The Job Interview E-Book

Adriana Karvaiová

• Herausgeber: Tektime
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

A young man, Adam, is heading for a job interview in the not-so-distant future. He finds a development company whose goal is not only to bring new inventions to life, but also an ideal society. But what he doesn't initially know is that their goal is not to live on Earth, and that the third round of the job interview is actually a test of candidates for the settlement of Planet B.

PUBLISHER: TEKTIME

Leseprobe

The Job Interview

In the not-so-distant future SERIES

Adriana Karvaiová

Copyright © 2023 Adriana Karvaiová

All rights reservedThe characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

Contents

Title Page

Copyright

The interviewee

The offer

In and out of the sarcophagus

The rules

The discussion

The flight

The treasure hunt

The loner

The treatment

Time to think

A new companion

A and B

Back in the meeting room

Points to discuss

Index

In the not-so-distant future SERIES

The interviewee

An endlessly long desk, at its far end four people with a stern look, flanked by a crowd of empty chairs.

They theatrically paused for a moment. Adam began to feel somewhat uneasy, but he immediately realized that this might be the very goal of these professionals, so he squirmed a little in his chair to relax, leaning back and patiently expecting the next question with a fleeting smile on his face.

"Why do you want to work for us?" Indeed, he didn't have to wait long.

"I perceive your firm as a promising company that places great emphasis on sustainability, has solid foundations in its long history, and last but not least, I am very interested in the field in which your company operates. Working in the given position would allow me to fully utilize my skills and experience and at the same time I would welcome the opportunity to extend my knowledge," Adam delivered the memorized phrase quite believably, in his mind saying silent thanks to the monumental table top for not revealing a slight tremor in his fingers underneath.

The poker faces and the guarded look of the members of the hiring committee were still not helping Adam's well-being at all, although it seemed to him that the woman on the right turned up her nose a bit. Perhaps he should say that he has also heard that the company is involved in an important project aimed at averting human extinction, but the details of the research are so closely guarded that it’s not clear what is a hoax and what is a fragment of a well-kept secret?

"We believe that we are witnessing the turn of the digital age and the quantum era. Fitting computers with subatomic particles is about to bring inconceivable scientific and social changes. What is your opinion on this and can you make a brief outline of the matter?" The middle-aged woman, dressed in a luxurious-looking costume with perfectly matched accessories, her hair flawlessly combed into an old-fashioned bun, at first reminded Adam of an ideal old-school secretary, but he immediately threw his hand in an imaginary cloud above his head.

Adam's face was now showing unease. He told himself that it was okay to think before opening his mouth, but as the pause was starting to feel long, he decided to begin, trusting that his reasoning would lead him somewhere and that his words would make sense.

"Ehm, first of all, yes, quantum computers can do calculations much, much faster than digital ones. They use qubits, the quantum equivalent of the zeros and ones that carry information in a regular computer. While bits are stored as electrical charges in transistors etched on silicon chips, qubits are represented by properties of particles, such as the angular momentum of an electron. In the subatomic world, the laws of classical physics do not apply. Sorry, but it is virtually impossible to explain it in a nutshell. How much time can you give me?"

As he hoped, he answered satisfactorily again. He let out a sigh of relief that he tried to hide, but he still felt that his exhalation must have been heard in the next room as well.

"We would like to thank you. Your expertise is undoubtedly satisfactory. Nevertheless, it is part of our company's corporate culture that interpersonal relations are one of the priorities. We firmly believe that only a non-toxic work environment will stimulate people to deliver the best results. And that's why I have one more question. What did you notice about the people you've met here today?" The question was asked by a person whom Adam, thanks to the symmetrical and smooth face and the long, blue-dyed hair, initially took for a young woman, until he spoke with a deep throaty voice.

Adam looked away for a moment to hastily activate his cache and project onto the canvas of his imagination who he had actually met so far. The author of the question himself might as well be the answer, on the other hand, apart from the confusing hair colour, there was nothing unusual about him, he conducted the conversation in a high standard and it was obvious that he was highly professional indeed.

The same applied to the other three people by his side. A distinguished elderly lady who, he quickly deduced, would probably not be an easily replaceable assistant despite her image, nor a recruiter with a decisive voice, a bearded man with a tattoo on his right cheek and a barchet shirt more suited to a comfort-seeking farmer, nor an incredibly beautiful young woman with flawless make-up, a perfect business hairstyle, wearing a sophisticated summer dress made of translucent material with a provocative cut. During the interview, Adam was not at all certain which of them would have the last word, and so he alternately addressed his gaze to everyone.

And who else had he actually met since his arrival? A silent couple in the elevator who barely responded to his greeting, walking down the corridor he saw a small crowd magnetized by the coffee machine and through the glass walls of the immense corridor he saw ordinary office desks covered with piles of paper and some computer hardware, most of which were currently abandoned but others were occupied by busy workers. This scenery gave him an impression that they were an accounting firm – nothing to get excited about.

"What I noticed about the people I've met here today?" Adam repeated the question only to gain a few extra seconds. "Actually, I found it a little strange that upon entry I was only greeted by a digital doorman, that my biometrics were scanned for identity and a generated passport escorted me here. I'm not sure if this answers your question, but in fact I was intrigued by how few people I did actually meet."

Blue locks waved in the air as their owner nodded his head. "We believe that a physical receptionist would be a waste of human resources. People need to do what technology cannot take care of."

"Do you have any questions for us?" The beauty on the left interrupted elegantly, well aware she could afford it.

"Ehm, yeah, actually, I'm interested in a lot of things," Adam cleared his throat to clear his mind in the first place. He had expected this question and pondered for a long time what to say. Why is the position vacant? They are certainly expanding the team. When will they give him an answer? As soon as they choose to do so. What is the truth about the space program rumours? Thanks a lot, we'll be in touch.

There would still be something usable at this point. "Who would be my direct supervisor?"

"Our hierarchy is not linear,” the elderly lady spoke out. "The projects are assigned to the teams and the function of manager rotates regularly, which means that after a trial period you can find yourself in the position of the man in charge. Of course, not everyone excels at managing a team, for example, someone is a great but introverted technician, and therefore you can feel free to refuse management, it’s perfectly fine. But in general, our employees know that each position is of great importance and brings many challenges. This method of reporting enhances the feeling of responsibility for one's work and also does not leave space for anyone to acquire a false sense of superiority after a while."

"If I understand it correctly, everyone in the team is more or less on the same level, and at the same time, it is possible to draw consequences in the event of a mistake by each one. But who do we get the assignments from?"

"To put it simply, we can compare it to a ticket system. Sir, can you please excuse us for a few minutes now?” The bearded man glanced at the door, and Adam understood that he should move away and agonize there in solitude.