OT: Job Interview Process Question

[RULoyal]

In your experience, if the day after your interview the employer calls you and asks for your references and tells you they are going to do a background check - Are they going to offer you the job (assuming everything checks out)? Not for me but a family member.

 

[RU Cheese]

Yes

 

[RuSnp]

Yes

What Cheese said.

 

[ClassOf02v.2]

Almost certainly.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Usually that's a very good sign you've landed the job.

 

[mildone_rivals]

All depends on the nature of the work. For some jobs, the references and background checks come before the first in-person interview. And the context matters. For instance, some jobs require multiple interviews, and the references and background checks occur after the first, signifying only a likely second interview.

So, I think it’s a clear sign the interview went well. But couldn’t say if it means an offer is coming, or another interview.

 

[Big East Beast]

As long as references and background check comes out clean. I’ve had multiple hires fail tgat stage of the process.

One guy had a gun charge he didn’t disclose and another person the reference said, “I can’t believe this woman keeps listing me as a reference- she totally screwed me over!”

Made both decisions easy to move forward with someone else. At that point in the hiring process, the manager really wants everything to go through smoothly.

There are restrictions on what you can ask these days and any sizable company with proper management/HR function generally follows the rules pretty carefully.

 

[Plum Street]

As long as references and background check comes out clean. I’ve had multiple hires fail tgat stage of the process.

One guy had a gun charge he didn’t disclose and another person the reference said, “I can’t believe this woman keeps listing me as a reference- she totally screwed me over!”

Made both decisions easy to move forward with someone else. At that point in the hiring process, the manager really wants everything to go through smoothly.

There are restrictions on what you can ask these days and any sizable company with proper management/HR function generally follows the rules pretty carefully.

What would have happened if the guy disclosed the gun charge ?

 

[Big East Beast]

What would have happened if the guy disclosed the gun charge ?

I don’t know. It was a small company and we would have had to figure out what to do.

We had plenty of other guys who were former military or owned guns, etc so it would have been more about whether he was trustworthy and would do the job. The owner had a strong libertarian bent.

It was a pretty senior role, so the attempt to cover it up was an immediate dealbreaker. I remember being very frustrated because I really wanted the help.

We wound up finding someone pretty amazing who was with the company a long time and the boss brought with him to two other companies.

 

[yesrutgers01]

In your experience, if the day after your interview the employer calls you and asks for your references and tells you they are going to do a background check - Are they going to offer you the job (assuming everything checks out)? Not for me but a family member.

You can’t do a background check until an offer has been signed.

 

[rubaseball78_rivals]

In your experience, if the day after your interview the employer calls you and asks for your references and tells you they are going to do a background check - Are they going to offer you the job (assuming everything checks out)? Not for me but a family member.

Most likely or down to a couple final candidates. Your friend should send a thank you note asap, and not one of those canned letters you can find online. Reference some of the conversations you had.

 

[mildone_rivals]

You can’t do a background check until an offer has been signed.

Sure you can. What makes you think that?

 

[RU Cheese]

What would have happened if the guy disclosed the gun charge ?

They'd probably bite the bullet and give him a shot

 

[RUinPinehurst]

Background check just means you've made it to Round Two. The pool of candidates narrows. The background check results provides more comparative data for the hiring group to assess the top candidates.

 

[T2Kplus20]

Background check just means you've made it to Round Two. The pool of candidates narrows. The background check results provides more comparative data for the hiring group to assess the top candidates.

In pharma/biotech, background checks normally happen AFTER the offer is accepted, which then can be rescinded if an issue pops up (normally criminal issue or drug test failure). Very rarely an issue, especially for the more senior positions. Entry level or new hires out of grad/undergrad are a little more unpredictable.

 

[RUInsanityToo]

In all the hires I've made in companies I've worked for background checks are done after the interview process and even after an "offer". Generally offers are contingent on satisfactory background check. External background checks cost money so it would be unusual for a company to perform it before they had made a final decision on a candidate via the interview process.

 

[T2Kplus20]

In all the hires I've made in companies I've worked for background checks are done after the interview process and even after an "offer". Generally offers are contingent on satisfactory background check. External background checks cost money so it would be unusual for a company to perform it before they had made a final decision on a candidate via the interview process.

+1
And we rarely do formal references anymore. With LinkedIn and being a relatively "small" industry, it's easy to chat with contacts and former colleagues regarding possible candidates.

 

[rubaseball78_rivals]

In all the hires I've made in companies I've worked for background checks are done after the interview process and even after an "offer". Generally offers are contingent on satisfactory background check. External background checks cost money so it would be unusual for a company to perform it before they had made a final decision on a candidate via the interview process.

In general you are correct, typically done after with offer contingent on passing background and drug checks. Nothing to stop companies from doing background before offer.

 

[RUinPinehurst]

In pharma/biotech, background checks normally happen AFTER the offer is accepted, which then can be rescinded if an issue pops up (normally criminal issue or drug test failure). Very rarely an issue, especially for the more senior positions. Entry level or new hires out of grad/undergrad are a little more unpredictable.

Sure, in certain industries and positions and scenarios. But in this case the OP indicates no offer was yet extended, only a communication that the applicant was moved to the next stage: a background check.

 

[RULoyal]

A little follow-up - no job offer yet, references were contacted, and the applicant was told to get fingerprinted. No job offer yet, he was told "this is part of the process". FYI - job is within state DOJ.

 

[yesrutgers01]

A little follow-up - no job offer yet, references were contacted, and the applicant was told to get fingerprinted. No job offer yet, he was told "this is part of the process". FYI - job is within state DOJ.

With the additional details- general rules of the hiring process do not apply with that type of job.
Of course they will reach out to references and do full background checks before an offer.
My wife is a Mortgage Advisor and it is the same thing.