Get a Job!

You're a candidate for a position in South Korea. The recruiting process starts with a written examination, which you passed with flying colors. Next comes the interview…

TRUE OR FALSE? During the interview process, your potential employer may ask you to have a “face reading.”

ANSWER: True — “Kwan – Sang,” the reading, or viewing of facial features, is an accepted practice with many South Korean employers. The facial characteristics of a person are analyzed and matched against job requirements.

#2

You apply for a job with a German company and land an interview on Tuesday morning. Your potential new boss conducts your interview in fairly good English. He tells you that the firm was “grounded” two years ago; that he will “prove” your resume; and that he will be in his office “until” 9 am on Friday if you would like to call. What does he mean?

A. The firm is located in an underground facility; he intends to check the dates on your resume for numerological significance; and he is inviting you to contact him by Friday.

B. The firm went bankrupt two years ago; he is a mathematician and will prove. or disprove. every date and number in your resume; and he is testing you to see if you will call before Friday.

C. The firm was founded two years ago; he will check your references; and he will be back in his office on Friday at 9 am if you would like to call.

ANSWER: C — These are common mistakes made by Germans speaking English. They use “grounded” to mean, “founded;" “prove” to mean “check up on:” and “until” to mean “by."

#3

TRUE or FALSE? Your gray hair and wrinkles are an asset when interviewing for an executive position in Ghana?

ANSWER: True — While those chins might need to be tucked in Los Angeles, they are considered a sign of dignity for a senior, powerful position in Ghana. (Be aware that the life expectancy is currently around 40 in Ghana, so a senior image may connote even more wisdom than it traditionally holds.)

#4

You are the most qualified candidate for a job in Bolivia. However, you sense that your interview didn't go well and you don't get the job. What went wrong?

A. The job probably went to another person who may have been less qualified, but was a relative of the boss.

B. Your interview was on a Tuesday the 13th — a bad luck day.

C. When you filled out your application, the interviewer saw that you were left-handed.

D. All of the above are possible reasons for losing the job.

ANSWER: D — As in many Hispanic countries, many Bolivians consider relatives to be the trustworthiest employees, even if they are less qualified. Tuesdays in general are viewed as unlucky; as the aphorism goes, “En martes, ni te cases ni te embarques.” (“On Tuesday, neither marry nor embark.”) Tuesday the 13th is especially unlucky, as it's the Hispanic equivalent of the English Friday the 13th. There is also a bias against left-handed people (“zurdos”). Not all Bolivians adhere to all three of these beliefs, but many believe in one or more.

#5

Global security and governmental positions often require security clearances that involve extensive background checks. Match the line of investigation with the conclusion:

ANSWERS: A = 3; B = 1; C = 2

#6

TRUE or FALSE? In Japan, a classified ad can include the physical attributes desired for a corporate female employee.

ANSWER: True — Bona fide occupational qualification requirements and Equal Employment Opportunity laws don't always extend outside the US.

When you schedule an interview in Thailand, you might want to double-check the time of your appointment. Why?

A. Foreigners are so enraptured by Thailand that they lose all track of time.

B. Thai people divide the day into seven segments, which can be confusing to foreigners.

C. The government of Thailand keeps changing the schedule for daylight savings time.

ANSWER: B — Thai people divide the day into seven segments, including two morning and two afternoons.

• Early morning — 1 am to 6:59 am
• Late morning — 7 am to 11:59 am
• Noon — 12 pm to 12:59 pm
• Early afternoon — 1 pm to 3:59 pm
• Late afternoon — 4 pm to 6:59 pm
• Evening — 7 pm to 11:59 pm
• Midnight — 12 am to 12:59 am

If a Thai tells you to meet him at one o’clock in the afternoon, this could mean 1 pm (the first hour of early afternoon) or 4 pm (the first hour of late afternoon). To avoid confusion, use a 24-hour military clock (4 pm is 1600 hours) or physically point to your watch and ask.

As a physician in the US, your illegible scrawl might have raised some eyebrows, but it was always accepted without question. It comes as a surprise that during the interview process for a medical research position in France, you're asked to write out an essay by hand, which isn't going to be analyzed for content, but for your handwriting.

TRUE or FALSE? The study of handwriting is an accepted employment evaluation tool in France?

ANSWER: True — The French look at handwriting analysis as a valid means of ascertaining personality characteristics and their related job skills. In the US, the analysis of penmanship is generally reserved for criminals or the disturbed.

In which country will your family and social standing be key to a new job?

A) The USA

B) Mexico

C) Australia

ANSWER: B — In Mexico, along with most of Latin America, the Indian subcontinent, Asia and many other parts of the world, your family name and your social standing are important assets in your job search. Your family and friends are a significant part of who you are. It's not uncommon for a sales candidate to be asked more about his or her family and network of friends/contacts than his or her income. Companies are more concerned about what new contacts and sales they will bring to the firm, rather than what they made last year.

Child labor, graft, price fixing, copyright infringement and sexual harassment are all illegal in the US.

TRUE or FALSE? If you're trying to hire new employees for your facility in the Indian subcontinent, your candidates may expect you to provide a job for their young children as well.

ANSWER: True — Employing the workers' young children is a benefit that Indian firms provide. As a US employer, child labor is against the law, but some US companies overcome that problem by offering tuition for employees' children to attend school until they are old enough to work.