[Rhodes22-list] Results Of My Job Interview

[Steve Alm]

Roger,

You didn't say that the other candidates were invited to the crawfish boil
so I'm assuming you were the only one.  I would view that as a real coup.
Sometimes those social functions serve as part of the interview.  You got an
extra interview segment that the other candidates did not.  When the
employees get back to work the next day, they mention to the boss:  "Hey, I
liked that guy, Roger."  It can't hurt.  Good luck!

Slim

On 5/8/03 9:02 PM, "Roger Pihlaja" <cen09402 at centurytel.net> wrote:

> Hi Everybody,
> 
> I just got back form Georgia.  The interviews went well.  I was the 3rd
> candidate out of a total of 5 they are interviewing.  They said they'd get
> back with me one way or the other by May 19th.  The position was not what I
> was expecting.  They really want more of a plant or operations manager as
> opposed to a technical manager.  Initially, I'd be taking about a 20% pay cut
> vs. my last salary at the Dow Chemical Co. , but down the road there'd be
> stock options & other perks that would probably make up most of that
> difference, assuming the company does well.  In a small company, as plant
> manager, I'd have quite an impact on whether the company does well or not.
> I'm a little concerned about the company's senior management & order of
> succession.  Isotec is privately owned with the bulk of the shares in the
> hands of present CEO & his two sons.  The present CEO is 65 & will surely
> retire in the foreseeable future.  Neither of his sons want to run the
> company.  I'm a little concerned that they might sell out to some larger
> player in the urethanes business, which could make the current plant manager
> persona non grata...They sort of hinted that I might be a candidate to take
> over the CEO spot when he retires?!?  I'm thinking, "Yeah right, you just met
> me 2 hours ago & now you're telling me you want to groom me for a chance to
> buy into your family owned business & run it in 3-5 years?"  That's real
> credible!  Either I REALLY impressed them or they think midwesterners don't
> have a lick of sense.
> 
> On a more personal note, I got invited to a real down south crawfish boil
> right on the plant floor in the shipping dept.  I met with the CEO twice,
> right in the beginning & right at the end.  During my wrap-up interview, we
> got to talking about my experiences with southern cultureI was living in
> Russellville, AR from 1987 - 1990.  I happened to mention that one of the
> things I really missed about Russellville were the crawfish boils at the
> plant.  Well, apparently they were just happening to be having a crawfish boil
> that very evening & would I like to come.  Well, that decision was a
> no-brainer.  So, that's where I had dinner & got to meet most of the employees
> & their families.  One of the wives couldn't believe a yankee knew anything
> about how to peel crawfish, so I challenged her to a race.  We each had to
> peel & eat 30 crawfish.  It was pretty close, but she beat me by about two
> crawfish!  I told her we'd have to try that again when I've practiced a little
> more.  It was a lot of fun & they made me feel real welcome.
> 
> I stayed overnight in Canton, GA.  On Thursday, I explored the town &
> surrounding area a little bit.  I drove over to Lake Allatoona.  They've had
> so much rain lately that the lake is 6 feet about normal summer pool.  Many of
> the day use areas, beaches, & camp grounds were flooded.  So, the area was not
> looking its best.  But, I could still tell it's quite beautiful.  I visited a
> couple of marinas to check on boat slips.  It looks like a 25 foot slip with
> water & electricity will cost about $85/month.  There's also quite a bit of
> real estate for sale around Lake Allatoona within a 20 mile drive from Canton.
> Lake Allatoona itself is about 5X bigger in area than Sanford Lake, where I
> currently live.
> 
> So, the job search goes on.  Stay tuned.
> 
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
> 
> 
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