Hiring Execs Recount Most Unusual Candidate Pitches

Even then, there are good ways to stand out – and not-so-good ways. A recent poll of 150 senior executives by specialized staffing service provider Accountemps revealed some of the more unusual – and not always effective – ways in which job candidates tried to make that statement.

The survey, which included the perspectives of management in human resources, finance and marketing departments, asked, “”What is the most unusual thing you have seen or heard of a job candidate doing to ‘stand out from the crowd’?”

Sample responses included:

• “A job seeker sent a shoe with his resume and a note saying, ‘I just want to get my foot in the door.'”
• “One candidate came in barefoot.”
• “A job seeker included an 8-by-10 inch beauty-pageant photo of herself.”
• “A candidate put confetti in the resume package, which made a huge mess.”
• “One woman brought a poodle to the interview because she didn’t want to leave it in the car.”
• “An applicant sent his resume on a bottle of alcohol to the company’s CEO.”
• “All of the important words were circled on the resume.”
• “Someone sent a packet of coffee with a note that said, ‘Have a coffee on me.'”
• “I was sent a piece of gum with the resume and asked to ‘chew on the facts.'”
• “An applicant came in dressed as a clown — in a colorful, satin clown suit with red hair, a bright-red nose and big shoes.”
• “We received a giant cookie with writing on the package that said, ‘I’d like to be a chip in your cookie.”

What’s the most unusual pitch YOU’VE ever gotten? Email us at editors@plansponsor.com