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Some data is not always better than no data. Sometimes data can provide a bias that you don't want. So it has to be the right data that you have. For example kn

Some data is not always better than no data. Sometimes data can provide a bias that you don't want. So it has to be the right data that you have. For example knowing that someone attended a prestigious university is likely to create a bias towards hiring that person and ignoring clues that indicate otherwise. If your classification filter recommends somebody it's possible to let that piece of information provide the same kind of bias. So if the data you have is likely to be unreliable you might want to just ignore it.

raganwald 19y ago
"So if the data you have is likely to be unreliable you might want to just ignore it." That prompts me to ask two questions: 1. So should you forget about data, or pay attention to collecting good data? WHich course of action is more important? 2. If you don't make decisions based on data... Just how are you making decisions? I am serious about question #2. We aren't talking about face to face interviews here, we're talking about looking at 200 resumes and deciding which ten people to call with the expectation of bringing 3-5 of the ten in for interviews. In my experience, when people tell me they are using their "experience" and "judgment," They are actually using a highly biased process, such as selecting people who went to their University or preferring people who share the same hobbies.
- cstejerean 19y ago
  1. try to collect better data if possible. if that's not possible ignore the source of that data (and likely find another source that can provide more reliable data). So I might ignore the automatic resume filter and perhaps judge the fitness of a candidate based on how enthusiastic they seem about work they've done in the past (just an example) 2. You always need to make decision based on data. But sometimes you need to allow your brain to interpret the data for you, even for resumes. If you're getting more resumes than you can handle reading by hand you can implement a spam filter. For example require candidates to solve a sample problem and submit the answer along with their resume. And as far as gaming by providing stock answer to the coding problems try this: extract actual problems (bugs or new features) from your real application, write automated tests for them and then put the problems online for interested candidates to solve. After a while identify a new problem from your application and put that online. Not only are you finding quality applicants you're solving real problems at the same time. These are just some thoughts that went through my head by the way, I can't speak for how effective these methods are (or would be).

raganwald 19y ago

"So if the data you have is likely to be unreliable you might want to just ignore it." That prompts me to ask two questions: 1. So should you forget about data, or pay attention to collecting good data? WHich course of action is more important? 2. If you don't make decisions based on data... Just how are you making decisions? I am serious about question #2. We aren't talking about face to face interviews here, we're talking about looking at 200 resumes and deciding which ten people to call with the expectation of bringing 3-5 of the ten in for interviews. In my experience, when people tell me they are using their "experience" and "judgment," They are actually using a highly biased process, such as selecting people who went to their University or preferring people who share the same hobbies.

cstejerean 19y ago
1. try to collect better data if possible. if that's not possible ignore the source of that data (and likely find another source that can provide more reliable data). So I might ignore the automatic resume filter and perhaps judge the fitness of a candidate based on how enthusiastic they seem about work they've done in the past (just an example) 2. You always need to make decision based on data. But sometimes you need to allow your brain to interpret the data for you, even for resumes. If you're getting more resumes than you can handle reading by hand you can implement a spam filter. For example require candidates to solve a sample problem and submit the answer along with their resume. And as far as gaming by providing stock answer to the coding problems try this: extract actual problems (bugs or new features) from your real application, write automated tests for them and then put the problems online for interested candidates to solve. After a while identify a new problem from your application and put that online. Not only are you finding quality applicants you're solving real problems at the same time. These are just some thoughts that went through my head by the way, I can't speak for how effective these methods are (or would be).