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We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

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Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#51

Post by lostboys67 »

bertil wrote: post #5
orf wrote: post #3

> We like to think that we’re different from all those industries that judge people based on appearance, but we do the same thing, only instead of saying that people are a bad fit because they don’t wear ties, we say they’re a bad fit because they do, and instead of saying people aren’t smart enough because they don’t have the right pedigree… wait, that’s exactly the same. This is a great quote and an interesting poi…

Also in the UK, and I would definitely not be surprised to see candidates show up with suits at places where that’s obviously not required. No one cares. “Pedigree” that’s another question. I did show up in a tailored three-piece suit with a tie and pocket for my interview at Deliveroo (a notorious streetwear influencer now). There was an eyebrow justifiably raised (by a guy in a t-shirt who, I learned afterwards, wa…

A few years ago I went to AKQA suited and booted - I think I realised that I might be over dressed when on the way a passer by asked me if I knew where the Ivy was :-)

The interview was a total bust the guy that interviewed me was wearing a t shirt so scruffy I would only wear it to do the gardening.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#52

Post by CydeWeys »

Boothroid wrote: post #27
chirau wrote: post #9

I disagree with this article, to some extent at least. Perhaps it's specific for trendy companies and startups. Most of which are just looking for the next shiny object, true. However, when you look at companies that move the needle in different industries, companies that have repute, market share and profitability, they couldn't care less what is trending these days. They look for domain expertise and excellence. I…

I want to believe this is true.

Most SWE interviews at Google take place in either Java or C#. These aren't sexy, trendy languages. They're boring line-of-business languages that just work. And the frameworks you already know matters very little.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#53

Post by dsr_ »

majke wrote: post #10

Bryan Cantrill at Surge 2013 "Leadership Without Management: Scaling Organizations by Scaling Engineers" aka "Middle management, a toxin or a cancer?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGkVM1B5NuI He said clearly - it is possible to hire only the best.

Step one is to figure out what "best" means for your company and the positions you have open.

Step two is to figure out how to evaluate that effectively.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#54

Post by protomyth »

dx034 wrote: post #19
arethuza wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I fear I might if they continued to wear something overly formal at work" Why would you be bothered about what someone wears at work - formal or informal?

Can be important for anyone with client contact. Even if you don't care what people wear, external clients will react differently depending on what you wear. It could be that you specifically don't want to wear suit to give the impression that you're a dynamic start-up but in the end clothing always matters.

Depending on your position it might also be different for different clients. My friend kept a suit at work in case they had to meet with the feds or a bank.

If I ever wore a suit to work, my coworkers would be wondering what was wrong or who was visiting.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#55

Post by lmm »

arethuza wrote: post #48
lmm wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would be bothered that someone dressing excessively formal might act excessively formally - after all, dressing formally is normally a deliberate display of conformity.

How can be it be an act of conformity to dress formally in an environment where it isn't the done thing?

It's not an act of conformity in that context, but it's usually an act of conformity. The most likely explanation I can see for someone dressing formally in an informal environment is a habit of conformity coupled with an insensitivity to change in social environment, neither of which seems like a desirable quality.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#56

Post by steev »

qxzw wrote: post #25

How important is GPA? I will soon get my Master's degree in CS, but it is via the path of least resistence. Therefore GPA is not shiny. I decided that spending my finite time and energy can be better, so I concentrated on coding (my own projects) and socializing, sports and games etc. When I studied for exams, at point where I knew that I was going to pass, I shifted to other projects. Next year when I join the workf…

It will likely have a negative impact on your initial job search; however, once you get a job it will become irrelevant. A lot of times HR systems filter out candidates below a certain GPA threshold. As a hiring manager, the low GPA would signal to me either lack of ability or lack of focus, though I'd be more concerned about the focus/work ethic issues than ability issues.

My advice: whatever you do, don't make any excuses about why your GPA is low. If asked, I'd just stick with the side-projects comment, but don't treat it as a good thing (i.e., you probably should have spent less time on side-project and more time focusing on studies, etc.). I would also make sure those side-projects are extremely impressive.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#57

Post by JepZ »

a13n wrote: post #12

Does anyone else find full-width text hard to read? I had to actually turn my head. Instantly closed the page.

Yes, full-width is hard to read, but somehow I have some sympathy for such simple html pages ;-)

Usually I use CTRL+Shift+I and add style="max-width:500px" to the body or push the window to the side of the screen to resized it to 50%.

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#58

Post by [deleted] »

CydeWeys wrote: post #52
Boothroid wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I want to believe this is true.

Most SWE interviews at Google take place in either Java or C#. These aren't sexy, trendy languages. They're boring line-of-business languages that just work. And the frameworks you already know matters very little.

[deleted]

Re: We only hire the best means we only hire the trendiest (2016)

#59

Post by nikodunk »

raverbashing wrote: post #28
a13n wrote: post #12

Does anyone else find full-width text hard to read? I had to actually turn my head. Instantly closed the page.

Maybe this CSS thing is too trendy for the author ;)

I love this CSS-free style so much. It's such a relief on the eyes after all the templated same-looking websites out there. Oh, and it's naturally mobile-responsive.
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