O/T : Looking for an entry level LAMP developer for contract work.

[Keith Smith]

der.hans, is there a solution to this and if so what is it? Great piece 
by the way.

On 2015-07-22 22:40, der.hans wrote:
> Am 22. Jul, 2015 schwätzte Nathan England so:
> 
> moin moin,
> 
>> The company I currently work for has 3 developer position openings and 
>> in 4 months we've had only two candidates apply. That seems to me a 
>> real need for developers. Either that or the job description is too 
>> complicated for them to get past.
> 
> ( None of this is pointing at any specific person or company, it just
> seems like the best place in the thread to mention it. )
> 
> There's an open secret about tech unemployment, it's been really low 
> for
> years, even when general unemployment was really high.
> 
> Due to this apparently being a secret, we get job descriptions that 
> list
> every technology someone can cut and paste from Internet search 
> results.
> 
> But, since tech unemployment is actually low, it's hard to find 
> candidates.
> 
> In tech we're also usually looking for specialists. Do welding 
> companies
> ask for someone expert in one particular welder? Are there dozens of
> brands of welders to choose from such that skills ( from the viewpoint 
> of
> HR ) don't transfer to another brand of welder? Sorry, you only know 
> java
> welders...
> 
> So, we have a lack of candidates because people have jobs and don't
> need to look around and also because job descriptions are searching for
> unrealistic lists of skills while simultaneously focusing on narrow
> fields.
> 
> Then, when candidates do appear, many get overlooked due to the narrow
> field view or lack of buzzwork bingo on their resumes. The habitually
> unemployed or new to the field seem are really up against heavy odds, 
> even
> in the low unemployment state we've been in for years.
> 
> Even an expert will have a learning curve to learn how your environment
> does it. The example I like to give is that if you hire Larry Wall to 
> join
> your Perl team ( or Guido von Rossum for Python or Rasmus Lerdorf for
> PHP... ), he will need time to learn how your team works. Granted, if 
> he
> then makes suggestions your team should probably listen intently :).
> 
> For entry and junior level positions, look for candidates that are good 
> at
> technology and learning, then give them room to grow into the specific
> position. You need that anyway because your environment *is* different.
> 
> For senior positions, find those who know the field, then see if you 
> think
> they can become the expert you need. The most likely reason we're 
> looking
> is to do something new :).
> 
> Also, please cross-train so when someone does leave the rest of the 
> team
> isn't left with huge gaps in knowledge and experience!
> 
> ciao,
> 
> der.hans
> 
>> Nathan
>> 
>> On 2015-07-22 10:45, Keith Smith wrote:
>>> Hi,
>>> 
>>> I posted for an entry level LAMP developer a week or so ago figuring 
>>> I
>>> would find a number of people wanting to break into LAMP development.
>>> What I received was a lackluster response.  I was offering $22/hr 
>>> 1099
>>> with the potential to bill 40 hours a week.  I figured by the time
>>> that person pays for health insurance figured at $250/mo, pays he 
>>> self
>>> employment tax, and takes some vacation time and holiday time off,
>>> this compensation would be about $18 an hour W2 or $36,000 a year.
>>> 
>>> Here is the contract description:
>>> 
>>> I am looking for an entry level LAMP developer.  Would like someone
>>> with entry level PHP skills and entry level Linux skills.  Stuff like
>>> the ability to add a user, add a sudo user, and configure vhosts on
>>> apache.  I will give directions with examples and they will be 
>>> working
>>> on a development VPS so if they blow it we just spin up another.  As
>>> for PHP skills if this person knows how to write a MySql connection
>>> string and is able to insert, update, delete and list.... this person
>>> could be what I am looking for.  This is a maintenance job.   This
>>> person would need to know some HTML and CSS.  jQuery would be a plus.
>>> 
>>> This contract could last as long as 2 or 3 years.  At that point we
>>> would need to either up the compensation or understand when this
>>> person takes off for other opportunities.
>>> 
>>> Is the compensation fair?  Any ideas why I received such a lukewarm 
>>> response?
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Your feedback is much appreciated.
>>> 
>>> Keith
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-- 
Keith Smith