10 Bad “pickup lines” when displaying an IT job ad: Part 1

Hello there, my blog reader!

After a very long time not writing because of long hectic software development project, I ‘m ready to write again!

These tips are how to avoid displaying bad sentences that makes potential human resource go and find other job ad. Bear in mind, human resources, especially IT human resources, especially again, kickass hardcore software developers are hard to find.

You have to consider one thing: your software developers are asset for you, and you are supposed to be an asset for them. These subtle fact is often broken at the first sight when a job ad is published!

Here, 10 bad lines that you must avoid:

Line 1: “Only short listed candidates will be processed.” or “Only short listed candidates will be contacted” or “only those who meet requirement will be processed”

This line can be seen in almost 80% of software developer job ad in Indonesia. I don’t know much about this line occurrence in other countries, but I often see this line on Dice.com, monster.com, even on quite popular professional job links such as linkedin.com.

I put this as #1, due to the fact that this “short listed candidates” mentality has proven to be worthless or even meaningless statement. During my 3-5 years of software development job seek (I was more than 3 years being a professional contractor of software developer), many companies that put this line always put technical competencies aside. Meaning is, look above this line. Try to examine the requirement that they wanted you to have. Chances are, they are looking for “superman” developer or simply looking for developer that can be paid poorly, sadly enough this can be both!

Try to look at these samples, and here’s

Exhibit #1:

“We are now looking for a high caliber .Net Programmer, to develop and deliver ….(censored)...
.Net Programmer Position

Responsibilities:

Develop web/desktop application with back-end, report and databases and other tools
Provide test plans and test suites for applications

Qualifications:

• Male or Female
• Bachelor’s Degree or higher in Computer Science, Computer Engineering or any IT related fields
• Fluent in English both oral and written
• Good knowledge in OOP.
• Good knowledge in C#, ASP.net, Ajax, Web Service
• Good Knowledge MSSQL 2005/2008
• Having knowledge in Windows & Linux Platform.
• Having knowledge in software development.
• Strong in analytical and problem solving skill.
• Fast - learning in new technology.
  Be able to work as a team and work under pressure with highly responsible
  Good communication, attitude and interpersonal skills

If you are confident that you fit our qualifications we would like to have further conversation with you.

Please send your CV, recent photograph and expected salary
with subject “.Net Programmer Position’ (not more than 200 Kb) to xxxxxx&xxxxxcompany.com

Only short listed candidate will proceed”

See what’s wrong in the ad above? The company wants you to do many jobs at once, and this involved many roles in a software development. Simply put, a .NET Developer is not the same as someone that at the same time MUST have knowledge of Windows and Linux platform! A .NET developer that has basic knowledge of Windows platform is okay and can be considered nice to have feature BUT NOT A MUST HAVE TRAIT!

We all know, most .NET developer lives in Windows world, not Linux world. Unless it’s specifically mention that you need Mono developer for both Linux and Windows.

It’s not just in software world, in hardware world we have this!

Exhibit #2:

Solution Engineer for Contact Center

Qualifications:

•     Must have a minimum of 2 years of experience with Contact Center Design, Operations and Maintenance.
•     Working Knowledge of Inbound, Outbound and IVR systems. Experiences with Genesys Contact Center is a plus.
•     Working Knowledge of Workforce Management systems.
•     Working Knowledge of IP Telephony Gateway and PaBX Integration.
•     Working Knowledge of Recording systems.
•     Working Knowledge of Speech Recognition.
•     Working Knowledge of SQL database architecture and language.

Requirements:

    Min S1, majoring in Information Technology
    Fluent in English (verbal and written)
    High integrity, Good personality, and team work
    Strong critical thinking and analytical skills.
    Good team player, willing to share knowledge with the team
    Ability to work independently on multiple activities, showing appropriate level of prioritization and escalation skills
    Excellent customer service and communication skills.

Please send application and comprehensive resume or CV in English with a cover letter which states your motivation to apply, expected salary, and recent photograph to :

recruitment@companyjobxxxx.co.id (censored)

We are sorry that only those who meet the requirements will be processed.

Again, this is a damn good example of “superman” job ad! How come an experienced solution engineer must have those experience in 2 years? If there’s a one that can be found, how much the company will pay the salary? Not to mention must have knowledge on SQL queries?

I have 2 examples to give, and I believe there are many more to look!

Then what about the words/line?

1. The line is definitely intimidating and it’s all lies and can be a subtle form of “job bullying”. We all know that if we meet the requirement will be contacted, but how do you know that you have to meet the requirement before actually being tested first? If you’re not contacted then you’re not qualified? Even you haven’t got the chance to be tested first?
2. The line has many different meanings. Not just intimidating, but the one that decides who meet the requirement is the one that write the job ad, because you can be assumed that you won’t meet the qualification if you’re not contacted at all. Or can be there are already people more qualified than you? But how do you get a fair assessment on this?
3. Assume that the requirements have been mentioned, most of them are mixes of many people with different roles. If the requirements/qualifications are mentioned, are there clear and concise enough without or minimal ambiguities? As mentioned in samples above, I can be sure that almost 90% of job ads that has this line will always have ambiguous requirements and asking more than the job position.
4. Put it simply, it’s a trap job. Once you’re in or got accepted, the company will assume that you have to be able to do all of those requirements and job descriptions, although you are simply has one role officially.

 

Therefore, it’s all lies, and my friends and my first impression when reading this line is simple: look elsewhere. We’re not stupid.

Not just me, this guy defined clearly that this line is also truly intimidating and it signifies bad business: http://peterdickinson.hubpages.com/hub/Only-Short-Listed-Applicants-Will-Be-Notified

Next, line# 2: “Able to work under pressures”!

What kind of a good employee do you want? Do those degree papers still matter?

I feel strange while also ironically funny, when i look at someone's else childhood elementary school photos on facebook..

I wonder where are they now? To be honest, this school was my school too..
but more ironically, and why most of them aren't so obvious and having a financial presence, despite the school was supposed to be one of the favorite? Why most of them are still busily climbing the corporate ladders while also being constantly whining about feeling lack of financial security. And another sad fact, 3 months ago one of my friend had asked me to lend some money because he didn't have enough money to pay his son's high school fee...

My heart and mind was suddenly burned into a war of what's right or wrong if I lend the money. Why? Because he was arrogant back then in the school, as one of the top ten kids in the annual evaluation report. I also feel not right, if I lend the money, how can I be sure he have the payment capacity to pay me back? Then my compassion came, I decided to just give him half of the money but I asked him to borrow the rest of the money from any bank, since I have to force him to have the responsibility to pay and always be aware to rise and break free from financial fall.

He seemed disappoint at first! I told him politely to be aware of his own arrogance and he have to rise soon... but sad thing was: he threw the money to my face and walk away, while shouting the disappointment of knowing the fact that I was his friend and I didn't help him. The day after, he called me for apologies, and he went with me to open a loan account in a bank.

Now, even though he's willing to be more realistic and aware, he's still an arrogant one: resigning from his current employer and tells me that he feels confident with his degree papers and he could get better paid salary.. Ouch..

Hmmm.. it seems something in the past is destined always in the past, and one can't beat the arrow of time that can mean anything could change and then "can change", and judging the fact that it's the human itself must walk and reshape their own destiny, either live happily with spouse and kids or not, either financially broke or not, either they have enough presence or not, or many things can't be determined from the past...

I've seen many people used the favorite school as a tool to affect the next path, although the one that walks the paths and also the user of the tool doesn't have enough persistence and the willingness to be truly aware that using any tool is useless if the user of the tool doesn't do anything right! Why? Because after they got graduated from college/university, they became mostly so arrogant and were ignoring the fact that they're entering the fact that they must struggle for jobs, financial security, and many more. Using a graduation paper, they've gone thru many companies for applying jobs.

I have also seen those who unfortunate to join fave school but now they can enjoy social and financial presence by willing to ignore fave school and always walk the path persistently and most of all, willing to walk thousand miles path focusing a single golden goal: begin with the end of what kind of destiny you really want in the end in your mind and what are your actions toward there... again, not the tools to go there! Even, these people are more noble than the previous: they're able to establish a business and create job opportunities for others! But the first steps are quite the same: they were first applying for any jobs but ignoring the graduation paper, and some of them couldn't have.

This truly matches the habit #2 of Stephen Covey's 7 Habit of highly effective people: Begin with the end in mind.

Also combined with saying from Sun Tzu:

"Journey of thousand miles begins with a single step."

My childhood friends, the message is crystal clear: education is very important! But it's more important to be aware of current challenge: always be prepared to do anything and willing to abandon all arrogance and fancy attributes of either phds, bachelors degrees. As the name itself implies: education is an education, it gives meanings to us as a human beings that have intelligences, not give us the right to brag about better job. I don't give a damn thing about this, too.

I only care about the skills and what he/she has done with the skills he/she has!

I have received tons of job applications with those fancy degrees, but most of their heads and conscious are filled with hopes and arrogances of having degrees. I want someone that have the skill and enough passion to do his/her job, and I want this fact engraved into their head and conscious! Grr...

For those who feel insulted by this note, especially my former elementary school friends, I feel sorry. But it's one of the best bitter sweet fact of life: one must first walk the right path and always be aware that tools are okay (including the 'fave school' euphoria), but what really matters are the one itself. Not the attributes you have.

Yourself.

Including myself.

Are you, especially my school friends, willing to do all these? There are no 'late' and regrets, if you need to change and really willing to change. I would like to help you envision this. Again, only if you're willing to do so.

Welcome to HRD aspects in Software Developments!

Hi, I am Eriawan Kusumawardhono, the founder of RX Communica. During the past 5 years of my own experiences in being an employee and also a manager of my own company, I've experienced ups and downs of human resources.

This blog will contains all about my experiences and others about HRD aspects of software development. I will also put some interview tips, companies to avoid, and how to interact with others.

Not just that, it will also contain some real world experiences, including myself and my own experiences running my own non profit company, RX Communica.

If any of you this blog reader, want to contribute, feel free to do so by writing your own experience to me and I'll be happy to post here with or without your name.