S1E3 The Hunt for a Marketing Midas: “Day 2 - Ranjit”
Divya K
“Wake up. I’ve been yelling for like an hour now.” Mrs. Mogambo shouted at Mr. Mogambo. “God, Thanks for waking me up, dear. These broken sleeps are taking a toll on my schedule. I have an important interview today.”
Saying this, Mr. Mogambo woke up and started getting ready.
He reached his office with the agenda in mind that he had to find someone who can head Marketing to help the company achieve what it needed.
“Good morning Ramlal. Has the candidate come yet?”
“Yes Sir, he is sitting in the waiting area.”
“OK, send him in.”
Saying this, Mr. Mogambo went inside his cabin.
A feeble knock at the door and he asks Ranjit to come in and sit down.
Ranjit. 37. A handsome well built man with good hair, chevron moustache and light beard. MBA in marketing from [blanked out]. As per his resume on Expertite, he had good experience in handling local marketing strategies, but lacked any history of people management.
After getting a basic introduction which was similar to what the resume stated, Mr. Mogambo moved on to the next question ”What do you think makes you suitable for this job?”
“Sir, my rich experience in managing diverse marketing roles makes me a…” stammering a little,” ...a good candidate.”
“Fair enough. As I can see, you don’t have any experience with managing a team. Can you please share the reason behind this?
With a feeble smile “Sir, I...uh... I think I am a good candidate but I guess I have been a little shy when it comes to administering a group of people.” Suddenly, that feeble smile changes to an anxious surge,” “Uh... Although, I… I am ready to take up such responsibility now. I am prepared now… uh… I guess” feeble again with eyes looking down at the floor.
He wasn’t making any eye contact easily. There was hardly any time when he would look straight into the eyes of Mr. Mogambo.
Mr. Mogambo who was now a little doubtful about the suitability of this candidate for a leadership position, moved on to the next question “Okay, so Ranjit, what in your opinion, are the most important things you have learnt that you would utilize in this position?”
“I believe I am reliable and I have work ethics. I listen to instructions really well and work according to them satisfactorily.”
“Ranjit, well, your answer is, I guess, not in sync with what I asked…”
With a very nervous look on his face and eyes wide open “Oh, sorry... sorry. Can I please… uh…can I please answer it again?”
“Ranjit...Ranjit, it’s okay. It’s okay. Calm down. Have some water.” Handing him a glass of water which was kept there.
Ranjit drank all the water in one go. Calming down a little, he said sorry again.
“It’s okay. Relax.” Mr. Mogambo said.
“Yes, yes… I hope this won’t affect my candidature, right?” His face was really anxious.
“You never know what someone might like about you. Now, please describe a time when you had to work with highly creative people. What was your work relationship like?”
“Umm... I... uh…” his eyes looking above towards the ceiling “I have worked with many highly creative people who knew a lot about marketing. My relationship with them has always been good. We complemented each other and worked as a team.”
The interview went on like this with a few more questions, whose answers Ranjit delivered well but still in his nervous and under confident tone.
“Okay Ranjit. It was nice meeting you. Would you like to ask something?”
“Uh.. well, how did I perform? Was I OK?” puppy faced Ranjit asked.
“Ranjit, why do you worry so much? Yes, of course, you are good. Regardless of your selection anywhere, just believe and be more confident of your abilities. You are well qualified. Start trusting yourself. That would be my only advice to you.”
With a humble smile, Ranjit nodded his head and started to stand up. “It was really nice meeting you. I will keep this advice in mind.”
“All the very best, Ranjit. Our HR will let you know whatever the status would be. Take care.”
They shook hands and Ranjit started to move towards the door when he turned back and again with a feeble smile asked Mr. Mogambo if he can have some more water.
Mr. Mogambo, a little surprised by his sudden return, but then with a little laugh said “Yes, of course.”
Ranjit drank the water and went his way.
Mr. Mogambo started thinking about Ranjit. He had the appropriate level of experience, barring any supervising role. But he was quite nervous and anxious, which impacted his communication. Mr. Mogambo almost concluded that Ranjit was not cut out for this critical role.
After he came back home, he was still thinking about the interview and the requirement that needed to be fulfilled.
With this in mind, he logged into Expertite to check who the next candidate was.
Anamika. 33 years old. Female. Worked at a big company as Marketing Team lead. Oh, dramatics champion at school and college and received an award from the Governor of UP as well. Interesting. Let’s see what she has in her.
Will she be one of the contenders who will make it to the next level?
Stay tuned for our next episode!
About the author: Divya K
In case you missed the last 2 episodes, here they are: