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I had 5 interviews for a start up position in logistics for a large well known company. Made it all the way to the Sr.VP level for an interview. I heard from them weekly for 3 weeks then the e-mails and all communication stopped. I did the correct amount of follow up during the last 2 silent weeks and was not pushy. Just yesterday I received an e-mail with the starting line "We have decided to go with a different candidate" but with a "however" to follow. They asked me to consider taking a position (also startup) working for the person they hired into the position I was originally going for - for the same salary range the HR manager had already discussed with me (I was either too low to begin with or they located more salary $'s because they would like to try for both of us).

It would be a lower title but for the same pay range so I want to hear what they have to say. Those 2 silent weeks it seems were spent making the offer and clearing the other candidate but keeping me on hold just in case. Not a bad situation to be in though if they still feel strongly enough about me to ask that I be part of their organization. I would be moving from a Director title to a Manager title. I feel like I am now in a position to ask more in depth and direct questions considering the circumstances and want to hear what they have to say. For example:

  • What is the position and the role description (then get it in writing)?
  • When can I interview with the person who accepted the original position?
  • Does the person who accepted the position know I also interviewed?
  • What is the salary offer?

What should I ask instead of or in addition to these questions?

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  • This is pretty vague/open-ended. It might help to know what your goal is. What should you ask in order to... what, exactly? To position yourself for a good offer? To avoid offending them? Are you worried they will withdraw? It sounds like you're just curious, in which case ask whatever questions you want.
    – Air
    Jul 31, 2015 at 19:42
  • What do you mean by a "start up position"?
    – Roger
    Jul 31, 2015 at 19:58
  • The positions, location, KPI's, SOP's and vendors are all new. This will be a start up from scratch. I will work very closely with this Director if I take the role to work for her/him. My goal in going for this role initially was to be involved and take the lead with such a new experience. I want to make sure this isn't a "helper" role only to the associate who rcvd the original position.
    – Don
    Jul 31, 2015 at 20:35
  • Does the person who accepted the position know I also interviewed? sound petty to me.
    – paparazzo
    Jul 31, 2015 at 21:46

2 Answers 2

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This is how I see the situation: They interviewed you and they believe that you are a person that they'd want to employ, with the salary that you already discussed. They also found another person who is even better than you (or possibly the owner's nephew, that's a thing to find out) and hired them, but they think that having two well-qualified people is better than one. There might be so much work for the director that having a second person who would have been good enough for the position (or maybe almost good enough for the position) is worthwhile for the company.

Question 1 and 4 are fine.

Question 3 - I would think that since he is going to be your boss, they would have told him what they know about you, including that you were interviewed. And that you did really well in your interview. So I'd drop that question.

Question 2 - Assuming that you talked to several people who you would have been working with in the director position, it would make sense to talk to your intended new boss as well. Difficult if they want you both to start on the same day. So I'd ask "It might be a good idea to meet with before I accept this offer" and see what they think about it.

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Those all sound like perfectly acceptable questions. Remember, an interview is a 2-way street. You are also interviewing them to see if you'd like to work with them. They have decided you are a fit, so asking the types of questions you posed is acceptable and shows you are interested.

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