Survey Says!

It has currently come to my attention that I will be stuck in my current job for the rest of my days. The reason...I cannot pass the employee surveys that accompany most job applications. I once went into the local Target that had a huge Now Hiring sign out front and filled out their electronic app. At the end of the process I was told to wait and a manager would come out to speak with me. The manager immediately came out and told me they were not hiring at this time. At least that time I actually got to speak with someone; since then I don't even get the brush off.

Back in the day, companies used to do job interviews and make their decision based on that face to face meeting. Crossing their fingers they would hope that their judgement was good and that the candidate they chose would work out. It was all a crap shoot but it was how things worked.

Now, they have employee surveys that weed out the bad candidates. This saves the human resource department from having to waste time on risky applicants. Doesn't that sound like a great way to ease the burden of those poor, overworked human resource managers? It sure does thin the herd when you don't have to bother with those dweebs that can't pass the survey.

I am one of those dweebs. Never you mind that I have remained steadily employed for the past 28 years and have only held a handful of jobs over that time (and that is only because I often worked 2 jobs) and most often in management. The companies see the survey results and ignore the work history and toss my app.

My wife says I need to learn to give the answers that they want to hear. I cannot do that; I find the simplistic pseudo-science of these surveys to be insulting and useless.

Unfortunately for my stubborn individuality, they are all that matters.

I guess I should resign myself to living out my work-life at the current job.