Warning: Retail application process rant!
Posted: Tue Aug 18, 2009 10:36 amAnyone that has applied to any retail store (walmart, target, lowes, meijer, kroger, blockbuster as examples) lately knows exactly what I'll be talking about.
What the holy (*&^ do they need to put all those assessment questions on the application for? It drives me absolutely friggin insane! First off, the people who generally apply for these retail jobs are high school kids, younger people, or people that don't have the job skills to be hired for more reasonable positions elsewhere. So why the hell do they take it upon themselves to abuse you DURING the application process? And they've all done the same thing to a moderate degree.
It goes a little like this: You go to that company's website, you start the application. You fill in all your details, past job experiences, education information, whatever. And just when you think your done and hit the button, it tells you that to be considered, you must now take what they either call an Assessment or Survey. Please answer all the questions honestly, we only want to get to know you! You cannot fail. Blah BLah BLA BLAH!
So you get to sit there for an estimated time of *25 minutes* to fill out something that is completely asinine and worthless in the first place. Not that anyone or everyone isn't going to sit there and LIE their ass off. "How much do you steal from work?" Less then 10 dollars, more then 100 dollars, more then 500.... WHO THE *&^% puts more then 500????? HONESTLY! Or "Do you use illegal drugs at work?" What crackhead goes to the site, fills out all that information and then blows himself up by saying YES!?
And by the time you've done one application for that one company, you no longer feel like going to other sites and repeating the process over. It's a motivational killer I swear. And if you do fill out more, you quickly realize you've burned up 2 hours on these that you could have spent better by doing virtually anything else.
And now the tests are getting longer. I'm on page 3 of a 12 page assessment for a $8/hr job, and I've already answered 60 questions by page 3! WTF, by page 12, this test could be well over 200 questions! WTF WTF WTF.
And just for fun, here's the questions from page 3 alone. You answer in that absolutely ignorant "Agree/Neutral/Disagree" mode.
41. I feel disappointed when my achievements at work go unnoticed.
42. I take great pride in the honors I receive.
43. I always know when I am in a good mood or bad mood.
44. I strive to keep my emotions from affecting my judgement.
45. Sometimes critisism of my work will hurt my feelings.
46. My outlook on life would be described as upbeat.
47. When I look at the world around me, I have litte hope for mankind.
48. People are generally good.
49. Coworkers describe me as supportive.
50. To motivate people to improve their performance, it is important to tell them what they did wrong instead of what they did right.
51. I tend to be highly critical of others' work.
52. In solving business problems, it is important to consider what works in the real world.
53. Facts are what help you solve problems.
54. Solutions to business problems need to be practical.
55. Coworkers describe me as a deep thinker.
56. I try to spend my time thinking about how my decisions will affect others in the future.
57. Mistakes are learning experiences.
58. I am willing to take risk.
59. Coworkers describe me as being very cautious.
60. It is important to take chances in life.
Yeah, that's one friggin page, out of 12! Whoever made this, I hate you with a burning passion.
What the holy (*&^ do they need to put all those assessment questions on the application for? It drives me absolutely friggin insane! First off, the people who generally apply for these retail jobs are high school kids, younger people, or people that don't have the job skills to be hired for more reasonable positions elsewhere. So why the hell do they take it upon themselves to abuse you DURING the application process? And they've all done the same thing to a moderate degree.
It goes a little like this: You go to that company's website, you start the application. You fill in all your details, past job experiences, education information, whatever. And just when you think your done and hit the button, it tells you that to be considered, you must now take what they either call an Assessment or Survey. Please answer all the questions honestly, we only want to get to know you! You cannot fail. Blah BLah BLA BLAH!
So you get to sit there for an estimated time of *25 minutes* to fill out something that is completely asinine and worthless in the first place. Not that anyone or everyone isn't going to sit there and LIE their ass off. "How much do you steal from work?" Less then 10 dollars, more then 100 dollars, more then 500.... WHO THE *&^% puts more then 500????? HONESTLY! Or "Do you use illegal drugs at work?" What crackhead goes to the site, fills out all that information and then blows himself up by saying YES!?
And by the time you've done one application for that one company, you no longer feel like going to other sites and repeating the process over. It's a motivational killer I swear. And if you do fill out more, you quickly realize you've burned up 2 hours on these that you could have spent better by doing virtually anything else.
And now the tests are getting longer. I'm on page 3 of a 12 page assessment for a $8/hr job, and I've already answered 60 questions by page 3! WTF, by page 12, this test could be well over 200 questions! WTF WTF WTF.
And just for fun, here's the questions from page 3 alone. You answer in that absolutely ignorant "Agree/Neutral/Disagree" mode.
41. I feel disappointed when my achievements at work go unnoticed.
42. I take great pride in the honors I receive.
43. I always know when I am in a good mood or bad mood.
44. I strive to keep my emotions from affecting my judgement.
45. Sometimes critisism of my work will hurt my feelings.
46. My outlook on life would be described as upbeat.
47. When I look at the world around me, I have litte hope for mankind.
48. People are generally good.
49. Coworkers describe me as supportive.
50. To motivate people to improve their performance, it is important to tell them what they did wrong instead of what they did right.
51. I tend to be highly critical of others' work.
52. In solving business problems, it is important to consider what works in the real world.
53. Facts are what help you solve problems.
54. Solutions to business problems need to be practical.
55. Coworkers describe me as a deep thinker.
56. I try to spend my time thinking about how my decisions will affect others in the future.
57. Mistakes are learning experiences.
58. I am willing to take risk.
59. Coworkers describe me as being very cautious.
60. It is important to take chances in life.
Yeah, that's one friggin page, out of 12! Whoever made this, I hate you with a burning passion.
