I made it to work this morning, and did not stop working until 3:15. The store was consistently full of people. It worked for me because I had all kinds of butterflies about this interview. I changed my shoes, put on some makeup and made it across the street to the hospital at 3:30. I met Coleman and Rebecca, they let me put my stuff down and gave me an agenda for the afternoon. I was to meet with Gavin, Ellie and Kathy in separate 15-20 minutes intervals.
Gavin was definitely the worst. The more I reflect on our discussion, the more frustrated I am. I wish that I would have said more in defense of myself. He had taken all kinds of notes on my resume and asked me why I thought I would be a good fit for this position. I was explaining my skills with communication, coordinating programs, working with faculty and event planning, and he took a few notes. He says we are weighing pros and cons, and my lack of experience in a health science discipline and my degree in library science were cons, he didn't mention a pro. He said that there wasn't a wrong answer, but could I explain what a residency is. How long do they last? What happens afterwards? He asked if I would leave if some library offered me a position. If I was looking at other positions right now, more tailored to my archives goals. He also asked if the bookstore would mind if I quit after such a short time? I was honest and in retrospect, he will probably use my answers to argue that I wasn't a good fit, and won't be devastated if they don't pick me. He wasn't outwardly mean, but I felt like I was slipping away from consideration throughout the entire discussion, not a good feeling on the first pitch.
I had a short break and then I met with Ellie, who Rebbecca told me was chosen to give me more of an idea of the office culture there. Ellie was the most welcome contrast from Gavin. She was about my age, dressed casually and just asked me to tell her more about myself. She explained that the position I was applying for was entry level, and her interaction with the incumbent was minimal. Since they share the space and similar objectives, it is good to have some rapport. She emphasized personality and attitude over content specialization, citing that after her master's degree in social work, she didn't expect to be managing budgets, but she is happy working on the administrative side of social services. We talked about our my preferred management styles and my preferences toward autonomy seemed to match how they work in this office. It was more of a conversation than a question and answer session.
Lastly, I was introduced to the executive director, Kathy. She did the best job of explaining what the nature of the position and the unit within the Biological Sciences Division. When faculty members get grant funding they drop it off with the CCTS, and we help them spend it on curriculum development. There are high stakes with making sure that the faculty are happy and continue to work with us, and that all of the grant objectives were met. She actually said from one sociologist to another, I haven't identified my profession with my undergraduate degree in awhile. She wanted to know more about my strengths. The most poignant question that she asked which seemed to be in line with what Rebbecca had mentioned were the various nuances that come with working with faculty. They are busy people and I would have to not take things personally when I don't get the results with my first attempt. She talked about relationship building and resilience. I liked her alot, she seemed engaged when I was talking and although she was serious, she didn't hesitate to crack a smile every once in awhile. She is going to Colombia in a few weeks, but she would be communicating remotely when they moved forward with the new hire.
There you have it, the ghosts of Career Doom, Career Rapport, and Career Potential. After all of that I sat down with Rebbecca and Coleman and de-briefed. I asked them again about that health science background and explained my concerns from Gavin's comments. Once again they were very encouraging about me having a competitive skill set, and that there was much for all of them to learn along the way. They also said that Gavin was relatively new and might not have a strong grasp of the nature of this position. I thanked them for being so patient about my recurring concern, and they said it was fine. I finally asked about salary and they didn't know, so Rebbecca is supposed to follow up with me this week, as soon as she hears from HR. I asked few additional questions and then we wrapped up, just under two hours after I arrived for the interview.
One thing that Coleman said that stuck with me is that the current staff dynamic is evident of people coming from diverse backgrounds, and growing within their roles in the Center. Essentially, it doesn't matter if I can't check off every box in the job description, I am bringing enough. With that being said, I think that I have a chance. They said that it would take at the most two weeks to get back to me. I will try to stall anything else until I hear from them.
In other news, my straight hair is no more and I found some tall rubber rain boots. I'm ready to step in some puddles!
