Anton S.
1/5
I received a cold email last Wednesday about a potential short-term contract. After some initial confusion, we had a phone call. While she did answer my questions and made some reasonable suggestions about my resume, her tone was rude and condescending throughout.
The call felt more like an argument than an interview. It’s frustrating that someone this unprofessional holds such responsibility, especially while I’m struggling to find work.
Here is my full list of grievances (or as much as I can say within this review's character limit):
1. She initially said she would call "shortly," but after waiting two hours, she postponed the call until after the weekend. Though she apologized, this showed a clear lack of time management. Without her apology, I would have moved on, but I gave her a second chance.
2. Despite my current phone number being on my resume, she called my old number. If I didn’t still have that phone, I wouldn’t have even known she called. This lack of attention to detail is concerning, especially when dealing with potential job candidates.
3. She started by calling my resume "confusing and weird." I expected some questions on clarity, but "weird" set an unprofessional and confrontational tone.
4. She claimed self-employment wasn’t "real experience," despite clear evidence in my resume, including links to my work, that prove my experience is real. She didn’t ask any probing questions, and seemed dismissive of my entire background.
5. She expressed confusion over the heading "Projects & Outside Experience." This seemed like a basic reading comprehension issue, as it was clearly labeled and positioned below "Professional Experience" to indicate non-traditional work.
6. Despite the fact that my resume clearly stated one of my projects was award-winning, she still asked if it had won any awards. I had even repeated this info verbally during the call, making her question even more frustrating. It seemed like she skimmed my resume without reading or understanding it.
7. She criticized my inclusion of certain skills on my resume simply because she did not know them. I listed these skills to truthfully articulate my expertise and to get past unfair ATS filters.
8. She criticized my inclusion of Microsoft Office, claiming it was too basic to be listed. However, many jobs still list it as a required skill, and it felt disrespectful for her to dismiss it. Ironically, she admitted she wasn’t familiar with Discord, which is also on my resume and arguably just as basic in many tech fields.
9. She claimed "nobody cares about VBA anymore" because it's not "hot tech", even though it was a key skill in the only job of mine she considered "real experience." Despite being old, VBA is still widely used in businesses that rely on automating processes in Microsoft Office, and it’s shocking that a senior recruiter for tech jobs would be so out of touch.
10. When I mentioned my background in crypto, she didn’t seem to know much about it. Considering her earlier focus on "hot tech", this lack of awareness was hypocritical.
11. She seemed confused about my self-employment, assuming I was paid hourly, when in fact I sell products and bill clients per project. When I clarified this, she became defensive and accused me of being "too picky about words," though I was only trying to explain my work structure clearly.
12. After deciding I wasn’t a fit for the job, she suggested I find work on "short-term remote work websites," which is what I already do. It was frustrating that she didn’t seem to understand that the job she was offering — a 6-month contract remote position — was exactly the kind of work I’m currently seeking.
13. If my resume was so inadequate, why did she reach out to me in the first place? It shows poor judgement, and was a waste of both our time.
Though I’m aware my resume needs improvements, I went into the call ready to clarify points. I didn’t expect such hostility, nor did I anticipate someone in her position being so dismissive and uninformed. This extremely negative experience ruined my entire day.
