Software Jobs
What I look for when I hire
31-Jan-2012
I recently wrote this in an e-mail to an ex-colleague who was looking for advice on hiring:
Here’s what I look for when I hire:
#1: I worked with them before and I know them to be great
#2: Someone I trust (who is a #1 for me) says they are a #1 for them (worked with them and says they are great).
After that, it's been luck -- I've actually been thinking about this a lot lately -- getting a little better
Here's what I look for:
Here’s what I look for when I hire:
#1: I worked with them before and I know them to be great
#2: Someone I trust (who is a #1 for me) says they are a #1 for them (worked with them and says they are great).
After that, it's been luck -- I've actually been thinking about this a lot lately -- getting a little better
Here's what I look for:
- They must program on the interview -- I don't care which language, but I want to see something.
- I want to see evidence that they have set and met long-term goals -- ones that take perseverance -- not just ones that are what they are paid to do for work, but something that augments that (or even something unrelated). So, leading and completing a big work project is not what I am looking for, exactly, because you don't have a choice to do or finish them, and there are rewards all along the way (your paycheck)
- Along those lines -- self-improvement -- learns about new tech, languages, etc. Tries to build things on their own.
- Community involvement -- could be twitter, a blog, going to dev groups or even stuff totally unrelated to tech (volunteering, etc) -- if not, it's nice if they have broader interests (music, art, etc). There are a lot of user-generated content outlets out there (StackOverflow, CodeProject, GitHub, FooCamps etc. -- do they contribute to any of them)
- Some evidence that they read our company's website, the blogs of our employees, twitter feeds, etc. I can't understand why people don't prepare for interviews -- but I take it to mean that they don't prepare for anything.
- Must be able to write -- I want a nice cover letter that is a convincing argument for why I should hire them.
- Some evidence that they care about their work and are self-critical
- They must be experts in something -- I don't care what it is, but whatever it is that they are doing, they must know it deeply. If they have been web-programmers for 5 years, I should be able to ask any question I want to about HTTP life-cycle, JavaScript debugging, etc. They can't have total blanks on the core stuff they are supposed to know.
- For very entry-level, I teach them something simple in one context, and then later ask questions where they need to apply that knowledge.
- They must explain things to me that I don't know, and I have to be able to understand it.
- I'm looking for go-getters -- so, I like people that reach out to me (I am easy to find) -- that follow up after interviews -- do more than what is expected in the interview process.
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Job seeking advice from a 16 year old
11-Jan-2012
A couple of weeks ago I called my “little brother” Josh for his birthday (we’re in BB/BS). “Guess what I got,” he said, “a job at Big-Y”
His sixteenth birthday was the first day that he was eligible to work, so it’s pretty amazing that he (1) got his working papers already and then (2) actually got a job. It’s tough out there for young job seekers (not to mention everyone else), so Josh must have been lucky or connected.
Not exactly.
Josh has been really determined to get a job. So much so, that he went to Big-Y a few months ago and filled out an application even though he wasn’t qualified yet. He has an awesome resume, so the manager told him to come back when he turned sixteen.
“What?” you must be thinking, “How does he have an awesome resume? I thought you said that he couldn’t work”
Sure, he couldn’t work, but he could volunteer. Josh has been volunteering hundreds of hours a year since he was 11. He has served food at the community center, worked parades as a junior Lion cub, helped out at the local Food Pantry, was a member of his high school’s Key Club, and we have done a few BB/BS volunteer activities together -- last month we helped artisans move in their wares for the BB/BS Annual Winter Craft Fair.
I asked him why he volunteers so much, and he said that he had a blast, met great people, and wanted to get used to working several hours a week for when he was able to get a job.
If you know any teenagers who aren’t old enough to work, but will want to when they can, you might want to share Josh’s advice. I told him he should teach a class.
His sixteenth birthday was the first day that he was eligible to work, so it’s pretty amazing that he (1) got his working papers already and then (2) actually got a job. It’s tough out there for young job seekers (not to mention everyone else), so Josh must have been lucky or connected.
Not exactly.
Josh has been really determined to get a job. So much so, that he went to Big-Y a few months ago and filled out an application even though he wasn’t qualified yet. He has an awesome resume, so the manager told him to come back when he turned sixteen.
“What?” you must be thinking, “How does he have an awesome resume? I thought you said that he couldn’t work”
Sure, he couldn’t work, but he could volunteer. Josh has been volunteering hundreds of hours a year since he was 11. He has served food at the community center, worked parades as a junior Lion cub, helped out at the local Food Pantry, was a member of his high school’s Key Club, and we have done a few BB/BS volunteer activities together -- last month we helped artisans move in their wares for the BB/BS Annual Winter Craft Fair.
I asked him why he volunteers so much, and he said that he had a blast, met great people, and wanted to get used to working several hours a week for when he was able to get a job.
If you know any teenagers who aren’t old enough to work, but will want to when they can, you might want to share Josh’s advice. I told him he should teach a class.