I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Costco Wholesale (Denver, CO) in May 2023
Interview
The day I was scheduled for my first interview was marked incorrectly on their calendar. I discovered this when I called the day before to confirm and was told that it was one day after the day it was originally scheduled for. When I arrived [on the correct] day, I went to the designated area to wait for my name to be called. After almost twenty minutes had passed from the scheduled time I went searching for someone to find out where I was in the queue. Was told that they were running behind schedule but oddly, there was no one ahead of me being interviewed as I took note of who was coming or going in and out of the room where applicants were supposedly being interviewed. I did notice an employee (who wound up being an interviewer) going in and out of the room speaking on a cell phone, but not much else. When I was finally called into said room, there were several newly hired employees sitting in front of computer terminals; I was told that this was a training room and was ushered to a corner of the room to a table set up with two chairs on each side and was told that was the area whereby the interview would be conducted. There was a lot of background noise and no real privacy; it was like being interviewed in front of an audience because of the close proximity of the other people in the room, which made me feel very uncomfortable. Was told by one of the two interviewers (one of whom was the person previously referenced that was going in and out of the room talking on their cell phone) that neither of them were H.R. personnel and that they were just “helping out” due to being short staffed, I assume. I was dumbfounded and honestly surprised at the poor level of professionalism and lack of urgency in the process. To a certain degree, I was also somewhat insulted given the level of retail experience I have and the number of years that I have worked dealing with high end retailers and clients. At the conclusion of the interview, was told to wait for a few minutes and that they would return to let me know what the next step would be. After waiting five minutes, they came back and said I would be notified by email as to whether I would get a “call back”. I was never notified.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
There were several questions asked; most of which were juvenile and low level, as if I was just starting out my career working in retail. One question that stuck out was “What would you do if you saw/witnessed another employee slacking off whilst on the job?” I guess this question was designed to see if a potential employee would “snitch” or “rat out” another employee if hired.
During the interview there were standard questions about availability and experiences. A unique aspect about the interview is they did a suprise oral drug test on the spot. The interview was conducted by a supervisor and a front end manager.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Can you name an example where you faced a difficult challenge and can you explain how you handled it.
Average interview, They asked about things you would normally be expected to see in an interview. The whole thing was about a 20-30 minutes process but sometimes can go either shorter.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about yourself and why do you want to work here
very quick and to the point. contact with hiring manager was easy and directions were clear. took a moment to get a upper management to the interview but this was the busiest location in the state. overall it was a good experience for me.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
If I was willing to learn other departments and procedures?