4 ms·

It’s getting tougher for the first job but not for the 2nd, where word of mouth (a strong referral from a colleague who worked with you) carries much more weigh

It’s getting tougher for the first job but not for the 2nd, where word of mouth (a strong referral from a colleague who worked with you) carries much more weight than resume. My understanding is the Googles of the world are de-emphasizing degrees but they can’t hire everyone. And you have to pass their technical interview.

ramesh31 5y ago
>It’s getting tougher for the first job but not for the 2nd, where word of mouth (a strong referral from a colleague who worked with you) carries much more weight than resume. I've gotten plenty of employee referrals in the past because people I've worked with know I'm a solid developer, but honestly I just politely refuse them at this point. Every single time it happens, the company just drops you straight into the standard interview pipeline with zero benefit other than perhaps skipping a recruiter phone call. And when I'm inevitably not able to solve some random whiteboard problem or whatever, and I get rejected, it makes the friendship weird from then on.
- ghaff 5y ago
  There are basically two kinds of referrals: The first is employees put the names of people they know and have maybe worked with a bit into the system attached to an open position with the hope, in part, that they'll get a referral bonus down the road. That's going to basically go through the regular process. When I've gotten a job directly or indirectly through someone I knew, it's been through people I've worked with in the past and were usually in a position to at least influence the hiring. I'm not sure any of those jobs (which I've just had a few of) was even against a posted position.
- mathattack 5y ago
  Employee referrals do you no good if you don’t want the job. They are massively useful if you see a job you want and can’t figure out how to convince the Applicant Tracking System or non-technical HR rep that you’re worthy despite a non-standard background. Not needed if you have no trouble getting interviews, and it doesn’t replace having to do the interviews.

ramesh31 5y ago

>It’s getting tougher for the first job but not for the 2nd, where word of mouth (a strong referral from a colleague who worked with you) carries much more weight than resume. I've gotten plenty of employee referrals in the past because people I've worked with know I'm a solid developer, but honestly I just politely refuse them at this point. Every single time it happens, the company just drops you straight into the standard interview pipeline with zero benefit other than perhaps skipping a recruiter phone call. And when I'm inevitably not able to solve some random whiteboard problem or whatever, and I get rejected, it makes the friendship weird from then on.

ghaff 5y ago
There are basically two kinds of referrals: The first is employees put the names of people they know and have maybe worked with a bit into the system attached to an open position with the hope, in part, that they'll get a referral bonus down the road. That's going to basically go through the regular process. When I've gotten a job directly or indirectly through someone I knew, it's been through people I've worked with in the past and were usually in a position to at least influence the hiring. I'm not sure any of those jobs (which I've just had a few of) was even against a posted position.
mathattack 5y ago
Employee referrals do you no good if you don’t want the job. They are massively useful if you see a job you want and can’t figure out how to convince the Applicant Tracking System or non-technical HR rep that you’re worthy despite a non-standard background. Not needed if you have no trouble getting interviews, and it doesn’t replace having to do the interviews.