Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment when interviewing?

Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by galistoca on Friday April 08, 2016 @12:04AM (#11452518)

I get the idea from my own experience of interviewing at one of those "larger companies". The reason why they look disinterested is because they are indeed disinterested. A lot of times developers get pulled into interviews regardless of whether they have some important task at hand, and nothing makes you more frustrating than losing focus. And a lot of cases you get the notice about the interview the same morning or the day before. As a result sometimes I just go in without any preparation (honestly I would rather spend my time working on my own important task at hand than preparing to come up with some clever interview question for some guy who we may or may not even hire, and whom I will probably have nothing to do with even if he does get hired) I am not saying this is right, and I also think the system is broken, but it's system's fault, not the interviewer. So if you "ran" from Google because of this reason, you probably made a mistake, because at Google you can move around different departments after you get hired.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by bpchaps on Friday April 08, 2016 @02:15AM (#11452871)

I didn't run from google because I didn't need to!

Their hiring process is so full of shit that between the interviewer and the recruiter, they somehow managed to forget two phone interviews which I left work early for both times. When they finally and successfully initiated a third interview (again, left early), it was with someone who sounded like they wanted to jam a pen in their eyes from debilitating boredom. You could hear the eye rolls from over a thousand miles away as if I was some sort of nuisance who shouldn't be listened to. Why would I want to work for a place that drains the life out of someone that much, then uses them as an introduction to the company?! "Hello welcome to I Hate My Life, can I make you hate yours, too?"

I never received a call back, nor did I get an apology.

There aren't enough middle fingers or taboo words in this world to express how pissed off I was at them for the way that they behaved. It was just plain unprofessional, dammit.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by ianamartin on Friday April 08, 2016 @08:03AM (#11454002)

You sound like a real treat to work with.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by st3v3r on Friday April 08, 2016 @02:21PM (#11456742)

"A lot of times developers get pulled into interviews regardless of whether they have some important task at hand, and nothing makes you more frustrating than losing focus."

That sucks for them and all, but get over it. At the very least, learn to fake interest. If you can't even do that, then yes, the candidate should run far away.

" I am not saying this is right, and I also think the system is broken, but it's system's fault, not the interviewer."

The interviewer is the one who's doing it. So yes, much of the blame does fall on the interviewer.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by galistoca on Friday April 08, 2016 @10:45PM (#11459649)

My point was that me as the interviewer (in a big company) doesn't have any incentive to "get over it" and "learn to fake interest" because of how the system works. Please re-read my comment and come back when you got my message.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by bpchaps on Saturday April 09, 2016 @04:29AM (#11460491)

How about just a personal incentive to be kind to others?

http://eprints.keele.ac.uk/1422/3/hamilton_mccabe_org_2016.p...

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by st3v3r on Monday April 11, 2016 @12:49PM (#11472965)

And my comment is that those people should not be given a free pass. They are making the conscious decision to be an asshole, so they should be called out on it.

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Re:Ask HN: How do detect a crappy boss / toxic environment w... by galistoca on Monday April 11, 2016 @05:37PM (#11475332)

I have no problem with people calling out other people. I just see problem with some guy with lack of experience should be giving out an uniformed and incorrect advice to people who also have no idea.

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