Quote:
Original post by d000hg
It's bad if you turn up and expect an interview. Turning up to drop off your CV and printed CV and asking if anyone has a couple of minutes, you're happy to wait but only if it's not inconvenient isn't bad.
That sky-writing thing, that sounds cool. Or hacking into their network and spiking it with a worm which makes popups saying "Hire <my name>"...
~sigh~
There are exactly two things that people want to know before hiring somebody:
1. Can they do the job well?
2. Will they fit in with our culture?
Everything they look at fits within those two questions.
Let's review the comments, with that in perspective.
>> Turning up in person to drop off your CV
Probably Bad.
You are saying "I don't follow the rules and I will disrupt your workplace."
Reason: There is an established procedure. You are disregarding the normal flow, creating extra work and a disturbance. Even McDonald's has online job applications. A fast food joint or janitor job might need to apply in person but software developers are expected to be smart enough to read and follow instructions.
The receptionist will most likely tell you to go to their web site and follow their application instructions. If you insist on giving the paper they may take it, likely the secretary will probably put it on the HR person's desk and it will get lost or thrown out.
If it is a micro-business they are very unlikely to hire "unknowns" on an intern basis, but since they have fewer established rules they might be slightly less offended by the breach in protocol.
>> asking if anyone has a couple of minutes, you're happy to wait but only if it's not inconvenient
Very bad, for the same reasons. You are saying "I don't play by the rules and I will disrupt the culture."
Reasons: You are circumventing both established procedure and social norms. The hiring process is one of elimination, not selection. You are demonstrating ignorance of a basic social principle, and flaunting your ignorance by making demands of other people's time.
How do you feel when somebody shows up on your doorstep saying "Hire me!"? Or maybe when they show up saying "I'm selling vacuums, let me dump some dirt on your carpet and vacuum it up!"? Or when they say "I'm selling magazine subscriptions in order to fund my trip to the Alps, will you look over the list?"
This is exactly what you are doing by begging for an interview without an appointment.
>> That sky-writing thing, that sounds cool.
Only cool if you are looking for something in marketing or public relations, AND if that type of attitude fits the corporate culture.
You will be answering the second question, "will they fit in?", but it is very risky to put yourself on the line unless you know for sure that you are answering it correctly.
Reason: When trying to get a job, you should be demonstrating that you can do the job well and will fit in with the culture. If you are careful, a stunt like that can show that you fit in (most likely it won't), but it won't show that you can do the job well.
>> Or hacking into their network and spiking it with a worm which makes popups saying "Hire <my name>"...
That is bad on so many levels.
You are saying "I'm willing to break the law", and "I don't care about company security", and "I have no respect for coworkers", and "I'm this annoying even before I'm hired, imagine how much more annoying I can be if I actually get to work here."
A person who did that is screaming "I don't fit in to any corporate environment", and
may even face criminal charges for the act. You will leave an impression -- and they will be very glad they didn't hire you.
Since a few people seem to not understand the process, I'll write it out:
1 Employees discuss that they have a need.
2 Boss complains about the budget
3 Boss eventually gets funding for another person.
4 Employees usually mention their friends, past coworkers, and acquaintances who would be a good fit.
These people are contacted directly. This is where most people are hired, and why you should use social networking to find a job. Also,
these people are normally given extra leniency when it comes to the two hiring questions. It is assumed that they know the job and will fit in because they were suggested from insiders.
5 If known people are not available, boss uses corporate method of finding workers.
6 HR person finds about about need for worker.
7 HR person announces a job internally if the company is large enough.
8 Existing workers are given a chance to transfer.
These people are given a little extra leniency with regard to the two questions, since it is usually cheaper for the company to retrain an existing worker.
9 HR person reviews their files for matches, gives them to boss for review.
10 If there is a perfect match, boss invites candidates for interview.
11 If position is not filled, HR begins searching for people.
12 HR places ads in the appropriate places
13 HR person waits a few weeks and collects applications
14 HR screens applications for pure junk, sends the rest to boss
15 Boss screens applications for 'good' people
16 Boss and one or two others look for best applications of those that remain
17 Candidates invited for interviews
18 Boss and others remove candidates from pool, hopefully somebody is left
19 Additional interviews may be required if there are still too many good people in the pool.
20 When everybody else has been eliminated from the pool, the remaining person is hired.
If you really want to get a job, re-read step 4. That is
by far the shortest path into the industry.
The stunts being discussed are an attempt to skip the first 15 steps, and that is going to leave a very bad impression.
