Tuesday 13 May 2008

Too clever for B & Q?

One of my sons, currently between jobs, is spending his non too copious waking hours in applying for work. As part of this, he filled in the online personality profile questionnaire for B&Q, the mega-DIY outfit.

A couple of days later, he received a rejection letter, on the grounds of the said profile. Now, I have severe doubts about this sort of profiling (and yes, I know my enneagram number, and my Myers-Briggs code - I am an Anglican priest, after all). However, what struck me about this was the feedback given. Apparently, no.2 son is pretty average in all areas (all expressed positively!) except one, where he scored highly for "emotional stability". Apparently this suggests that he is an independant thinker who works well under stress and can use his initiative, is ambitious and enthusiastic.

Now, from my encounters with the staff at various branches of the emporium, I can't believe that they are desperately above average. So we know what B&Q are not looking for, don't we?