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Post by nonamouse on Apr 17, 2009 11:47:36 GMT -5
"Re the insider/outsider bias, I took a few minutes at the end to ask a question about the issue. They told me as an outsider I'd get 9 months to spool up to full productivity while the learning curve for insiders was 4 months. I commented that if SSA is trying to tackle/resolve a case backlog by 2013 it would seem then that insiders would be favored over outsiders...i.e., less time for them to become a full-up round. The RCALJ said my logic was flawed. How so? He said for every insider they gain (as an ALJ), they lose an experienced insider (staff atty)." There are three areas where a hearing office's case flow can bottleneck, the clerks, the attorneys, and the ALJs. EagleJag's interviewer brought up an important point that has actually been brought up on this board before, that there is a productivity price to be paid for every experienced staff attorney that is hired as an ALJ. Its a matter of robbing Peter to pay Paul. ODAR needs to be careful not to "overharvest." So what, now 'insiders' who are unfortunate enough to be valued in their current jobs need to be worried about getting passed over because they are too valuable where they are? I don't like the sound of that any more than I'm sure outside people like the sound of possible bias going against them. However, I also don't think ODAR takes that into consideration or most of the insiders in my class would not be ALJs now. They know that good productivity and good interpersonal skills will still serve the agency's goals well into the future with good ALJs regardless of where they came from originally. An aside on the friendliness or length of an interview, it matters not how long the interview went folks. It is what got covered in the answers to the listed questions. We skipped multiple questions during my interview because one of the RCALJs said that if I believed I had covered something in a previous answer, I could just say that. I did. It still went over an hour, but I know we answered the requirements while saving time. A humorous antedote or two being swapped just shows the personalities of the people in the room.
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Post by northeasterner on Apr 18, 2009 10:20:16 GMT -5
As the lady who rode in the taxi with Krid (I think - was your interview at 4 or did it end at 4?), I think it's appropriate for me to comment. My interview was just under an hour, not 40 minutes, but that's not a huge point. My understanding is that the HOCALJ and HOD (I think it was a HOD) were just conducting short interviews. Apparently they were ready for my 4 pm interview at 2:30. They were waiting for their 2 pm interview for a while, and took that applicant at 1:30 - as soon as he walked in. And to add fuel to the insider/outsider debates, both the 2 pm applicant and I are outsiders.
I don't know whether there where questions that they didn't ask. But numerous times when they started to ask a question, they stopped and said, "well, you really just answered that."
Maybe I am just rationalizing, but given that this team of interviewers were waiting for both the 2 and 4 pm interviews, I took the brevity of the interview as a reflection of their style, and not personally.
I'm just happy the interview process is over, and all I have to do is sit back and wait (I reserve the right to get crazy as we get closer in time to offers ;D )
NE
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Post by zarco522 on Apr 18, 2009 10:41:50 GMT -5
Also, for what its worth, I was a bit surprised by how familiar they were with my application and location choices. The interviewers affirmatively skipped through parts where I had either already answered or they could see where I was headed. My interview was shorter than some, but not so short as to be disconcerting.
For those of you going next week, be sure to review your own material before you walk in. I am, as I am sure many of us are, going over the interview in my head and coming up with MUCH better answers now, but that is the nature of the beast. Best of luck to each of us. I do appreciate this Board. Thanks.
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Post by tallgreenfrog on Apr 18, 2009 19:30:54 GMT -5
For anybody who is interested, my interview was in the a.m. on the 17th, and I thought the two interviewers were professional and nice. The gentleman from one of the Mid-Western offices was ridiculously knowledgeable about systems, structure, training, etc., and the type of person I would personally love to work for. During the interview, we discussed almost off-topic stuff related to the functions of an ALJ and I was beyond impressed. I asked if I could add his office to my list (in jest). If you are prone to test anxiety, relax because you can't really prepare for the questions. Just spend some time thinking about your qualities and how they relate to what an SSA ALJ does. Ask your wife, husband, friend or somebody else if you are one of those people who doesnt spend a lot of time thinking about his or her qualities. Good luck.
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Post by ssaer on Apr 18, 2009 22:02:23 GMT -5
A few more gleanings from the recent interview experience:
(1) the interview questions were actually related to job performance, asking us to give examples of our experience that demonstrate we can perform the various responsibilities required of an SSA ALJ;
(2) there will apparently be two start dates, one in June and one in August;
(3) in the past, offers were made about six weeks before the first group reported to their duty stations (in our scenario, this would translate to around May 11, assuming an initial reporting date of June 22 followed by a centralized training commencing on July 6);
(4) I was told that the trainings will be held in Baltimore (although info recently provided to certain SSA employees indicates that Falls Church will be the training site).
For those who have not yet interviewed, what awaits you is a process far more pleasant than what you already endured with OPM. Relax and good luck!
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Post by flannery on Apr 19, 2009 7:56:37 GMT -5
I agree w/SSAER: the SSA interview experience was far more pleasant than the OPM SI. The OCALJ staff was very courteous and well-organized. They even had some donuts sitting on a little table if you had an appetite. Zarco, I couldn't tell that my interviewers were familiar with anything about me. The best I can recall, they confined themselves to a book of questions and I don't think they had any other documents with them to look at (e.g., my resume, app, etc). But I could be wrong--one is in a little bit of a daze under such circumstances. I, too, had a Chief ALJ who was a midwestern gentleman and either a HOD or Regional Management Officer at his side. They were both really nice but again, it didn't appear to me that they knew anything about me or my geo preferences. Interview lasted two hours.... While I waited, I met two really nice candidates, one an insider and one an outsider. I couldn't help but try to figure out whether they post on the board and if so, which poster they were. They may have been wondering the same about me....Anyways--the SSA interview should be a pleasant experience for all, at least in comparison to what we have been through so far.
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Post by alj on Apr 19, 2009 14:49:19 GMT -5
.... While I waited, I met two really nice candidates, one an insider and one an outsider. I couldn't help but try to figure out whether they post on the board and if so, which poster they were. They may have been wondering the same about me.... Little Bunny, you weren't fooling anyone about your Board identity; the ears give it away every time. And in case any of you are wondering, TPTB will not hesitate to choose an insider because of any perceived disruption to the losing hearing office.
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Post by flannery on Apr 19, 2009 17:00:04 GMT -5
ALJ, I was worried about the pointed ears giving me away. So I saved my human costume from Easter-- and wore it to the interview. I don't think any one could tell I was a rabbit! At least I hope not. It may be true (though I'm not convinced) that OPM makes it hard on "insiders" and SSA makes it hard on "outsiders" -- but hey, walk a mile in my bunny paws and you will soon learn: everyone makes it hard on a rabbit -- especially a rabbit trying to be an ALJ!
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Post by northwest on Apr 20, 2009 23:49:06 GMT -5
I was told that the trainings will be held in Baltimore (although info recently provided to certain SSA employees indicates that Falls Church will be the training site). I was told the training would be in Falls Church. Offers might not go out until the week following May 11 (i.e. the week of May 18). PS: I'm gathering from my interview & other posts that there's a great difference in style amongst the various panels. Although they all of course are following the same script of questions.
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