Hiring process for a sales associate team member at Target retail stores:
APPLICATION PROCESS
First step, complete part one of the online application process using their in-store computer kiosks. Total time to complete = 45 mins.
Second step, complete part two of the online application process using their in-store computer kiosk. This consisted of 80 real life, situational questions pertaining to the job I applied to. (ex. A customer disputes the price of an item when checking out. Although the price is clearly displayed on the register, but she insists the price displayed by the item rack was much lower, what would you do to resolve this?) Total time to complete = 40 minutes
Thirst step, I was greeted by the person that was going to interview me. He introduced himself as an HR team member and brought me back into a cluttered office where we sat in close proximity from one another. Facing each other in dead silence, we spent the entire first few minutes figuring out how to sit between the arm rests of the two rigid plastic without completely crushing our manly parts. Failing to come up with a reasonable solution, we both forced ourselves into the chairs and did our best to hide the intense pain for the remainder of the interview. I give him credit for bearing through the situation, but he could have easily solved the problem by simply trading our chairs with bigger chairs in the room that were in storage.
Fourth step, after the 20 min interview was over he explained that he thinks I am a good fit for the position and that he was going to go get the HR Manager for my second and final interview. About 15 mins later, the HR Manager arrived. He was not prepared at all to conduct an interview and spent the first 5 mins explaining that HR was not his passion and was angry he was moved from grocery sales manager to HR. While I sympathized with his frustration, I felt it to be unprofessional considering his level of responsibility and a it was very odd to hear him openly share that information with me. He conducted a very fast, 10 minute interview because he couldn't get the 30 minute VHS video to play on at 27" tube TV.
He offered me the position, I accepted, and attended orientation the following week.
Overall, the hiring process is lengthy but it is very comparable to the hiring process at most other department stores.
Pro's: Target excelled at following up with me in a very timely manner and I thought the entire process from start to finished moved quite smoothly.
Con's: The employees that conducted my interview lacked HR experience, did not create an environment conducive to holding a formal interview, and did not appear to be at all concerned about the quality of the interview/hiring process in general. It was vary apparent that there was a lack of communication among Target employees in the hiring area, but instead of seeing general concern regarding the dysfunction I left the interview with a job offer feeling like they avoided/minimized the dysfunction and that I was not important enough for them to take any time to prepare for our meeting.
Ultimately, I declined the job offer. I am a firm believer that the signs I saw, like the dysfunction at the interview, says a lot about how a company treats it's employees in general. Later, I accepted an offer at a different company basing my gut instinct of the interview process. The interview was well organized, they ensured I was comfortable during the interview, shared with me their personal journey's with the company, and conveyed a true passion for what they do. These values held true after I became a full time employee with that company and I have never looked back since accepting the position :)