Job Interviews

Things have picked up a little bit on the Job Hunting scene. I have actually had two interviews this past week!

The first one was for a State job – I’d be working for the DOT in their Right-of-Way department. The job interview was held in “the upside down building” near the airport.

From an architectural point of view, this building is quite unique. It really does look like it’s upside down! It’s roughly triangular in shape, only the pointy end is on the bottom and the larger flat end it on the top. This was an experiment in seismic construction, trying to find a way to withstand all the earthquakes we get. I think it’s held up quite well since it has held up a good 20-25 years so far. But it’s the only building of its kind, so apparently it did not exactly win the popularity contest.

As an aside here, we have another unique building in Anchorage that was a seismic experiment also: the Wells Fargo Bank on the corner of Benson and Minnesota. This one was built on rollers, some how. I’ve been in it during an earthquake before and I know exactly why it didn’t gain popularity either = that thing rocked worse than a boat on rough seas, and kept going long after the earthquake finished. But again, it’s an older building and it’s still standing – so it must work structurally.

Anyway, back to my job interview.

Turns out I used to work with the lady conducting the interviews back in my pipeline days! I think that’s how I made the first cut: she recognized my name and pulled me out of the huge stack of applicants because of it. I’m definitely okay with that – anything to get to the top of the list.

The interview went well. She asked a lot of very detailed questions about my computer experience as well as my knowledge of surveying and construction processes. She said it would take a while for them to make their decision; it could be as long as 6 weeks. I’m hopeful, but I’m not holding my breath.

My other interview was just this morning, at the Kaladi Brother’s Café on Tudor and Muldoon. This was rather a strange place to have a job interview, I thought – but it was really quite nice. It made me a lot more comfortable and was not nearly as nerve wracking as some offices can be.

The man I spoke with is the founder of a construction company who is hiring two people to help out with a large contract they just got. They do a lot of military work, so it’s all LEED Certified construction (which I really like, being as I am the president of our local USGBC group), and it’s at a minimum a 5-year position. He is a disabled Vet, so is eligible for a lot of the contracts other companies are not.

I had to laugh when I realized the reason my resume got his attention. It wasn’t because of my three years experience with project management (the position he’s hiring for) – it was because I’m a drafter who used to work on the board! He began his career as a drafter, too, so was really excited to meet someone who also started out that way also. He was actually quite surprised when I mentioned my CA experience.

I’m somewhat wary, though. It is a small company and I don’t have good luck with small companies typically speaking. The work they’re doing sounds very interesting, however, and the interview went very well. I’m inclined once again to take a chance, even though my cautious side is telling me not to.

He said he’d have to run the two resumes he picked out (mine and one other) passed the military guys to get their approval. He should know within about two weeks, probably sooner. It almost sounds like the job is mine, although we haven’t discussed a salary yet.

Let’s face it: any salary is better than unemployment…