Bones, I have had interviews where I was given a tour and treated almost as if I already had the job. It seemed strange to me and I have seen it done with others that way as well. I'm wondering now if it is some form of screening to see if the candidate will fit in before even doing an interview and finding out your qualifications. You know, if the person seems interested in their surroundings during the tour or if they seem bored with the place that might tell them something about how well the job will be learned, etc. Of course, I'm just filling in what might make sense to me as a reason for doing that. Personally, I find it misleading to do things before the interview that used to be done as part of orientation once you've been hired. A couple of times I thought I had the job because of that and was quite disappointed when I never got a call back. I felt kind of tricked when that happened.
But possibly you have already passed the first hurdle since they have gone ahead and scheduled a phone interview. I did one of those once and it was a mere formality. They already knew me from a previous interview (when I was not hired) and just wanted to touch base with me before actually giving me the job the second time around.
So, maybe it is actually a good sign to be having the phone interview on Friday. I hope it works out well for you.
Pennyplant
