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"FTP" is a giveaway. One doesn't normally know all those other things without this "FTP". I've seen ads that had listings like this: - Expertise in Oracle.

"FTP" is a giveaway. One doesn't normally know all those other things without this "FTP". I've seen ads that had listings like this: - Expertise in Oracle. - Expertise in Data Mining. - Must know SQL ...it's just some HR drone writing these.

potatolicious 18y ago
... I wouldn't work for a company that lets HR drones write job descriptions - and honestly most companies I've had contact with from an employment POV actually have technical people recruit technical employees.
- jwilliams 18y ago
  Depending on where you are having HR people write the job descriptions is very common - or pro forma job descriptions are common... This shouldn't necessarily put you off. Many large corporates would have this as policy - but doesn't necessarily make them a bad place to work. Additionally, this article fails to recognise that in a lot of scenarios there are recruitment agents acting as middle-men.. It's happened to me in the past that I'm going for a quite specialised role and an agent has said to me "but you don't have HTML on your CV". Basically they have a list and they're indiscriminately checking it off. Poor - but it's an unavoidable part of the system. Additionally - having technical people write job descriptions isn't the answer. Technical people could have a tendency to overemphasise specific technical points, whilst ignoring the (more important) fit into the team and other aspects... So whilst you call them "HR Drones", if you have a good one, they'll produce an excellent job spec - after all - this is what they do.
  - netcan 18y ago
    True. It's not a great idea to assume that a HR drone will know nothing about the area he's recruiting in. A good HR guy will know all about it. Will know about trends & moods & jobs & projects. As you say, it is what they do. I know many do it poorly. But I'm sure many do it well.
  - potatolicious 18y ago
    Agreed. The best job descriptions I've seen are two-parters. One being details on the kind of technical skills they expect for the job (and not just a laundry list of everything but the kitchen sink), and the second part being the soft skills desired. Seems to work quite well, the way I see it. I would really rather have people from the team that's hiring write the job description - it is beneficial for both parties. They get to specify precisely the position they want to fill (as opposed to casting a generic net), and I get to know a lot more about the job that I'm applying for.

potatolicious 18y ago

... I wouldn't work for a company that lets HR drones write job descriptions - and honestly most companies I've had contact with from an employment POV actually have technical people recruit technical employees.

jwilliams 18y ago
Depending on where you are having HR people write the job descriptions is very common - or pro forma job descriptions are common... This shouldn't necessarily put you off. Many large corporates would have this as policy - but doesn't necessarily make them a bad place to work. Additionally, this article fails to recognise that in a lot of scenarios there are recruitment agents acting as middle-men.. It's happened to me in the past that I'm going for a quite specialised role and an agent has said to me "but you don't have HTML on your CV". Basically they have a list and they're indiscriminately checking it off. Poor - but it's an unavoidable part of the system. Additionally - having technical people write job descriptions isn't the answer. Technical people could have a tendency to overemphasise specific technical points, whilst ignoring the (more important) fit into the team and other aspects... So whilst you call them "HR Drones", if you have a good one, they'll produce an excellent job spec - after all - this is what they do.
- netcan 18y ago
  True. It's not a great idea to assume that a HR drone will know nothing about the area he's recruiting in. A good HR guy will know all about it. Will know about trends & moods & jobs & projects. As you say, it is what they do. I know many do it poorly. But I'm sure many do it well.
- potatolicious 18y ago
  Agreed. The best job descriptions I've seen are two-parters. One being details on the kind of technical skills they expect for the job (and not just a laundry list of everything but the kitchen sink), and the second part being the soft skills desired. Seems to work quite well, the way I see it. I would really rather have people from the team that's hiring write the job description - it is beneficial for both parties. They get to specify precisely the position they want to fill (as opposed to casting a generic net), and I get to know a lot more about the job that I'm applying for.