I'm doing interviews for internships (a 5-week internship is required to complete my tech program at school). A lot of internships turn into fulltime positions for students almost immediately, so I've been mindful of where I apply. I interviewed with a place today that is notoriously slow in their communications with incoming employees but tout themselves as an ever-expanding company. I researched the company beforehand to see what kind of work they do and expected them to get into more detail in the interview. They didn't, everything they told me was readable on their website which is already kind of vague.
I asked them about their work culture. I've spent the last ten years working in very chaotic and unstructured environments, and I don't want to get involved in another place that is constantly chaotic with no leadership. When I posed this question, one of the people conducting the interview (there were three) said “we're laid back but we're busy. I'd describe it as good chaotic, like 'having a tiger by the tail' kind of chaotic.”
I've never heard such an awkward description of a workplace culture before. When I looked up what “having a tiger by the tail” meant I found definitions like “harnessing a powerful force only for it to turn on you” etc. Having the company describe themselves this way has left a weird feeling in my gut. It's weird, right?
I was offered an internship with a different company that feels much more inviting. I guess I'm hoping that I'm not being dismissive of the place I interviewed with today just because they said something off-putting.