5 ms·
Here's what I've learned from 20+ years of hiring people: 1. Make all the resumes that come in responding to technical jobs go straight to your inbox. If your
by MCRed 11y ago
Here's what I've learned from 20+ years of hiring people:
1. Make all the resumes that come in responding to technical jobs go straight to your inbox. If your company has a candidate tracking system then set up an alias that sends it to you and to the tracking system.
2. Review every resume yourself. Jump in and ask follow up questions for candidates that are interesting.
3. Interview them yourself. Every one you bring in you should spend some time with.
4. Have authority with the head of HR to make offers and move fast when you decide to hire people. If you leave this up to HR you will lose the best candidates.
The simple fact of the matter is you can't outsource this to recruiters. Let HR people do their paper work and all that but do NOT allow them in the decision making loop.
This article is right you can't train them to do your job, and my experience is that they are trained, basically, to be paper pushers and gate keepers.
Not only do these people not know how to tell a good candidate from a bad one, they (with very few exceptions) don't even KNOW they don't know, and they think they are an important part of the process in screening people out! Look at their blog posts and linked in profiles. They're proud of this role because they think it makes them important and they think they know what they are doing. This is the worst kind of ignorance, those who think they know but don't.
If I seem bitter it's because I've spent a lot of time dealing with HR people who are incompetent and who, basically, don't give a damn about the quality of hiring.
So, I'd say the number one most important hire in the early years (but not the earliest years) is the head of HR.
- rustynails 11y agoThat all rings of truth. HR overstate their abilities and interfere far too much. Over the years I've been told "if you hire, it's your risk", which turns into "I'm glad we picked Sam". Also, if you're a woman, don't make a big deal about it. Saying "I'm a woman ..." Anything will almost certainly get you shown the door - this is a red light for "attitude". There are many indicators I see, people who talk about being manages during a technical interview, etc. all bad signs. One: you'd be surprised how many women have been programmed with ad attitudes/entitlement. Makes me sad.
- nosefrog 11y ago> One: you'd be surprised how many women have been programmed with ad attitudes/entitlement. I don't understand what you mean here, and this comes off as offensive.
- Jweb_Guru 11y ago"Attitude" is acknowledging that you are a woman? Wow. I sincerely hope I never work at your company.
- asanagi 11y agoI hope you never work at my company either! No one gives a care what's between your legs. Do your damn job.
- lstrope 11y ago> There are many indicators I see, people who talk about being manages during a technical interview, etc. all bad signs. What if you were proud of the promotion to "manages" and you want to highlight the fact that you were given this promotion because of the level you were performing at? Is it not a sign of a quality candidate? I feel like you just watched last week's episode of Silicon Valley and internalized it.
- GnomeChomsky 11y agoIf you want to hire an HR professional who's at least trying to make HR suck a little less, feel free to hit me up. :) I hate the paper-pushing bullshit too, and worry/wonder to what extent my industry's professional society (SHRM) is reinforcing it.