Brutal Interview Process

[Anonymous]

I have a position in my area that I am interested in but the interview process is getting ridiculous. First I filled out my application which is normal. But then I had to take a psych test for over an hour. Really? Then came the phone screen. This guy grilled me like no other.it lasted almost an hour and it was intense. I survived and should have been offered the job at that point for all my suffering. Then I was called in for a face to face interview where 3 managers grilled me again. I have been on many interviews and I know this style is more extreme than usual. They were very stoic and occasionally got aggressive. I felt like one manager was trying to mess me up, one seemed not to care at all. The hiring manager was not very engaging. After that I was told that if I am picked to move forward I may have to do another face to face. Are you kidding me?

 

[Anonymous]

I have a position in my area that I am interested in but the interview process is getting ridiculous. First I filled out my application which is normal. But then I had to take a psych test for over an hour. Really? Then came the phone screen. This guy grilled me like no other.it lasted almost an hour and it was intense. I survived and should have been offered the job at that point for all my suffering. Then I was called in for a face to face interview where 3 managers grilled me again. I have been on many interviews and I know this style is more extreme than usual. They were very stoic and occasionally got aggressive. I felt like one manager was trying to mess me up, one seemed not to care at all. The hiring manager was not very engaging. After that I was told that if I am picked to move forward I may have to do another face to face. Are you kidding me?

Don't feel bad. You probably had more experience than all three DSM's combined. Welcome to Lilly's new leadership team.

 

[Anonymous]

I have a position in my area that I am interested in but the interview process is getting ridiculous. First I filled out my application which is normal. But then I had to take a psych test for over an hour. Really? Then came the phone screen. This guy grilled me like no other.it lasted almost an hour and it was intense. I survived and should have been offered the job at that point for all my suffering. Then I was called in for a face to face interview where 3 managers grilled me again. I have been on many interviews and I know this style is more extreme than usual. They were very stoic and occasionally got aggressive. I felt like one manager was trying to mess me up, one seemed not to care at all. The hiring manager was not very engaging. After that I was told that if I am picked to move forward I may have to do another face to face. Are you kidding me?

I had an interview like that last week.

Just smiled while being verbally assaulted, and at the very end, after they took me out to lunch, I stepped out of the car, knelt down and said, "thank you for the lunch and the discussion, I know that your time is valuable too."

When I got home, I emailed the HR manager and told them how unpleasant one interviewer was during the interview and lunch, that I had never, ever been treated that way before, and that if they didn't change their approach (I was victim #7), they would not be left with any candidates feeling good will to the company. The HR manager thanked me and offered mileage reimbursement, which took some of the sting out.

Almost six hours of grilling and just one bad apple spoiled it all. What a creep. I could not work there. This was not Lilly, but could have been from what you are saying.

So sorry Charlie, I am not playing your nasty game.

 

[Anonymous]

This is why I won't be applying for a job with Lilly.

 

[Anonymous]

The Lilly Managers are probably confused as to why you would ever want to come work for this company.

They are most likely still at lilly because they are "yes men" or "yes women" and have had a chip implanted. They lack any independent thought and are not willing to challenge anything or anyone in the current regime.

Pass the Kool-Aid Comrade.

It is more and more like a cult than a sales force. Using specific terms and language in a manipulative way so that if you don't agree with the current line of thinking, you are out of line for even having an original thought and then cast as a trouble maker and will be put in the "hole."

two year freeze is nothing more than a prison sentence- obey the Warden or you will get restricted privileges and get an "unsuccessful" rating.

You have been deemed "Inadequate"[ you are not a member of our flock.


sheep, sheep, sheep,sheep

 

[Anonymous]

The Lilly Managers are probably confused as to why you would ever want to come work for this company.

They are most likely still at lilly because they are "yes men" or "yes women" and have had a chip implanted. They lack any independent thought and are not willing to challenge anything or anyone in the current regime.

Pass the Kool-Aid Comrade.

It is more and more like a cult than a sales force. Using specific terms and language in a manipulative way so that if you don't agree with the current line of thinking, you are out of line for even having an original thought and then cast as a trouble maker and will be put in the "hole."

two year freeze is nothing more than a prison sentence- obey the Warden or you will get restricted privileges and get an "unsuccessful" rating.

You have been deemed "Inadequate"[ you are not a member of our flock.


sheep, sheep, sheep,sheep

Ha ha ha, so true. I remember when prasagruel was about to be released, talking to one of the research scientists who was saying, grinning pleasantly, "it's so difficult to work with because it's so unstable" ---- and never for a moment making the tiny leap to "what the heck are we giving something so unstable to people for?" -- just doing as you are told...

It reminds me of a certain location during World War II ... they were Good Germans!

 

[Anonymous]

You guys are losers if you think lilly's interviews are difficult. Real sales jobs are 4-5 interviews and a hell of alot more intense. If you can't handle a lilly interview you should prob go back to your contract job.

 

[Anonymous]

I would have to actually agree with the earlier poster. I was a former employee and passed the test the first time. They just want to know that you are not bat shit crazy and end up doing something stupid. I mean come on, if you have been in this industry long enough you know how to answer these questions even though it's not actually what you would do.

 

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately, this is all a very real look into what working for Lilly is like. Several years ago I went through all of this, including a very strange interview. One manager behaved like a screaming psycho, while the hiring manager didn't get a word in edgewise, and acted uninterested and disengaged. At final interview with hiring manager, it was all games to see what I would be willing to do. Meet early in the am at an inconvenient place, requiring ridiculous travel. He later admitted he was going to offer the job anyway and that it wasn't really a final interview. Then wanted my answer in 24 hours or less.

Working for him and Lilly was a simple continuation of what I saw during the interview process. Games and manipulation and pure BS. If you are discontent with the interview process, pissed and irritated already, guess what working here will be like????? It just gets worse from there on out.

 

[Anonymous]

Lilly (and maybe some other companies) train their managers to behave this way. Thus, the worst possible manager you could end up with is a young - up and comer. Manager who hasn't worked for any other company besides Lilly, and is determined to succeed with their own career and climb the ladder. Usually they're athletes because that's what the company thinks will show a strong desire for competitiveness and success. You also have to be "red" to succeed at Lilly, not just bleed Lilly red, but "red" on their personality scale. Dominant, excessively outgoing, demanding, aggressive, self-promoting, arrogant.

 

[Anonymous]

Lilly (and maybe some other companies) train their managers to behave this way. Thus, the worst possible manager you could end up with is a young - up and comer. Manager who hasn't worked for any other company besides Lilly, and is determined to succeed with their own career and climb the ladder. Usually they're athletes because that's what the company thinks will show a strong desire for competitiveness and success. You also have to be "red" to succeed at Lilly, not just bleed Lilly red, but "red" on their personality scale. Dominant, excessively outgoing, demanding, aggressive, self-promoting, arrogant.

In other words, a$$hole

 

[Anonymous]

I have a position in my area that I am interested in but the interview process is getting ridiculous. First I filled out my application which is normal. But then I had to take a psych test for over an hour. Really? Then came the phone screen. This guy grilled me like no other.it lasted almost an hour and it was intense. I survived and should have been offered the job at that point for all my suffering. Then I was called in for a face to face interview where 3 managers grilled me again. I have been on many interviews and I know this style is more extreme than usual. They were very stoic and occasionally got aggressive. I felt like one manager was trying to mess me up, one seemed not to care at all. The hiring manager was not very engaging. After that I was told that if I am picked to move forward I may have to do another face to face. Are you kidding me?

Thanks for the reminder!
Funny thing is there are much better industries out there, with better pay. These drug companies has so many fooled into thinking these are good jobs.

 

[Anonymous]

In other words, a$$hole

Yes. Self centered and self serving. Ask them about their career during your job interview. They'll glow and gloat and be thrilled to brag. Then you can decide whether you can stand to work for them or not. A class act with maturity will not overdo it.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes. Self centered and self serving. Ask them about their career during your job interview. They'll glow and gloat and be thrilled to brag. Then you can decide whether you can stand to work for them or not. A class act with maturity will not overdo it.

I suppose that "Respect for People" involves something more akin to, "Respect and Suck Up to the 3-6 levels of management above you to get promoted for that very reason"

 

[Anonymous]

Yes. Self centered and self serving. Ask them about their career during your job interview. They'll glow and gloat and be thrilled to brag. Then you can decide whether you can stand to work for them or not. A class act with maturity will not overdo it.

What career? Most of the managers these days are brand new. They were chosen as managers because they are clueless backstabbers who will do whatever they are told to do by upper management without ever questioning it. They are stooges with a short career life here.
If you can't make it through an interview with these idiots you will NEVER make it through an interview with a top quality manager at another company.

The last 2 reps on my team came from retail sales. One worked in a mall and one worked at a large retailer in a strip center. This is what Lilly has resorted to. Used to be the best of the best. Now we are recruiting from stores that don't require a college degree. I don't even think you have to have a high school diploma. They can get them dirt cheap and they are so happy to have a job where they don't work a cash register they will never complain about anything. Offices think they are pathetic but why would Lilly start caring about their image now?

 

[Anonymous]

What career? Most of the managers these days are brand new. They were chosen as managers because they are clueless backstabbers who will do whatever they are told to do by upper management without ever questioning it. They are stooges with a short career life here.
If you can't make it through an interview with these idiots you will NEVER make it through an interview with a top quality manager at another company.

The last 2 reps on my team came from retail sales. One worked in a mall and one worked at a large retailer in a strip center. This is what Lilly has resorted to. Used to be the best of the best. Now we are recruiting from stores that don't require a college degree. I don't even think you have to have a high school diploma. They can get them dirt cheap and they are so happy to have a job where they don't work a cash register they will never complain about anything. Offices think they are pathetic but why would Lilly start caring about their image now?

Image? What .... cheap generic insulin company. That's all.

Of course, if you go back to the days of selling amphetamine and barbituates, well, THAT was FUN and many old hippies remember those days and have a GLOWING admiration of those pink lillies and seconals...

 

[Anonymous]

I had an interview like that last week.

Just smiled while being verbally assaulted, and at the very end, after they took me out to lunch, I stepped out of the car, knelt down and said, "thank you for the lunch and the discussion, I know that your time is valuable too."

When I got home, I emailed the HR manager and told them how unpleasant one interviewer was during the interview and lunch, that I had never, ever been treated that way before, and that if they didn't change their approach (I was victim #7), they would not be left with any candidates feeling good will to the company. The HR manager thanked me and offered mileage reimbursement, which took some of the sting out.

Almost six hours of grilling and just one bad apple spoiled it all. What a creep. I could not work there. This was not Lilly, but could have been from what you are saying.

So sorry Charlie, I am not playing your nasty game.

Unfortunately that type of behavior is the rule rather than the exception at Lilly. Management has become mean and hateful. Seriously not a good place to work at the end of the interview process I would have ripped them good.

 

[Anonymous]

What career? Most of the managers these days are brand new. They were chosen as managers because they are clueless backstabbers who will do whatever they are told to do by upper management without ever questioning it. They are stooges with a short career life here.
If you can't make it through an interview with these idiots you will NEVER make it through an interview with a top quality manager at another company.

The last 2 reps on my team came from retail sales. One worked in a mall and one worked at a large retailer in a strip center. This is what Lilly has resorted to. Used to be the best of the best. Now we are recruiting from stores that don't require a college degree. I don't even think you have to have a high school diploma. They can get them dirt cheap and they are so happy to have a job where they don't work a cash register they will never complain about anything. Offices think they are pathetic but why would Lilly start caring about their image now?

How do they make it past ID school ?

 

[Anonymous]

What a bunch of cry baby losers! I can't believe the hiring manager challenged me to see how I handle stressful situations. I can't believe I was asked what my weaknesses are. It is really annoying to read a lot of these comments. I have been on plenty of interviews much worse than described and you can't generalize. Not all reps are great and certainly not all managers are losers. If you have a problem interviewing try to get help preparing.

 

[Anonymous]

My Lilly interviews weren't "brutal." Just stupid and insane. I've interviewed twice with Lilly managers over the years, once for a Lilly job and once for the next job after Lilly cut it's managers and reps. I don't need help-- got both jobs, but that doesn't mean I'm a whiner for thinking the IVs were the dumbest, most manipulative, psycho BS I've ever encountered. Like I said, Lilly trains these people to behave this way.