I narrowed down about 50 choices into 17 and started contacting people to lobby for those positions. I ended up interviewing for 11 positions. That made it easier to narrow down my list to the maximum of 10 since I wasn't on the radar for 6 positions. Some posts don't interview and just review references and resumes. Those posts weren't doing that so they just weren't that interested in me. One position with only four bidders still conducted interviews. They probably submitted a short list with all of their bidders on it unless they left off someone they wouldn't accept.
It's all about the short lists, baby! That makes me think of the Weird Al parody instead of the original song. I'm nerdy like that. OK, I'm not that nerdy if you watched the videos at the links. Please don't correct me if I'm wrong.
The real fun began after the interviews. I had to find out if I was on their short list to know if I had a viable bid. Every post I interviewed with let me know if I made their short list, but some were annoyingly close to the bidding deadline. It didn't leave much time to pursue other positions if I didn't make the cut.
There were two posts hinting that I was their #2 choice, but most simply confirmed I wasn't their leading candidate without giving me a ranking. Some said they couldn't hint at all about how their short list was ranked. It sounded like short lists were mostly three people with one post telling me they had five.
Eventually I found out that I was on the short list for 11 positions, but I still only had hints for being ranked #2 for two posts. I thought I was doing pretty good at that point. I was a little nervous about not knowing if I was a top pick at the posts refusing to reveal their rankings but I remained hopeful.
Eventually I found out that I was on the short list for 11 positions, but I still only had hints for being ranked #2 for two posts. I thought I was doing pretty good at that point. I was a little nervous about not knowing if I was a top pick at the posts refusing to reveal their rankings but I remained hopeful.
The week when bids were due wasn't fun. The informal checking of who likes whom began and I was asked for my bidding preferences on Monday. I provided my whole bid list in preference order. The decision-makers deconflicted preferences between bureaus and between posts within their bureau. I assume they do that before bids are locked in on Friday so bidders can tweak their list if expectations aren't aligned with reality. It was scramble time all around.
My hope was shaken at the end of Tuesday. I was told that I was indeed short listed but not top ranked anywhere. I was encouraged to widen my bidding and look elsewhere even though everything was still subject to change. What to do? I started looking at positions that didn't have very many bids. I didn't like the idea of dropping choices where I was on the short list in favor of places that I liked less. I was leaning towards just letting it ride in case something fell into place.
Fortunately I had a much better email at the end of Wednesday. I was now high ranked for the position I had as my #1 so they wanted to know if I was still interested. Of course I said I'd take it if it was offered! People change their minds or make unexpected choices when it's decision time so they had to ask me to be sure. I assume this inquiry is what people refer to as a wink.
Then I was told three other positions on my list looked to be available as well but I was still happy with my choice. I also heard a rumor concerning one of the posts that never got back to me. They ended up exhausting their short list already and were looking for good candidates again. This was one of the highly bid posts that seemed well out of reach. You can't assume anything is unavailable just because they have a lot of bidders and you didn't make their preliminary short list. On the flip side, one bidder is all it takes to lock up a post and keep you from getting it. I saw that with several posts as well.
All of the informal wheeling and dealing was during the week leading up to the Friday deadline for placing bids. Everybody jockeyed into position for the next week when bureau leading candidate emails went out. These "air kisses" firm things up before handshakes can be offered, but they're still not guarantees for an assignment.
At this point there shouldn't be any reason I won't get the handshake offer since our respective desires match. I know someone who has 2 leading candidate emails from different bureaus so there's still opportunity for changes there. My status appears to be solid at this point with the one position on offer. There may be some people below me on the list for my position and they're hoping I have a change of heart to go somewhere else. Too bad! I'm all set for that handshake. Let's get the show on the road!
Good luck. My short list was only 7 posts (1-2 were stretches and I knew I didn't have much of a chance but hey, someone has to get them). I quickly was one Posts top candidate. Another Post came in at the last minute - good Post but I was their #2 (but they said there was a good chance I would receive an offer). However, option 1 was really wanting me, is a good fit for the family and career wise so they won out.
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