(No, you will not find these in our job descriptions)
The interview process at Suyati is a crazy one. Most of our candidates are subjected to at least 3 rounds of phone interviews. And then come the face-to-face interviews at the Suyati offices – usually the candidate has to visit our different offices in Infopark to complete the interview. And when she is exhausted and ready to call it a week, she steps into our HR Director’s office for the final face-to-face.
Harrowing? Yes. Exhausting? Yes. Irritating? You betcha! Life-changing? Heck, yes.
At Suyati, we take the art of interviewing to a whole new level altogether. Technical, financial, legal, human resources, creative, marketing and sales – whatever the job you are applying for, we delve deep into you to figure out if you have the skills to succeed in our world. What are they? Education, technical prowess, attitude, motivation, professionalism, dedication, communication? Well, not really. These are the basic skills you need anyway.
We are talking about SIX special skills you need if you REALLY, REALLY want to succeed at Suyati. Here goes…….
1. Do you know to sing? Or dance? Or are you a drama queen? – We take our entertainment very seriously – singing, dancing, acting or playing an instrument. In fact, we even asked our employee to sing a song at his wedding reception, in front of his blushing bride and 800+ guests! Don’t believe us? Check this out – https://vid.me/BHjD. But if you are feeling blue that you don’t have these talents, then at least ensure you have the ability to hoot, cheer, whistle and boo when your team mate is performing.
2.Do you like to eat? – Food is synonymous with celebrations at Suyati. Every celebration, festival, birthday or anniversary results in gorging. Usually at someone else’s expense. It is pretty normal to get emails almost daily from our Admin or HR team saying that food is in the pantry. Since we adopt a “eat first, ask questions later” approach, the food is gone long before we discover the reason for it in the first place. So if you don’t like food, tough luck. But then we will take you in if you love to buy it for your fellow colleagues.
3. Do you like sports? Specifically chess, cricket, caroms or table tennis? – Suyati has its annual championship (Suyati’s IPL is world-class, if we may say so ourselves) for each of these sports where bloodshed, mind games and hedging is guaranteed. If you don’t play any of these sports, go straight to jail. Do not pass go, do not collect $200. End of discussion.
4. Do you like to run? Or walk? Or at least limp past the finish line? – Suyati participates in every marathon event in Kochi. We start training for it weeks before the event, usually at around 4:30 AM at the Infopark parking lot. Arun and Deepthi will tune your bodies into lean, mean running machines, provided you are up for it. Are you?
5. Are you afraid of being embarrassed? Making fun of each other and putting them in a tight spot is an art for Suyatians. And if it is your birthday, you can be sure that a gang of people will walk down the aisle, sing the birthday song as loudly as possible and give you birthday bumps that can turn into a nightmare. If you cannot digest being embarrassed, made fun of or laughed at by your team members (this includes the monthly Pazhampoori newsletter where even the CEO is not spared), you may want to go to the interview at the company down the hall instead. In this video, we have embarrassed ourselves as Johnny Bravo, the minions and even as a velichapadu – all to ensure that the team stays entertained.
6. Are you a sharing person? – No, we don’t mean the donating money or volunteering to teach at the local school kind of sharing. (Though if that is what you meant, you could join our CSR committee). Sharing at Suyati means any one of the following possible scenarios –
- Lending your bike, car or cycle for impromptu errands, girlfriend/spouse pickup or drop off, or getting snacks for the team
- Sharing your lunch, dinner, tea, breakfast, snack (sometimes this may not be a voluntary act) with your starving team mates
- Giving up your headphones, docking stations, mouse, mouse pads, pens, water bottles, chargers. Pretty much anything that is not attached in concrete to the floor has to be given up for the greater glory of the team as they rush to meetings, client calls and webinars. (Hint: Do not panic if you see your desk empty as you come into work. Just rush to the nearest conference room and the sales/tech team usually gathered there will have it.)
So there you have it – six skillsets that are critical if you want to enter, and survive, Suyati. Are you game?
