Why Hire The Project Manager When You Can Get The Project Plan For Free?

Employers searching for Business Analysts and Project Managers have discovered a way to get some of their work done without paying for the groundwork.  Oh yes, these crafty little devils have included in the interview process a request for proof that you can perform a needs assessment, gather requirements, design the project plan using development tools, assemble a team, assign the tasks, establish a timeline, and identify the deliverables amongst a host of other required moving pieces.  Similar to submitting writing samples for a position where writing is the main task, some employers are requesting interviewees to submit drafts of a project plan/business solution.  I guess this would be ok, if you were allowed to submit one from your portfolio, a solution from a completed project you implemented for a former employer (and changed the names to protect the innocent). Oh but not so.

The employer provides you with the details of a "Fictitious" RFP, sort of like being given a case study to critique and you are asked to provide the business solution by fulfilling the steps as if it were a "Real" project.

The skeptic in me says the company may have one position to fill, maybe more maybe none, but of one thing I am certain, I bet these "Fictitious" RFP scenarios are quite real.  I'll bet that many of the people mapping and planning out these solutions in hopes of landing employment are providing these companies with first rate, top notch solution ideas for free.

I wonder how many people actually get further in the hiring process and how many land the job after submitting this interview requirement.

So I am asking you, my readers, how do you avoid giving away your expertise for free and remain competitive in the search?  Would you be comfortable providing a project plan/business solution in the interview process?  Maybe you don't want to pursue an opportunity with a company that includes this step in the requirements.