Randstad US Account Manager Interview Questions
& Process

It started with a recruiter call where the recruiter seemed really uninterested even though I showed interest in the role and company. I thought it went okay, but they were hard to read. Then, I got an update from the recruiter to schedule a second phone interview with a national director. I was happy to move on, thinking the first interview went fine. But then, the call with the national director was bad. They spent 15 minutes telling me I wasn't qualified and lacked experience, even though I have 5+ years in sales and account management since college. They even said they usually wouldn't hire someone like me for the role. It was disappointing, discouraging, and felt offensive. It felt like a waste of time since if they didn't think I was qualified, they shouldn't have continued the process. It felt like I was just there to meet the recruiter's quota. It's a bummer because I was really looking forward to the role and thought I could contribute a lot.

So there are 2 interviews. First one is a meet and greet, the second one is interviewing with different managers. They also have this thing called "top grading" where they ask you a bunch of questions. Most are pretty easy, but they do ask that old "sell me this pen" question. I aced it though. You just gotta use the clues they give you. For example, they give you a cheap pen that messes up when you write, making ink spots etc. Then they pull out a nice pen that lights up etc. So when they ask, you say, "Hey John, I noticed the pen you were using and wanted to point out a couple of things. See the ink blotches? Do you write reports to your Manager with that? I have a pen that will make you look more professional and so on...you get the idea.

I got referred by an internal recruiter. First, I had an hour-long phone interview with the branch manager. Then, I went onsite to meet with a managing director for a 30-minute interview. After that, I had another hour-long phone interview with the regional director. The final interview is scheduled with the branch manager, and I think that's where they'll make an offer or we'll negotiate.