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Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

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Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#151

Post by sokoloff »

Lapsa wrote: post #126
monster2control wrote: post #12

Not to be mean spirited, but it sounds like you either need to learn how to close or you are going for positions you really aren't a good fit for. I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted. In the end, it's about perception and desire. If you don't go in acting like you deserve the job and can be an asset to the company, you are not likely to get an offer. You also have to be able to sell y…

"You also have to be able to sell yourself as the perfect fit." - i hate this one most. I don't give a rat's ass about marketing - I'm a developer and not a salesman. 9 of 10 companies are doing this.

Some company is trying to determine if you are worth spending $1MM on over the next 5 years. Some humans are trying to figure out if you will be good to work with and make the company stronger.

Ignore marketing yourself in the interview process all you like, but you're doing that at your own peril.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#152

Post by gaius »

enknamel wrote: post #6

I've noticed a definite increase in companies doing bait and switches. They list higher level positions to attract good people and then try to offer them lower level positions. That's been my experience.

I've noticed a definite increase in companies doing bait and switches

Noticed that too. The job ad will have Haskell, OCaml etc listed but all that shop does is crank out Java.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#153

Post by bborud »

united893 wrote: post #93
siquick wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> Take acting classes and learn to speak with no accent It wont be permanent, but you'll be able to minimize your accent for a few hours in the interview. It's akin to speaking with a fake French accent. This is terrible advice. As soon as you start the job, the people who interviewed you will wonder why your accent is totally different, and it will instantly put you on the backfoot. >>I am almost thinking of haltin…

>> This is terrible advice. As soon as you start the job, the people who interviewed you will wonder why your accent is totally different That's not quite how accent reduction works. I think the goal is to be clear and understandable in the interview. The accent would have no weight on his professional capabilities.

That's not entirely correct. I've experienced several cases of inadequate language skills leading to misunderstandings that took months to clear up and that had real consequences. On a day to day basis, bad language skills also introduces friction and frustration.

Learning whatever language you use for work properly and being able to make yourself understood is immensely important.

I work for a company that has a pretty extensive global footprint. Just in the office I work we have around 15 nationalities, and it isn't even a big office.

Just about the only hard requirement I have for people being hired on my team is that they can make themselves clearly understood in english over a dodgy phone connection. Despite the fact that we are a norwegian company, I don't care if people know any norwegian at all. But english they must know. And yes, I have passed on norwegian candidates that could not make themselves understood in english.

And to underline how important people being able to communicate is for me: despite almost exclusively hiring people that are multidisciplinary (just being a software developer isn't enough, you need at least one other skill) I don't care about what education people have and I don't look at their grades.

If you are a developer, the most important language isn't any programming language: it is english.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#154

Post by jbverschoor »

Maybe you're depressed, and that is why you hate your job. I'm not sure how your 'leadership' translates to all this. How can you properly lead the product dept. when you hate your job and are depressed? And why would you want to switch to the same job, the one you hate so much, but at a different company?

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#156

Post by kreetx »

k__ wrote: post #136
lr4444lr wrote: post #23

Taking your description at face value, something is incongruous between how you present yourself in person vs. on your resumé. I can't see how otherwise despite your qualifications on paper and in your phone conversation why a company would spend their time bringing you onsite for a specific position, and then find you unfit but still want to consider you for something else. There seems to be a disconnect that doesn'…

This. The last company I worked for interviewed some founder of a Czech IT agency for a lead dev position and his resume seemed awesome. He worked over 15 years in IT, founded a company that had 10 employees etc. But the first thing he said in the interview was "What job do you have? I only accept CTO" whelp.

Unless he knew exactly what he wanted, and simply asked for that :)

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#157

Post by sonirico »

throwawaynxtday wrote: post #147
sonirico wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just for curiosity, I would like to hear your thoughts about western europeans ;)

I would like to hear your thoughts on: * Israeli jewish people * non-Israeli (eg US) jewish people (edit: Formatting)

Unfortunately, I haven't met anyone who gathers those requirements so far.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#158

Post by colmvp »

GuiA wrote: post #124
j45 wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No offence, some of this is dubious and degrading advice at best. Don't mean to be mean below in deconstructing the above, only clear. Current heritage CEO of Google and Microsoft prove some things. You don't choose things like the family you're born into or the colour of your skin. It's humiliating to be treated in a way to try to cover it up like you made a mistake of choosing those things. Americanized name - If p…

A few of your remarks are solid in an ideological sense, but sadly the bulk of your comment comes across as "white dude mansplaining to an indian dude why he doesn't have to worry about racism". Racism is alive and well, and a real problem that people have to deal with. Advice like "embrace your proud geek culture and be your own person learning and pursuing the things that interest you" is generic feel good woowoo t…

I could counterpoint his/her entire comment, but I'll just briefly say that citing the success of certain ethnicities (backgrounds of the CEOs of Microsoft and Google) is like implying racism/sexism is over because Obama was President and a woman almost became President.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#159

Post by hdctambien »

joericky233223 wrote: post #146
dragandj wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Too bad you've posted from the throwaway, otherwise I'd give you an UPvote :) Curiously, if I had to come up with stereotypical descriptions, I'd say I'd come with something similar. :)

What's wrong with posting as throwaway. Probably the author of the post want to avoid racial bias over his name ?

An up vote on a throwaway doesn't earn your main account any internet points, so it's be a thrown away up vote.

Re: Ask HN: 50 job applications, 15 interviews, 7 onsites, and no offer – what next?

#160

Post by k__ »

kreetx wrote: post #156
k__ wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This. The last company I worked for interviewed some founder of a Czech IT agency for a lead dev position and his resume seemed awesome. He worked over 15 years in IT, founded a company that had 10 employees etc. But the first thing he said in the interview was "What job do you have? I only accept CTO" whelp.

Unless he knew exactly what he wanted, and simply asked for that :)

Sure thing, but it came across rather self absorbed.
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