing a favor to the recruiter. The recruiter is just doing his/her job. So please refrain from throwing tantrums or showing off a bad attitude. Please be nice to the recruiter (of course the recruiter also has to be nice to you). If the recruiter tells you that you have not been selected, do not yell or crib in front of the recruiter. He/she is just conveying the message to you.

My humble request to all is to pass on this message to as many job-seekers as possible, thereby making our professional lives a little less painful :).