PlayNetwork Music & Messaging Coordinator Interview

Interview Details – I applied on December 28 and, after 2 interviews, received a rejection email on January 25. Although the job was described as an entry-level position, the questions asked in the telephone interview (conducted by an HR person who has no background in media) indicated a level of responsibility that went far beyond production & support basics. Which was fine with me. All to the good, it seemed initially. A week later, I was asked to interview in person with the managers whose departments I would have served on a 50/50 basis. This was on the Friday after the snow & ice storm; getting to PlayNetwork's Redmond facility proved difficult in those weather conditions. The bus routes that serve the company's stretch of NE 148th were on re-route, meaning they did not stop anywhere near the office park. Undeterred, I slogged through 15 blocks of slush to make the interview, an action that ought to have spoken volumes re my resourcefulness & determination, but apparently didn't.

The 2 managers gushed endlessly with praise over my cover letter & resume, singling out adjective choices of which they were particularly fond. It was scarcely like an interview at all, more like a fireside chat. They talked and talked; i interjected observations here and there, and they only asked 1 or 2 direct questions during our 40-minute session. Even more so than in the phone screen, it was clear that they would tailor the role to encompass my wide range of talents. The job description said nothing about copy writing or recording voice-overs, but the managers seemed eager to extract the maximum for a salary that was only in the low to mid 30s. They went on and on and on re how impressed they were with my background, but that they had to interview dozens of other applicants. (?) The next day, I followed up with a thank-you note to HR, including a link to an audio sampler of mine that I had uploaded to Box.net. Oddly enough, for an audio production job, they had not requested tangible proof of audio expertise. As it turns out, no one at PlayNetwork listened to the file, and the 5 references I supplied were not contacted. No one at PlayNetwork read my LinkedIn profile or the references contained therein. What, then, was the decision based on? My advice to other candidates regarding this company: don't even bother.