I arrived in plenty of time for the interview despite the two hour motorway journey. It’s the one and only time I was interviewed at a football ground. The interview with the executive recruiters took place in one of the executive boxes overlooking the pitch. The first early warning sign was despite the emphases on Equality,Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in the accompanying material for the post the interviewers were two white males. This was a long listing interview to establish whether I should go forward to be interviewed by the board. Never the less it was extremely undemanding, basically just asking me about my current post. The whole thing was over in less than half an hour. I was then informed the chief executive would have an informal one to one with me. I was asked to wait in an adjacent executive box which had coffee making facilities and biscuits. There was no one else waiting. I had plenty of time to admire the view. I was able to open the pitch side sliding glass doors to get some fresh air. It was a modern stadium and as such multi purpose being used for large scale rock concerts and with good conference facilities according to the only reading material in the waiting room. I began to get board. I wished I had bought a news paper. After an hour and two cups of rather bitter, lukewarm coffee I went looking for someone. There were lots of doors leading off the corridor. I went to the entrance where I came in and spoke to the young women sitting at a table reading a magazine. The same young women who had noted my details and shown me to the executive box being used as a waiting room. She appeared not to recognise me. I explained I was here for an interview and had been told I would be meeting with the chief executive. She said yes he is on the phone at the moment but if you return to the waiting room someone will come for you. Well I assumed that meant when he had finished his phone call but an hour later I was still waiting. By now I was irritated, bored, hungry for some lunch and wondering why there were no other candidates. I even began to wonder if the chief executive had forgotten all about me and left the building. I could resist no longer and went in search of the young women. She was eating crisps, and a Kit Kat from the nearby vending machine. I apologised about interrupting her lunch, she didn’t smile or say that’s alright. I said I was just checking I had not been forgotten. Meaning I am in a room at the end of a long corridor, there appears to be no one else about, no one has checked on me or given me an up date. I got a rather sharp response, the chief executive was a very busy man and would send for me when he was free. I though I hope she isn’t his PA but comes with the conference facilities because I’m not impressed. Half an hour later I was shown into another executive box this one being used as the chief executives work station. He apologised for keeping me waiting as if it had been a delay of a few minutes not hours. Did he know how long I had been sitting in that box, did he care? By way of explanation he said that someone he had been trying to speak to had suddenly become available. He then said I suppose you know about the difficulties the organisation has been experiencing for some time. I didn’t. His appointment he said was a sign things had changed and this appointment was a further opportunity to run things differently. He was critical of the previous leadership responsible for over seeing a dysfunctional organisation. He described the board members as very enthusiastic but inexperienced members who were happy to be guided by him. He said these days the post of chief executive can be rather precarious but I wasn’t to worry he was probable one of the most secure chief executives in the country. Then he wished me a safe journey home, clearly unaware of where home was. On the long drive home I imagined what it would be like working for this man. The picture that came into my head was having been unable to tie him down to an appointment or get him to return my calls being reduced to sitting out side his office trying to catch him in between meetings and phone calls. I like to think if I had been offered the post I would have turned it down. I wasn’t and 18 months latter I read he was on gardening leave having lost the confidence of the leadership group!
Blair Mcpherson former Director author and blogger www.blairmcpherson.co.uk
