
Tips for recruiting great developers - ArturSoler
http://improvingsoftware.com/2009/09/29/19-tips-for-recruiting-great-developers/
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edw519
20\. Have something cool to work on. Top talent doesn't want to rewrite your
java accounting system (again).

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JohnFx
I feel you on that and actually had it on the list on my draft version of the
post. However, in the final version I decided to limit my tips to things the
manager likely had some control over.

What applications the team is going to work on is definitely a factor for how
attractive a job is, but it really isn't something you can easily change just
to get new people in.

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jimbokun
If you're starting a new company, though, you might actually want to consider
solving a problem that good hackers would find interesting, in order to better
recruit them.

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btilly
Another tip is to read your job ad and ask what a cynical person may read
between the lines. _Particularly_ if there is some standard boilerplate that
the HR process tends to add.

During my last job search I was amazed how many companies had ads that told me
that I didn't want to apply there.

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jbellis
For example?

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estone
Some great tips (especially 14.) many of which we already use when hiring.

I would add 'Introduce the interviewee to the team and try to emulate their
future working environment'.

Talk to the interviewee like you talk to the existing members of your team,
ask them questions that presume they're of the same calibre and attitude. If
someone doesn't seem comfortable with your workspace, communication methods,
and discussing high level technical concepts during an interview that's
typically a sign of a poor fit to your company's culture.

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strlen
So far, the only recurrent pattern I've found is this: the best way to recruit
great engineering talent, is to include great engineering talent on your
founding team.

There _are_ start-ups that begin with marketing/business development folks
creating an idea and hiring others to implement it, but usually these places
aren't technology companies staffed with top talent -- but are rather shops
operating in a niche market, staffed with people who had nowhere else to go
(which isn't always a bad thing: it makes these people much more determined to
succeed).

"Top talent" joining such a company would be in for a disappointment: they'd
find themselves both underutilized (not being able to use their talent and
skill) and yet overworked (with tedious tasks).

(I've underwent this experience myself which had left me rather jaded: I was
no longer at all interested in working for/starting start-ups and advised
others not to as well. Fortunately realizing this "kinds of start-ups"
dichotomy changed my attitude for the better).

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jpwagner

      13. "Ignore your instincts...consciously decide to go harder 
      on the people [you] like and easier on the ones you don’t"
    

that doesn't sound like _ignoring_ your instincts!

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doki_pen
Haha.. quickly followed up buy #14. "Go with your gut".. I could see what he
was trying to say, but there is a problem with 13 and 14.

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JohnFx
Ignore instincts _during the interview_. Trust instincts when you are down to
the _final decision_.

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redcherry
If you have to pick only one, I think #15 should be it.

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rbanffy
I think #4 is also _very_ important.

Here in Brazil, globo.com hired a stellar team, apparently from a couple years
at FISL (kind of OSCON for Latin America)

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megamark16
I found my current job through LinkedIn, and it was definitely a plus to be
able to see the structure of the organization, and what the people that I
would be working with have done in the past.

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nopassrecover
Actually pretty good tips.

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mellery451
amen to #10.

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jroes
1 tip for writing anything on the Internet:

1\. Turn off that annoying snapshots hover-over-link-and-see-a-screenshot
crap.

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earl
127.0.0.1 spa.snap.com

127.0.0.1 snap.com

127.0.0.1 www.snap.com

127.0.0.1 kontera.com

127.0.0.1 kona.kontera.com

127.0.0.1 www.kontera.com

~~~
doki_pen
127.0.0.1 spa.snap.com snap.com www.snap.com kontera.com kona.kontera.com
www.kontera.com

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earl
Also, props for #8: "Don’t expect to pay median salaries for top talent." I've
repeatedly had this conversation with CEOs / hiring managers during the
interview process: you want to pay median / 65th percentile salaries for 90+
percentile employees?

Two years ago I actually told the CEO that he was basically trying to hire a
really smart person who sucked at math, and I wasn't interested. He was a
little shocked, but I was having a hard time wrapping my head around the
company's stated desire to hire great talent while not paying top of the
market salaries...

