Why I Didn't Get the Job

Find "Public Transit Operations: The Strategic Professional" here.

Towards the tail-end of my career I competed for an executive position with a former employer. This was a large organization (1,000 operators) that I worked for a dozen years prior. This was a first-rate agency and would have been a bang-up final assignment for me. Plus, the compatible pension program was slightly more generous. Many people there knew and liked me and remembered the efforts I made to mentor and advance my subordinates. Of course, the entire leadership team had turned over a few times, so my accomplishments were largely unknown to the current leaders.

It had always been my practice to leave a great job for a better one, so why stop now? It would be fun to make this power move back to the most innovative and progressive Authority I had ever worked for. Running a division in a sizable property is a unique experience. As far as the central offices are concerned, you are on a remote outpost, not unlike Europa, an icy moon of Jupiter. At a division, employees think you are the general manager, and rarely-seen executives are theoretical at best. This position, however, was an executive position, which meant a closer orbit to the centers of power and politics. Frankly, I was more comfortable in operations. As it turned out, this was a challenge I would not have to worry about.

It’s the day of the interview. I’m sitting in the lobby outside the interview room in my blue suit and red tie, and a petite young woman in a supervisor uniform and dark aviator sunglasses comes into the building. I stand up and smile. It’s a former protégé of mine whom I haven’t seen in a decade. She spots me and her jaw drops in disbelief. Before I know it, she crosses the intervening space and enfolds me in a crushing embrace. She’s small but strong. As she only comes up to my shoulders, I can see over her head to the interview room door. At that precise moment, the door swings open and the Deputy GM strides into the lobby. He spots me and walks over, confirming my identity. We are having a conversation over her head and even shake hands as this woman continues to clutch me. She has basically become an appendage. Finally, he tells her to turn me loose, which she won’t do. She’s happy to see me. After cajoling and direct orders fail, he actually peels her arms off me and I follow him into the interview room. “Bye,” I say.

The Deputy GM says, “I’ve heard of you, of course,” which is unnerving. It makes me suspicious and curious as to what he’s heard. He doesn’t say if it’s good or bad. I still don’t know. The incident in the lobby is related to the other interviewers who respond with forced laughter, and I say something lame like, “Employees love me.”

The interview goes fairly well. Sometimes I have them in the palm of my hand, and they grow silent and thoughtful. Other times, I talk too much and they get restless. Oddly, I don’t get the job, but instead acquire another weird anecdote to share with you. Is the embrace the reason I wasn’t selected? I doubt it, but it could have contributed to whatever grisly tales had circulated about me (“I’ve heard of you, of course”).

But here’s the real reason: they found a better candidate. These are not easy words to say, but it’s best to face up to the facts. By “better,” I mean someone more suited to the GM’s vision and initiatives. They found someone more compatible and conformable with their objectives. Which, of course, is their right as an employer. Why make excuses?

As far as the young woman goes, she was one of many employees I assisted and she became a superb employee (you’re welcome, transit authority) and was even named supervisor of the year. At the moment she was gripping me anaconda-like in the lobby her picture was posted inside all the buses and LRVs. She is featured a couple of times in my book as an example of persistence and optimism. She basically forced me to make her a supervisor because she wouldn’t give up. Whenever I’m tempted to quit, I think of her. Find "Public Transit Operations: The Strategic Professional" here.