4 ms·

Recruiters and HR people are usually not subject matter experts, so they don't have the expertise to select great people from among outlier groups or from the l

by api 3y ago

Recruiters and HR people are usually not subject matter experts, so they don't have the expertise to select great people from among outlier groups or from the larger population. They end up relying on indicators like top schools or top prior employers. I've hired outstanding people for dev roles with all kinds of backgrounds including self-taught, low-mid tier state schools, unfinished college, etc., but that's because I am a developer and I can tell who knows things and who doesn't. I couldn't do the same for, say, a mechanical engineering position since I am not an expert in that field.

gonehome 3y ago
Yeah, this is one reason why I think the outliers at state schools are undervalued. These heuristics are indirect and lead to inefficient selection, competition over the same scarce resources. If you’re a startup there’s a strategic advantage in trying to look for talent where others aren’t and leveraging your own subject matter expertise to do so. In moneyball the scouts selected on stupid stuff rather than on base percentage - if you know what to actually look for you can find stuff mispriced.
- ghaff 3y ago
  >Yeah, this is one reason why I think the outliers at state schools are undervalued. What I've always heard about the big state schools is that you can get in (probably relatively easily) and then you can either spend your days doing a lot of doing sports and partying (not that there's anything wrong with that in moderation) or you can get a pretty world-class STEM degree.
- api 3y ago
  > If you’re a startup there’s a strategic advantage in trying to look for talent where others aren’t and leveraging your own subject matter expertise to do so. That's the huge take-away, and why startups and other small to medium sized businesses are so critical for class mobility.

4 ms·

Recruiters and HR people are usually not subject matter experts, so they don't have the expertise to select great people from among outlier groups or from the l

by api 3y ago

gonehome 3y ago
Yeah, this is one reason why I think the outliers at state schools are undervalued. These heuristics are indirect and lead to inefficient selection, competition over the same scarce resources. If you’re a startup there’s a strategic advantage in trying to look for talent where others aren’t and leveraging your own subject matter expertise to do so. In moneyball the scouts selected on stupid stuff rather than on base percentage - if you know what to actually look for you can find stuff mispriced.
- ghaff 3y ago
  >Yeah, this is one reason why I think the outliers at state schools are undervalued. What I've always heard about the big state schools is that you can get in (probably relatively easily) and then you can either spend your days doing a lot of doing sports and partying (not that there's anything wrong with that in moderation) or you can get a pretty world-class STEM degree.
- api 3y ago
  > If you’re a startup there’s a strategic advantage in trying to look for talent where others aren’t and leveraging your own subject matter expertise to do so. That's the huge take-away, and why startups and other small to medium sized businesses are so critical for class mobility.