Wrong company: What should you look for when you are interviewing for a job?  Are you wasting your time when you could be making better progress in your job search?

As the owner of a recruiting firm, I worked with applicants who dealt with troubling issues during the interview process.  Here are some of the things I learned from my experience in helping these applicants

Wrong Company:  The company location is unsafe.

In major metropolitan areas, office and factory spaces are expensive.  To save money, some companies locate their offices in inexpensive locations.  In major metropolitan areas, the less expensive locations are often in high crime locations.  I have had three clients whose offices were inside chain link fences that had barbed wire on the top.

If you do not believe that the location is safe, you need to ask yourself whether you are interviewing with the wrong company.

Wrong Company: The interviewers fail to keep their commitments.

In some cases, interviewers have valid reasons for cancelling an appointment, and they explain those reasons to you.  An easy way to handle the situation is to show understanding and simply reschedule.

However, some interviewers raise red flags when they fail to keep commitments.

• The interviewers cancel appointments without attempting to reschedule.
• They cancel appointments more than once.
• Worth of all, the interviewers completely fail to call you or to meet with you without calling to cancel or reschedule.

If interviewers can’t keep their commitments, you should see that as a sign that you are interviewing with the wrong company.

Wrong Company:  Interviewers take calls during your interview, or they allow people to come into their office to interrupt your interview.

This type of behavior is a sign that the interviewer is not interested in you or, perhaps, simply does not respect your time.

Remember that the way an interviewer handles an interview is a sign of how a company deals with its employees.  This behavior is uncommon, but when it has happened, applicants have often complained to me about it and rightfully so.

The interviewer is the face of the company.  If the interviewer doesn’t respect your time, how well will you be able to at a company that may not respect your time.  This type of company is the wrong company.

Wrong Company:  The company withholds details on benefits and salary range during the interview process.

The company benefits and compensation are confidential information.  For competitive security issues, companies must protect the details of their operations.  However, to avoid wasting their own time and the applicant’s time, the best interviewers provide general information on benefits and compensation.  Often, companies include information on benefits and compensation on the job description.

You need to work for companies that put the information out front.  Companies that play games during the interview may be companies that bait and switch on commitments.  This type of company is the wrong company.