Ridiculous Interview Techniques

I heard that once this story went public the company issued a grovelling apology and said that the interviewees would be recalled for another interview. If so, perhaps it would be good if they could turn the tables and ask the person who came up with the ridiculous idea of asking them to do the "David Brent dance" to do it him/herself. See how funny they find that!

In an area where jobs are scarce it's unacceptable to use such belittling tactics, whilst some would cope with spontaneously bursting into that dance, my sons both went through a phase of doing it a while back and didn't care who was watching, others would find it utterly humiliating and what's wrong with that, not everyone can find the inner exhibitionist, and why should they for heavens sake we are not all the same, I would have been mortified. I suppose they could have said they were completely unaware of Ricky Gervais and this David Brent persona he had created. Nevertheless, I don't see why some companies feel they can ask prospective candidates to have to jump through irrelevant hoops, after all where in the job spec would it have said you have to be a little bit of an impromptu stand up comedian. I have also heard of interviewers openly yawning whilst interviewing candidates these days it's just so rude, and they presumably do because they think they can. It's reported that some young prospective job seekers don't know how to conduct themselves at interviews these days, but clearly this also applies to some employers as well!

So true Iam, it seems that in this country the excuse 'that it was just lighthearted' or 'oh dear, a sense of humour failure' is deployed to justify quite offensive and deeply unpleasant behaviour.

Awful wasn't it, and not isolated from comments made by many people on radio phone ins.
Is there something about basic manners here, and a general acceptance of unpleasant behaviour and comments, dressed up as humour? We've moved on from the dreadful comedians and mother in law/wife /"paki" jokes, but the new wave seems to consist of what I consider to be really sick bullying jokes about people with disability etc. The argument is they're pushing the boundaries. Then there is the trolling, on line bullying that's been in the news recently.
I feel like Mary Whitehouse, and I wasn't a fan. I am regularly shocked by the way in which some parents speak/shout at their children, using offensive language and threats. I dream of a more polite and considerate society. Maybe, lie Nick Cohen (on another thread) I'm simply losing the plot.

I heard the applicant for this job on the radio and he said that there was another applicant, a family man in his 40s/50s, who had been made redundant and was desperate for a job - he was also asked to danced. He did so but was obviously very embarrassed.

At a time when there are a lot of applicants for every job it is vital that interviewers ensure all applicants are treated with respect so those who are not successful will retain some self confidence to allow them to apply for other jobs.

I agree the manager in this case was obviously a bully

The corporate world is full of people who really believe their personal judgment is infallible and any attempt at objectively assessing candidates is a waste of time and a lot of froth. On the other hand, I'm not convinced by personality assessment tests. If you take enough of them you can develop some skill. As for graphology, popular in some countries, or going by the star sign! I agree with very clear job description and sensible person spec.

I got my first teaching job after a chat at a coffee morning. It was a direct grant school, so wasn't subject to LEA practices. It also helped that my dad was an old boy of the school. Thereafter, all my job interviews and all those that I was involved in as a school governor were conducted by the book.

Not having training on how to conduct interviews is no excuse for behaviour like this. Any adequate manager knows that asking interviewees to perform humiliating acts at interviews is beyond the pale and unacceptable and I think it suggests that the manager is bully who enjoys humiliating staff so the job should be avoided and the companies senior managers should be considering the managers suitability for his job.

Public sector is probably better at the "policies and procedures" lark I agree. Many businesses expect managers to "do their own HR" because they don't want the cost/headcount of having an HR dept. I remember talking to someone who took early retirement from a bank in the city. He said that there recruitment was done over cup of coffee or lunch.

All that is true, JessM, but, having worked in both the public and private sector, I have to say that these bad practices are far more prevalent in the private sector. Which seems crazy given the fact that a successful business is dependent on committed and focussed employees who are led and motivated by managers who can command respect. I can't find the original report but I think there was a comment from a senior member of the company saying that the said manager had not followed company guidelines. Clearly there was laxity all the way up the command chain.

Managers often do not have any training in how to conduct interviews. So it would be unreasonable to sack a manager who had no guidance or training. Without training (and continuous pulling into line by HR) they tend to make lots of mistakes like talking too much themselves, asking useless questions etc The "lets catch them out" factor raises its head in many forms and happens when interviewers exercising their power in an inappropriate way. I remember 20 years ago there was a spate of things like: Leave them in a waiting room in which a wastepaper bin catches fire and observe how they react.
It may never have been pointed out to them that the unsuccessful candidates need to feel they have been treated decently.
I was very disappointed by the comments of the CIPD rep on R4 PM. She waffled. I think the HR profession can help by making sure that there is a clear job description and person spec and that the selection process sticks to assessing candidates against this. Also that interviews are properly planned and conducted in a way that is respectful of the candidates and the time and effort they have devoted to their application. (which can be considerable). Anything less is not only unethical, it is damaging the employer's reputation.

No matter how desperate I was for a job, I think I would have told them what I thought in a couple of good old Anglo-Saxon words, walked out, then complained to the CEO.

Yes, I read that. I was astonished that the branch manager hadn't been removed from his post immediately. That behaviour, which was clearly designed to humiliate applicants, was quite disgraceful.