Interview with a Recruiter

Got a call from a recruiter and I set up an interview with them. Put on my new suit that was tailor made from my last visit to China. I went in for 2 times for 2 suits. First fitting was the initial measurements and the second one was a fine tuning process. I hadn't tried either of them since the last fitting. My dad brought them back for me. What do you know? They fit, but not quite well. The sleeve of the left shoulder looks indented or something. Just doesn't have that "je ne sais quois" that comes with a well made suit.

I still went in with that suit, minus the inner vest. I always wanted a 3 piece suit and at $100 for a tailor made suit, this was a great chance to look like a banker at a fraction of the cost. Of course, that suit has that little flaw that you just don't know about until you try it on.

The recruiter is based in downtown Glendale, a sleepy little city in Los Angeles County. The downtown is going through some renovation, trying to capture some of the magic and feel of Old Town Pasadena, a 2 block haven for high end shopping (Tiffany's), semi high end stores (J. Crew), and motley collection of pubs, restaurants, and clubs. Surprisingly, the one theater they had, and movie theaters seem to be a big draw for revitalizing shopping centers these days, closed up shop and became the aforementioned Tiffany's.

Glendale is the middle of a transformation, trying to become a haven for young urbanites with excess cash in their hands. It's a very nice, clean downtown, but other than their one mall, no one really goes to Glendale. The city, for whatever reason, has become the home of a large Armenian population, much like the San Gabriel Valley has been taken over by Chinese people. It's incidentally my hood these days.

The recruiters office is on the 10th floor of a large, modern office building and eerily enough, was the same building where I had my "Boiler Room" type experience 2 years ago, when I was also coincidentally unemployed. That time was for a financial advisor position with Ameriprise Financial, a former division of American Express.

Instead of an interview, they sit us all down in a room, then we're given a pitch by a former basketball player and full time recruiter for the company. He tells us all the great benefits and how lucrative the opportunity is. He's not as charismatic as Ben Affleck's character in "Boiler Room," but he essentially had the same message. By the way, while you're in "training," you won't be paid anything till you pass your series 7 exam. Yeah, total "Boiler Room" scene. At the end of the presentation, they bring everyone to another room with computers to test your competency by giving you a bunch of simple math problems. One girl walks out before setting foot in the computer area, while I take the test and then leave.

Back to today, the recruiter seemed really nice. Interview came and went. She had some suggestions on how to change my resume to fit the needs of one of her clients. Time to cross those fingers and pray that I get an interview. It's with the company that the mouse built. In Burbank. Their bread and butter business is supposedly the happiest place on earth, but that's only if you're last name is Eisner.