A job hunter expressed suspicion over having to create a presentation for a third-round job interview. It’s part of an alarming trend.
In a TikTok video created on Saturday with 92,000 views, Moon (@kimchipedia) said they interviewed for a position with a $60,000-$70,000 annual salary that required an initial one-on-one interview, a second-round panel interview, and a third-round interview with a “whole presentation” based on a case study the company assigned.
@kimchipedia to be fair idk if im being dramatic and this is how its supposed to be but idk that seems weird to me lol #fyp #work #jobinterview #9to5 #officelife #wfh #remotework #korean #asian #asianamerican #corporate #btsarmy #thoughts #honesty #exploitation ♬ original sound – moon
In the video, Moon expressed concern over the amount of work for a position at that pay level. The user was also worried that they could steal ideas without compensation. While Moon does not mind the pay being lower than their current position, they are alarmed by the amount of work required in the recruitment process.
“I’m about to watermark the f*ck out of my presentation so y’all can’t steal ideas,” said Moon.
Moon wasn’t alone in these concerns. “Jobs are doing wayyyyy too much for these pennies they’re giving,” said one user.
This suspicion around excessive interview rounds is not contained on TikTok. A January report by Vox spoke to Maddie Machado, a former recruiter at LinkedIn, Meta, and Microsoft, who explained that positions that only 10 years ago only required two rounds of interviews have futilely increased to up to 20 rounds.
That same report cited a 2022 survey by Cision PR which stated that “60% of job seekers are unimpressed by time-consuming recruitment processes and are demanding companies create a more modern recruiting experience.”
Beyond concerns over excessive interview rounds, a majority of the comments on Moon’s video echoed sentiments of worry over the potential for companies to steal ideas. “Sound like they tryna get you to do some work for them and disguise it as an interview,” said another comment.
Moon is not the only TikTok user with this concern. In July 2022, as reported by the Daily Dot, Molly (@moremollyplease) posted a video with 1.9 million views alleging that companies often require work samples with the intent to steal ideas.
@moremollyplease Replying to @middlepartmaddie i love it here #jobapplication #jobhunting #socialmediamanager ♬ Love You So – The King Khan & BBQ Show
In the video, Molly said that she applied to over 350 social media and marketing jobs based in Los Angeles or remotely. She said that for the companies that responded, “they ask you to provide specific viral content ideas either written out or actual TikToks filmed for them, even if you have provided them with a portfolio of other things you have made go viral.”
“It’s because they wanna steal your ideas,” she alleged.
She elaborated in a follow-up video. “I saw a very popular influencer-founded company post that they are looking for a social media manager. With your application, they want your ideas to update their current social strategy. Don’t fall for this,” she said.
The Daily Dot reached out to Moon via Instagram and Molly via email for comment.
