[ajug-members] The Development Skill Laundry List

Sun Sep 2 09:17:53 EDT 2007

I think the main problem with the IT buzzword-hiring problem is the
fact that most employers use 3rd party recruiters to find technical
candidates.

The only thing recruiters can screen on is buzzword compliance and
personality - they have no way of judging whether the candidate
actually can develop/design well, they can't judge whether someone has
actually used or understood the buzzwords on the resume, and they
can't tell whether someone can figure things out.  The multiple-choice
tests that are often given test, overall, small details of (often
old/out of date) technologies.  They are no substitute for a
knowledgeable person doing a real resume/phone screen.

The recruiter ads are also written to hide any identifying information
about the company -- this leaves room for almost nothing other than
the acronyms in the posting.  Most recruiter job postings sound
essentially the same.  It makes developers view IT jobs as
commodities, in just the same way that employers are now viewing
developers as commodities.  Both see the other as a package of
acronym-exposures.

For an industry that is supposed to be built on creativity, logical
thinking, and the ability to learn things... it is a bad situation all
around.

Laurie Tynor

-------------------------

 > This is an interesting problem I've faced recently as we did a wave of
 > hiring.  I think this really touches also on experience levels.  I've also
 > been frustrated that any developer who's been in the Java industry for 5
 > years gets tagged senior.  Really?  Can this 5 year veteran solve large,
 > complex problems?  Can s/he do it in a maintainable way?  Within a time
 > frame?  What if the while project doesn't fit?  What do you sacrifice?  What
 > are the principals you use to write code?  What is a developer's idea of a
 > "completed" unit of work?
 > It is very difficult to interview for these things, even if you know thats
 > what you are looking for.  And I agree, recruiters dont help this problem.
 > I think there is room for all levels within any development shop, as you
 > would depend on your more senior and experienced folks to break problems
 > down into smaller units for the junior levels.  Then again, I also think
 > theres a difference between a developer and an engineer, works that seem to
 > be used interchangeably in this industry.
 > 
 > On 8/19/07, Paul McKibben <pmckibben at gmail.com> wrote:
 > >
 > > This topic hits close to home for me (I'm talking about skills lists, not
 > > high school), having experienced the frustrations of it both as a team lead
 > > interviewing candidates, and as a former candidate interviewing for
 > > positions.
 > >
 > > Just a few days ago, I interviewed a candidate with a long list of
 > > "qualifications".  His resume looked like alphabet soup.  When I see a
 > > resume like that, my first reaction is to toss it aside--a resume like that
 > > only emphasizes technologies, and not the ability to think, learn, and solve
 > > problems.  However, my boss already scheduled an interview before I ever saw
 > > his resume.  When this candidate did come in, all of us who interviewed him
 > > came to the same conclusion: he knew how to regurgitate the technical skills
 > > he learned, but he did not know how to apply those skills to solve problems.
 > >
 > >
 > > I'm really frustrated with the ability to find good candidates.  For the
 > > most part, recruiters have not helped.  It's not their fault--all they have
 > > to go on is buzzwords.  But if you believe writers like Joel Spolsky (
 > > http://joelonsoftware.com) and Nick Corcodilos (
 > > http://asktheheadhunter.com), the best candidates don't often come in
 > > through recruiters--they come in through referrals by people who know them.
 > > I can say that of all the people on my team, now and in the past, the best
 > > ones did NOT come in through recruiters.  They came in through referrals.
 > > Conversely, of all the ones that came in through recruiters (most of them
 > > have come and gone), there is only one that I would like to hire back.
 > > That's 1 out of 5, in a 3-year timeframe.  20% is not very good, especially
 > > compared to the near perfect results we get through referrals.
 > >
 > > So as a team lead, what do I look for?  The most important qualifications
 > > are good judgment, and the ability to think, learn, and solve problems.
 > > However, we do have some basic technical requirements as well.  Since we
 > > (Wave7 Optics) are telecom equipment vendor, and our team develops
 > > management software for the equipment we sell, we prefer candidates who have
 > > some experience with element management or network management software, or
 > > at least have some understanding of IP networking.  Since we write our
 > > software in Java, we expect candidates to know the Java programming
 > > language.  Anything above and beyond that is a bonus.  The more experienced
 > > you are with technologies that we use (or could use) in our management
 > > software, it certainly helps.  But if all you know is technologies, and you
 > > aren't able to look at a particular scenario, understand it, and decide the
 > > best technologies to use for that scenario, you're more harm to us than
 > > good.  It's easier to learn technologies than good judgment.  We want
 > > candidates with good judgment and the ability to learn fast.
 > >
 > > By the way, if it's not obvious already, we're looking for a Software
 > > Engineer at Wave7.  If you're interested (especially after reading this),
 > > please e-mail me at my work address: paul.mckibben(at)w7optics.com.  I
 > > advise you not to just send a resume, but also explain why you think you'd
 > > be a good fit.  I also welcome questions if you just want to find out more
 > > about the position.  I posted something to ajug-jobs last week, so feel free
 > > to take a look at that.  You can find more about the company at
 > > http://www.wave7optics.com.  Note that this position is not yet listed on
 > > our web site.
 > >
 > > Recruiters: sorry, but please don't e-mail me regarding this position.  I
 > > do not have the authority to accept business from recruiters.
 > >
 > > Regards,
 > >   Paul
 > >
 > > On 8/19/07, Keith Welch <kwelch at mindspring.com> wrote:
 > > >
 > > > > All you have proven is that you were a virgin in high school.
 > > >
 > > > That was just a rumor!
 > > >
 > > > (Sorry for quoting the entire message without my comment earlier)
 > > >
 > > >
 > > >
 > > >
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 > >
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