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May 1
Hire or No Hire

I found some great stuff Joel Spolsky wrote in The Guerilla Guide to Interviewing that I would like all hiring managers to read before their next interview:

The most important rule about interviewing:

Make A Decision

At the conclusion of the interview, you have to be ready to make a sharp decision about the candidate. There are only two possible outcomes to this decision: Hire or No Hire. Turn to your computer and send immediate feedback to the recruiter. The subject line should be the name of the candidate. The first line of the email should be Hire or No Hire. Then you should spend about 2 paragraphs backing up your decision.

There is no other possible answer. Never say, "Hire, but not in my group." This is rude and implies that the candidate is not smart enough to work with you, but maybe he's smart enough for those losers over in that other group. If you find yourself tempted to say "Hire, but not in my group," simply translate that mechanically to "No Hire" and you'll be OK. Even if you have a candidate that would be brilliant at doing 1 particular thing, but wouldn't be very good in another group, that's a No Hire. Things change so often and so rapidly that we need people that can succeed anywhere. If for some reason you find an idiot savant that is really, really, really good at SQL but completely incapable of ever learning any other topic, No Hire. They don't have a future at Fog Creek.

Never say "Maybe, I can't tell." If you can't tell, that means No Hire. It's really easier than you'd think. Can't tell? Just say no! Similarly, if you are on the fence, that means No Hire. Never say, "Well, Hire, I guess, but I'm a little bit concerned about..." That's a No Hire as well.

say "Maybe, I can't tell." If you can't tell, that means . It's really easier than you'd think. Can't tell? Just say no! Similarly, if you are , that means Never say, "Well, Hire, I guess, but I'm a little bit concerned about..." That's a as well.

An important thing to remember about interviewing is this: it is much better to reject a good candidate than to accept a bad candidate. A bad candidate will cost a lot of money and effort and waste other people's time fixing all their bugs. If you have any doubts whatsoever, No Hire.


1 Comments/Trackbacks




» Do You Feel Lucky? Safety First, Please! from GoodRecruits
As a follow-on to my post the other day, Hire or No Hire, talking about managers being ready to make a decision after an interview, this one goes out to the job-seekers out there. Now may be the time to... [Read More]

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