A techie took to Reddit to share his “horrible” interview experience with IBM Bengaluru. He claimed that a recruiter reached out to him for a mid-senior Application Developer role and assured him that his salary expectations would be considered. The candidate, currently earning a CTC of Rs 16 LPA, said he had clearly stated a minimum expectation of Rs 24 LPA.
The recruiter, according to him, mentioned that the company’s budget was up to Rs 22 LPA, but if he performed well in the interviews, he could be offered Rs 23 LPA along with a Rs 1.4 lakh joining bonus.
FinancialExpress.com couldn’t independently verify the claims made by the techie.
‘Horrible experience with IBM Bengaluru’
“I agreed and proceeded with interviews. After three technical rounds, I got selected. The interviewer gave very high positive feedback to me and said he would give the same to the HR,” said the techie, who has over 5.7 years of experience, on Reddit’s “Developers India” community.
He further stated that HR asked him to visit the IBM office for biometric registration, along with his PAN and Aadhaar card, to verify his identity as the person who appeared in the interviews.
After reaching the office, the Redditor said that he had to wait in line outside the office’s security room to get a temporary ID pass to enter the premises. “It was a long queue that I had to wait in, along with freshers who were there to give interviews,” he expressed.
Later, the HR asked him to forward payslips so the team could contact him to “discuss the pay”. Since he had already communicated his expectations, he sensed “something shady” but shared the requested documents anyway.
When the techie finally received the call to discuss the salary, the recruiter asked whether he had other offers. He replied that he was in final discussions for a Rs 24 LPA role. The recruiter then asked about his highest expectation, and when he said Rs 23 LPA, she responded that it was too high for someone with his experience. She told him that the offer would be Rs 17.8 LPA, plus a Rs 1 lakh joining bonus.
Phone call between techie and recruiter
Employer: “Do you have any offers in the pipeline?”
Techie: “Only in final discussions for 24 LPA.”
Employer: “So, no offers. Okay, what is your maximum expectation?”
Techie: 23 LPA.
Employer: 23? Okay. What you are expecting is too much for your experience, and the number I have is not going to make you happy.
Techie: Okay. Say the number or the budget you have.
Employer: I cannot say that now. I’m here to first collect the final maximum number from you, and I will call you tomorrow.
Techie: 23 LPA. [He explained that he quoted this amount so that he would get at least 22 LPA, which is borderline budget according to the recruiter who contacted him.]
Employer: Final offer is 17.8 LPA with a joining bonus of 1 lakh.
Horrible experience with IBM Bangalore after getting shortlisted in interviews
byu/ErenJaeger22 indevelopersIndia
‘Lied about CTC’
Techie said that he hung up after hearing the final offer, and the recruiter who had initially contacted him and assured him that the company would match his salary expectations. He expressed, “I called the recruiter who told the budget 20-22 LPA before the interviews. I told all about the bad experience, and also for wasting my time and money with a fake promise.”
He concluded his social media post with the words, “I wanted to be in a company with 24 LPA, but I reduced the salary to 22 LPA for the brand IBM and the unlimited sick leave benefits they have. But low-balling a candidate after the interviews is very, very unprofessional.”
IBM has not yet responded to the allegations made by the techie. This story will be updated if and when the company issues a statement.