OMG I want this job!
That was the thought running through my brain as I left the interview. I had just completed a 90 minute interview for a QA Lead position. That title sounds so boring compared to the actual duties to be performed. The position would involve the creation of a Quality Assurance department, from scratch! I would create the process! The oppurtunity is so exciting.
I felt so good yesterday morning, I was ready to go. My 90 minute drive up the parkway to the job location was uneventful. I was 15 minutes early, there was no way I was going to be late! I had previously completed an HR application so I was ahead of the process there also. I first met with an HR person. This was a standard background interview but I was on. I was engaging, on point, and best of all funny! My next stop was with the hiring manager.
As with many managers I’ve interviewed with, the person ( a woman for those who must know ) is always busy. Also as with many QA Managers I’ve met with, their offices can look “cluttered”. She got right into the interview by explaining the job duties. I was floored with what her expectations for the position. The job would be to create a QA group/process from the ground up. She explained that the developers and business analysts were currently doing the testing of there own work, not the best setup. What she wanted was someone to come in and work out the process with a minimum of supervision from her. I was so excited about the possibilities I said at that moment I wanted the job!
She asked several pointed questions about QA that at the time I thought I answered well. While driving home I was reviewing my answers in my mind and in the end there was a test planning question I felt I could have given a better answer to. It happens but I was disappointed. Next she reviewed my resume and asked about some short stays at a couple of points in my career. I felt I handled this questioning well. I thought so even after I reviewed them on the drive home. By this time in the interview I couldn’t contain my smile, I was so excited about the possibilities of getting the position.
We discussed the possibility of telecommuting. I explained my rationale and my thoughts about lowering my starting salary in lieu of several days of working at home. Much to my delight she was quite open to the possibility. Now the job is a QA Lead and given the job duties, espeically with setting up a group, telecommuting in the beginning months would be difficult. I acknowledged that point. However she continued to be flexible about the possibility. . . . .OMG I want this job even more!
Prior to ending the interview she asked if I had any questions, I said I was satisfied. Looking back I made a mistake here. We had talked about the business the company was involved in only at a high level. I never asked any detailed questions regarding the developement environment, development process, tools used in current testing, etc. As I’m driving home I wondering if I may have failed by not finding out whether they’re mainframe or .NET environment. It was a mistake on my part. I let the possibilities of the job duties overwhelm my thoughts and I missed an oppurtunity to get some important details.
Will it hurt me? I hope not. . . .I really hope not! I can rationalize that the information I didn’t ask about is irrelevant at that point (during an interview) because it won’t affect the actual work involved to create the QA department. That work is there regardless of what the development environment is, and it really doesn’t matter to me because I can handle that. My hope is that hiring manager doesn’t take that lack of questioning, as me be less than detail orientated. . . . . a poor quality for a QA Lead. I am detailed, and I know QA theory. I believe I made that point during the interview.
So in the end I feel the interview went well. The QA Manager said they had a few more interviews and that they’d be making a decision late in this week or early next week. I’ll keep you posted. OMG I want this job!
DSK
PS. One thing I refuse to do is sit back and wait. I completed 5 applications before 8am this morning. In this economy you can’t take anything for granted. That’s not a lack of confidence about my interview, just the reality of my situation.
