Is it safe to assume that if an interviewer says you should apply at the company website..

[fuzzybabybunny]

I just had a career fair last week.

Company 1: met them, said that my dad actually knows them and the guy said that he probably knows my dad as well, gave him my resume, everything seemed cool

Today I get an email from the company saying that if I want more information regarding employment, I should go to their careers website and submit my resume for consideration.

Company 2: Whirlpool

From this thread.

lol, I knew that this one wasn't going to end well.

I went through the interview, and throughout the whole thing I could just tell that they weren't impressed. They tried to fake the niceties but did it badly. I have to say that they didn't seem too enthusiastic about the company that they worked for as well. I said how I loved their KitchenAid mixers because they do literally everything and that I've wanted one for a long time because I like to cook, and they basically said, "yeah, we make it." I sensed no love in them for what they produce. I mentioned that my dad works for a company that has been one of their suppliers for 20 years, and they basically said, "oh, ok" even though on their Utopian website they say how much they value their relationships, blah blah blah.

So at the end they said that my next step should be to go to their careers website and submit my resume, etc. I was almost about to just get up and leave and stop wasting my time.

All the interviews that I have that seem to be going anywhere are being fed up the "tiers" to other interviewers. None of this "go to the company website" stuff.

 

[thepd7]

Actually it's very common. Happened on 2 of the 3 companies I had interviews with. Something to do with a law about a potential employee showing interest in a position first. Not sure of the specifics just that it's common. I am sure it is also a way to get rid of you but not all the time.

 

[Safeway]

Depends on the size of the company, I think. A huge company that does a lot of hiring, and is in the technology industry, probably prefers online applications.

 

[BrownTown]

There is probably some law or company policy, I know some people who got internships via nepotism and still had to apply online to keep up appearences like it was competative when really none of the other people who might have applied would even be interviewed. Same was actually even true for switching jobs inside a company, had to apply for the job like it was competative even if you already had the job (in some cases were already DOING your job and had to apply for the job you already had).

 

[spidey07]

Very common, almost mandatory to even be considered in some companies.

-edit-
meaning you could be a perfect fit and have 20 recommendations from every aspect of the chain of command but you'll still have to submit online.

 

[xgsound]

Once a Company gets over a certain size this is becoming common. The wife works in HR for a large company, and they CANNOT hire anyone as a regular employee unless the online resume is filled out. This even applies to people recommended by corporate big-shots. Any interviews only rarely go beyond the initial stage without the online resume.


Jim

 

[Chronoshock]

For many companies, the ability to make a candidate an offer is tied into the application database. One company told me they couldn't extend an offer until I finished all the paper work (applying online, submitting my resume, taking a standardized test). Keeping all the applications on one system keeps things organized. Imagine if half the recruiters didn't get resumes through the site and half did. There'd be no easy way to keep track of everyone.

 

[Qianglong]

Usually recruiters that go to career fairs are sick and tired of people asking them repetitive questions. So they seems to be cold and not enthusiastic. Like other posters said, referring you to online application does not mean they do not like you. it is just a procedure that one has to follow.

Also, job fairs are mostly for people to get a better understanding of the company, they will not advertise existing jobs at the job fair, but instead refer you to the website.

 

[chorb]

When I was going to career fairs about 2 years ago, I encountered the same thing. All the large companies would hand you some literature about their website then tell you to apply online. I suggest that you do this as early as possible for as many companies as you can. I believe I started submitting resumes to websites in Sept/Oct 06 and while some companies got in contact in a reasonable amount of time, however I was still receiving calls from some of the companies 6 months later (long after I had already accepted an offer elsewhere).

 

[sygyzy]

I find it strange that your post is basically a rant where you insult potential employers. But here you are, jobless, and I assume without much work/life experience and the only thing you seem to be offering these people is a name drop (your father). And even that seems ... marginal.

 

[gorcorps]

I had a great on campus-interview with US Steel just a bit ago. The guy told me to submit my resume online as well as that's how things are done these days: by computers. Its just easier for them to get your resume online and go from there as opposed to the guy entering it himself.

Now I'm flying out there for a tour of the plant and to "interview" some more with their engineers.

cliffs: applying online is definitely not a bad thing