As the launch day for the intelligent medical robot Kane approached, Citrine had just finished sifting through over a thousand resumes, narrowing the pool down to three promising candidates.
But with only one position available, she still had to choose the best fit from the trio.
To conduct the interviews, Citrine took the afternoon off—missing two classes—and arranged to meet the candidates at a café just outside the school gates.
Their appointment was set for two o'clock, and Citrine arrived five minutes early.
The candidates were a young man and two women. The man and one of the women were fresh out of college, while the other woman already had a few years of work experience.
At this point, all three were still on their way.
Since there was only one road running along the campus, and all three interviewees were dressed in business suits, it didn't take long for them to spot one another. With a single glance, they realized they were all here for the same reason.
The woman in the lead turned to the others and asked, "You guys here for the interview too?"
The other two nodded in unison.
She was outgoing, the kind of person who made friends easily, and soon enough, the three of them were chatting as if they'd known each other for years.
The young man glanced around the street, wrinkled his nose, and muttered, "I have no idea what CICI Group's HR was thinking, picking a dump like this for an interview. It took me over two hours just to get here. What a hassle."
His complaint opened the floodgates for the lively woman. "Right? I thought we'd be interviewing at CICI Group's main office! The trip here was such a pain. Makes you wonder if this HR person even knows what they're doing."
The two of them traded gripes, their conversation growing more animated by the second.
Meanwhile, Carlotta Yarbrough, the woman with work experience, wasn't one to badmouth people behind their backs. She followed quietly a step behind, choosing not to join in.
When the three finally stepped into the café and looked around, they didn't spot anyone who looked like HR.
The young man's patience was wearing thin. He grumbled, "Is this person for real? We were supposed to meet at two. Now they're late? Doesn't seem very professional."
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