Hi, I am interviewing and I have been asked to bring in project work with files, but this is against my current company policy.

27 Comments

1. AnonymousFebruary 16,2023 at 6:43PM UTC

   Sounds like they might want to see your work, but yes, it could be a test to see if you actually refuse. If they are a competitor, could also be a kind of sleazy way to see proprietary information. Tell them no because of your current employer's policy. Then ask them what it is they would really like to understand.

2. Lesa Edwards, Career Coach & Master Resume WriterFebruary 16,2023 at 6:54PM UTC

   No way to know if it is a test, but it is important that you follow your current employer's rules - and your own moral compass. Tell them your situation - I can't imagine that you are unique in this regard - and work with them on a work-around. If they shut you down immediately, they aren't your people and you don't want to work there.

3. Megan LeasherFebruary 17,2023 at 6:28PM UTC

   I wholeheartedly agree with this!

4. AnonymousFebruary 16,2023 at 9:20PM UTC

   I agree with both posters. Could be a test, esp if a competitor. DO NOT DO IT. Also, if they give you a "take-home project, or homework, DO NOT DO IT, unless less than 20 minutes. Recruiters are finding that these companies are misusing the projects. DO NOT sign anything either saying they won't disclose you showed your portfolio. Sounds like you're in tune; go with your gut.

5. AnonymousFebruary 16,2023 at 10:25PM UTC

   Explain that you cannot provide a portfolio because your current project contains proprietary information, which is against company policy and your personal ethics. If they press the issue, you can offer a prototype or other reports/data from school or another job that may not contain proprietary or copyrighted work. If that doesn't work, and they still press, then their intentions are less than honorable. Whatever you do, do not pass proprietary information to someone when you do not understand their intentions. You may be inadvertently passing information on to a competitor or the press. If your company finds out, you could be fired and sued. This would make it hard ever to find work in the industry again.

   And yes, a company WILL stoop to this level to get the inside scoop.

6. AnonymousFebruary 17,2023 at 1:00AM UTC

   Have you worked on anything that has been made public? Something shared at a conference or tradeshow or even on your website or in an external email? If so, you could share that information. If not, explaining that all your work contains proprietary info should be enough. Depending on the type of project work they are looking for, maybe there is a way to mock something up as an example that wouldn't contain proprietary info of your current company.

   Good luck! :)

7. Amy Carissa OliverFebruary 17,2023 at 2:52PM UTC

   It's okay for them to ask you for a portfolio.
   It's also okay for you to say, "I'm so sorry but the project I'm currently working on is proprietary to my company and it would be against company policy for me to share this. I'd be thrilled to show you some examples of my past published work, walk through a process with you, or mock up a project."

   It's likely not nefarious in any way.

   To give you a good real life example of where I've dealt with this: I had a candidate apply for a role with me whose primary work for 15 years has been with a defense and security contractor. She legally could not show me a single sample of anything she's worked on for her entire career. We agreed on a test project (which I paid her for). Ultimately she was not hired (for other reasons), but what I did for her was write a letter of explanation to go with the project so that she could use it in other job interviews, and she landed a job with it about a month later (a much better job than the one she had applied for with me).

   ^^^I'm telling you this because it's entirely appropriate to ask the recruiter if there's something else you can show them to meet the requirement so that you do not violate policies. If they don't appreciate that level of professionalism and agree to work with you, then *YOU* shouldn't consider *THEM*.

8. AnonymousFebruary 17,2023 at 6:08PM UTC

   I would not do it. Period. Go on TikTok, there are tons of recruiters, HR people, CEOs, high level people, and that is one thing that all say no to. Its YOUR work, why would you give it away?

9. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 2:06PM UTC

   There are also tons of actual HR professionals and lawyers not on TikTok who all say that the employment agreement you signed says any work you produce during the term of your employment is THE COMPANY’S work product and you have no right to do anything with it, especially and including giving it away to another company.

10. AnonymousFebruary 17,2023 at 8:59PM UTC

    I don't know if this is a test, but don't do it. Cite your employer's confidentiality rules and your own personal morals. You can't risk your current position and, depending on your field, this request may be wildly unethical. You might be able to heavily redact sensitive information while still showcasing the quality of the output, but be wary.

11. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 8:43AM UTC

    yep, it is a test.

12. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 1:45PM UTC

    I once had a candidate that brought in work from her current position to an interview and she almost lost the job (we were able to show it was publicly available). Don't bring anything in unless it is highly redacted.

13. Angela Day DentonFebruary 18,2023 at 1:47PM UTC

    Yes it is a test so don’t do it. What you might do is create a sample project of your work. Be sure to not use confidential information from your current job and present it as a sample of your work.

14. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 2:14PM UTC

    Why would a company want this? red flag. It is either a test or they are highly unethical. Either way...Not a good first impression.

15. Crystal HowellFebruary 18,2023 at 2:16PM UTC

    Don't do it. They shouldn't have asked, let them know it's company policy as they may have, and it's against your morals first. Do you want to work for a company that tests you? Keep looking, try ladders com

16. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 2:19PM UTC

    Don't do it - it's definitely unethical and sometimes they are just fishing for fresh ideas and will pass on the candidate.

17. Jessica FerlandFebruary 18,2023 at 3:05PM UTC

    Bad on them for asking. That is a big redflag. Run, do not walk.

18. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 3:11PM UTC

    There's a couple things here about this company or business that stick out like sore thumbs and are glaring RED FLAGS. Firstly, ask yourself, do you think it is standard protocol (or even reasonably necessary or legal) for any company to ask a prospective employee for documents or files from the company they were employed at prior to applying to their company? To answer this question myself, definitely NO. They're either testing you (in a sense you've already failed if you didn't point out the obvious issue with such request and didn't immediately decline) for whatever reason, or they think you're naive and were trying to see if they could get your old company's confidential documents for their own gain. It's important to note the names and positions of whomever you met with as it signals they're not a trustworthy company to work for and you'd be better off continuing your search elsewhere. Had you not ever questioned it, you could be caught up possibly starting a position with a company (regardless of whether you declined or accepted their request) that wasn't only shady but, a most likely a miserable place for you to work especially if you yourself have a high level of integrity. Maybe you gave them the impression that you were in dire need of a job so they played on that need and ran with it seeing how much they could get from you before you decide to decline any further communication with them. You should not be walking them through any process you went through for any project that could be giving away your other jobs secrets. Keep in mind also that if you were to go through with their request and your prior employer found out, they could sue you. In either case though, if they were in fact simply testing you and you feel confident that the company is legit, even the fact alone that you had to stop and question why they would be asking you for confidential documents, should already have you moving on. I would honestly just trust my gut instinct on this and keep looking because it is unethical and unheard of for a legitimate and trustworthy company to ask anyone to do that knowing that THEY would not want THEIR OWN confidential or proprietary documents to be handed off to some random company they have no connection to. Not to mention the lack of integrity and morals it takes to request that of ANYONE either inside OR outside of their business office. Unfortunately, if you are applying for positions you feel or know you may not be qualified for and it seems too good to be true and that they're "giving you a chance" even if you're under-qualified, it means it IS too good to be true and you should keep searching. Don't let this little situation discourage you but always trust your gut instinct especially if you're only in contact with a company online and not in person when you apply. The best thing to do though is to vet every online company you see online BEFORE you apply. Even a resume could be putting too much information into the wrong hands. If it were me, I would have already asked them for an explanation as to why they were requesting documents from the job I had prior because you should never need to give specifics. There are many standard questions employers will ask during interviews but they will never ask for specific business information outside of a name and type of position. Anything more in regard to the other company is too much information and would cause an employer to not want to hire you. Best of luck to you in your search!

19. Meghan BFebruary 18,2023 at 3:32PM UTC

    Whether it’s a test or not, don’t ever do it.

    It’s normal in some positions to ask to see a portfolio. I’ve often taken the bones of a project and pulled any identifying features and of course replaced any actual data or information with completely mocked up information and used it for this purpose. But only when I’m absolutely certain I’m not violating any intellectual property rights and I’m only demonstrating my work product. I’m also careful to do it in a format where it can’t be used by the company I’m interviewing with.

    because unfortunately I’ve also seen unscrupulous people use interviewees as free labor. I tend to look very skeptically when asked to do a project for an interview, especially a first round interview.

20. ChrishoggFebruary 18,2023 at 3:42PM UTC

    Just in case you missed it in the previous comments, there is no way for anyone out here to know whether or not this is a test, but regardless, DO NOT provide any information from your current employer or your most recent employer. *

    JUST - DON'T - DO - IT.

    And also, I would think long and hard about taking a position with an organization that would ask a candidate to do something like this, but that's just me ... YMMV.

    *PS: If you happen to be a writer or similar, and they ask for something you produced from a current or former employer, and there is something published for public consumption, or something in the public domain such as a website landing page or something the company has already put on the Internet, that is publicly available, that you can point the interviewer to, then simply refer the pending employer to that item with words such as, "You can see a piece I wrote for [company] at [address] and see some of my work at [URL]'s landing page.

21. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 5:55PM UTC

    I interviewed with a company that is a web-based job recruiter. They asked me for this and it was a major red flag. They should know better. Most companies make you sign an NDA. I would not (and did not) do it.

22. AnonymousFebruary 18,2023 at 10:49PM UTC

    The only test is whether you will be honest and abide by your company policy or not. Do the right thing and don't worry about the test. Everything will be clear in time

23. CourtneyFebruary 19,2023 at 3:39AM UTC

    RUN.

24. AnonymousFebruary 19,2023 at 7:18PM UTC

    It's probably not a test its to see if you are an impostor. Make a less nuanced redacted version of something that you did and do let the interviewer know that your current companies handbook states no proprietary company projects can be shared externally. Let them know you are willing to whiteboard something if need be or to do an assignment if they want to see how you solve problems for a similar role.

25. Kathy LeskiFebruary 20,2023 at 1:52AM UTC

    That's like asking for your SS# number (for US folks) before you've even been given an offer!

    I would respectfully tell them the code is IP owned by the company. I can walk you through the approach we did in project managing (along with tools if you used them, etc.).

26. Jennifer AndersonFebruary 21,2023 at 6:49PM UTC

    So I was interviewing for a technical business analyst position and the interviewer asked me for examples of my work. The reason, my resume didn't provided confidence that I knew what would be expected BUT my interview had convinced him that I did know what I was talking about. I, like you, did not want to submit anything that would violate my current employment so I took a past project that I had worked on and modified it so that it reflected a 'fake' request and my 'fake' requirements. In this way, the hiring manager could see what I could do without violating any current policies. He commented later that he respected what I did because I found a way to protect my current employer but also give him what he needed to hire me in an ethical manner.

    By the way, when I submitted it, I did include an introductory statement that I had done this so he understood that some of the missing information was redacted and that some of the steps were missing.

27. Valentina Huang, MBA, SHRM-CPFebruary 22,2023 at 3:40PM UTC

    If you're uncomfortable, then there's your answer. If it goes against your currently company policy, then please do not place yourself in a possible litigious situation. Be honest and let them know. If the purpose was to see your thought process then you can walk them through a new example that is not currently 'owned' by your currently employer.