Aviva (United Kingdom) Interview Questions & Reviews

Interviewed Nov 2008 in Des Moines, IA (took 3 weeks)

I initially learned about the position from a former colleague who now works there. I filled out an online application and soon received a call from HR. They were quite interested in me at the beginning. I was traveling, so the first step was a phone interview with a senior VP, who suggested I submit a bid to do some project work for them as an initial test to determine my fit with the department. I did this, then was scheduled for a personal interview with several people from the company. The interviews went well, although they were somewhat exhausting because I met with a total of about eight people; some one-on-one and others in small groups. Some of the people I interviewed with struck me as extremely inexperienced for the positions they had. For example, one person had actually been a student intern at my previous employer and to the best of my knowledge was not at all qualified for the type of work she was doing for her present employer. In fact, she was actually doing several things that had been my responsibility at the previous company. This made me question the true nature of the job I was seeking. Although everyone was very interested in my background and experience, I had the feeling they were trying to figure out how the other company (their rival) had done things. I generally felt they weren't quite sure what to do with me or how I would fit in the team. This was disappointing, because my former colleague had said they really worked closely with him to customize a good position. They made no such efforts with me beyond telling me I was being considered for two positions. The HR woman finally sent me the salary range for both positions and they were substantially below what I'd been making. She indicated they would be making a decision soon and I was actually fairly hopeful I would get hired. However, about a week went by before I heard from anyone there. The HR woman had left the company by this time, and the new HR person just said I was not chosen for the position. There was no explanation. I never heard further about my project bid. About a month and a half later, I was contacted by four recruiters for the same position, and told they were now going to fill it with a contractor. My name was submitted again, but I never got an interview. I later heard they filled it with a friend of a friend. Then, in the last two weeks, the position reappeared on the company's internet site and I re-applied. However, I am not hopeful I'll even get an interview. Frankly, I no longer care. They seem extremely erratic to me.