It was a staged, one-round rejection interview, linked to my current employer. The phone call with the internal recruiter was all fine and crystal clear, and I knew I had passed. The recruiter kept asking why my current company was not a good fit.

The recruiter said he wasn't trying to give me a hard time (he certainly was, and that was a lie) and kept harping on the same question a couple of times. He was just trying to tease out detailed information via voice, so my current company would know this via surveillance. The recruiter said I would hear back in one week.

I heard nothing, and I called after two weeks, twice. There was no callback from the recruiter, and a rejection letter was sent. Funny thing: within those two weeks, all people I interfaced with at my company were overly nice, prompt, and professional with me. They knew about my attempt to leave and knew this was a preplanned, staged rejection.

Why is your current employer not a good fit for you?