I had originally applied to a different program at GEICO. The recruiter for that other program told me that my leadership experience was not what they were looking for; they look for people who are very involved in extracurricular activities in college. She told me that the Management Development Program would be a better fit. I filled out the application and had a response the next day. The man on the phone spoke low, mumbled, and forgot words.
"I would like to schedule you for a... ... um... uhh... um... an interview," he said.
I dismissed it, attributing it to being a Friday afternoon. I went in for my interview the following Monday. I was told to dress business casual. I had on khakis and a tucked-in button-up-shirt (the standard, generic thing every man wears in a business casual setting). I felt over-dressed compared to many of the employees. They took business CASUAL to a new level. I took a multi-tasking and a typing test. I passed. Then the same HR man that I had spoken to on the phone called me in to take a leadership test and interview me after. The "leadership personality test" was about an hour. Afterwards the man called me into his office for the so-called interview. He speedily mumbled (just as on the phone) to read off some generic questions from his computer screen. He was barely comprehensible. Flustered, I answered as best I could the parts of the questions I thought I heard as the man ferociously clacked, typing away on his keyboard without making any eye contact. This was the first interview that I've had in this manner. All other HR people I've talked to have their points they need to hit when asking questions, but they have a clear, coherent conversation with you so they can effectively get an understanding of the candidates qualifications. The interview was very sloppy and rushed. At the end, he told me that I was not what they were looking for and offered me 2 jobs: one driving out and inspecting claims, and another answering telephones.
I was very surprised. With GEICO being a large, well-known company I expected something different. If I had to summarize the interview process in one word, it would be "sloppy," from the actual building itself, to employees chatting away to each other about their personal lives, to the HR "professional" who called me and conducted my interview.
