Advice

[keith@christianexchange.org]

----- Original Message -----
From: George Toft <george@georgetoft.com>
To: <plug-discuss@lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us>
Sent: Wednesday, March 21, 2001 10:15 PM
Subject: Re: Advice


> That's what I did at my last job.  My 30 seconds were focused on:
> How long at each job.
> Did he/she put the skills I asked for on the resume.
> Education.
>
> I had one resume that actually said Linux as a skill, as this was a
> Linux position (98% of the resumes had MS all over it).  I asked
> him if he knew anything about Linux.  He said "What do you mean?"
> I replied: "Do you know more than just how to spell it?"  He responded
> by pressing one of the buttons on the phone keypad, and hung up on
> me.  My reaction: Filing the resume in the "No Way" pile.
>
> We each have our ways of filtering candidates (or employers).
>
> George
>


George please don't take this as a personal attack.  I think we can all
learn a lot from each other.  You think interviewing as a hiring manager is
tough, so is interviewing for a prospective position.  There are the sweat
shops, the cheapies, the no benefits, full-time or part-time jobs
masquerading as an internship........ ETC.

Phone interviews are tough.  No body language.  Maybe he thought you were
being rude or making fun of him. Without actually being there, and not
knowing you, my assessment of your question "Do you know more than just how
to spell it?"  would turn me off and I would probably end the interview soon
after.

I recently got a call from a company that wanted to know if I was interested
in working for them.  After I said yes they asked how much I wanted.  I
asked for a mid-range salary given my skill set and experience. The guy
wanted to pay $7,000 less (entry level) and quit talking with me.  He said
he was using a headhunter and needed to continue along that path.  This
makes no since to me because I know he will pay about $12,000 to find
someone who will stay no more than 2 years once they find out how much they
can really make.  The math works out that I only wanted about $1000 more a
year by not going through a headhunter.  Entry level and save $1000 a year
VS. years of experience with the exact tools - Go Figure!

One of the things I find interesting is the "What do you want?" question.
When I interviewed with a small mom and pop software company several years
ago this is how I responded: "More money is not all that important to me, I
would like more vacation time."  I went on to tell them I would like 4 or
more weeks of vacation in stead of a pay raise.  I actually told them I
would be willing to take less money if I received more time off than I was
getting from my employer at the time.  They treated me like I was some sort
of freak!

Several years ago I received a call from a Phoenix company (I live in
Tucson) and was told they wanted to interview me.  I asked for a phone
interview to determine if driving to Phoenix would be a good use of my time.
I explained that during most interviews within 5 minutes I know I do not
want to work for them or they know they do not want me, and I would hate to
drive 2 hours to Phoenix and 2 hours back to spend 5 minutes finding out it
would not be worth while to continue the process.  I never receive a follow
up call.  This tells me this company does not care about their employees of
which I will never be.

I have a ton of personal stories.  I've accepted offers which ended up being
something different than what was presented and I ended up quitting soon
after. It was my intent to stay a while, maybe even a little longer, when I
accepted the position.  One of things to ponder when hiring someone is they
may be processing with several companies.  If you hire them under false
pretence they will know. They may be getting offers within weeks or months
of accepting a position with your company.  After several weeks they know if
they were sold a bill of goods.  This happened with my wife.  She applied at
several places, having her hopes on one company.  She received an offer
within days and took the job.  The place had top notch pay and benefits
however the work environment was very hostile.  Several month later after
having her fill of harassment and hostility she was offered a position with
the original company she wanted to work for.  It meant several dollars an
hour pay reduction and a lesser benefit package.  She looked that this
prospect long and hard to make sure she was not jumping from the frying pan
into the fire.  She took the job with less pay and benefits and likes it
much more.

So hiring managers beware, we are sizing you up too.

Interviewing is tough and no fun.  I've become very aggressive in
interviewing my prospective employer.  I'm tired of finding out that what
the job and work place are really like is nothing like what they presented.
I'm sure candidates lie and embellish.  I know managers do.

With 401k and portable health insurance moving from one job to the next is
very easy.  I think most people change jobs every 2 or 3 years.

I find most leads and managers think they need to beat their subordinates
with a stick to get results.  Employees are like dogs.  Beat them with a
stick and they bite you!  Show them a little love, compassion,
understanding, through them a treat, buy them lunch, give them a day off,
and they will follow you all over the place - loyalty will be second to
none.  They will even follow you to your next company.  You will hear rumors
of wars and later find your loyal servant had fought the battle protecting
you without ever involving you.  Shall I go on?  Be an average employer and
see how fast people avoid responsibility and how poorly your group will
perform.  You will train a new employee to loose them...... People tend to
rise to your expectation of them.  Employees are like dogs!

This was not meant as a personal attack.

With love, peace, and respect,
Keith Smith


<SNIP>