Sunday 27 April 2008

Hiring "The Best"?

In my role I am always interested to see how organisations market themselves to prospective job seekers. Amazon is a wash with books dedicated to the subject. Better interviewing techniques, different questioning styles and shiny new assessments to avoid actually talking to a candidate. In all this how can an organisation justifiably say they hire the "Best" candidates? What does "Best" really mean? I'm currently in Calgary and travelled through Chicago to get here, one only has to walk down a busy street to see how many shops are serving "THE BEST!" coffee, and it must be true...they've got the neon signs to prove it!

If we can all see the holes in that argument as soon as it's made why then do we attach values to prospective employers? There are no "Best" employers, it is of course an opinion, a mediated position arrived at somewhere between the expectations of candidates and the advertising of employers. If all major technology employers are to be believed they all employ the top 2% of graduates of global graduating classes. That 2% must be stretched a little far!

"The Best" place to work is the place that suits you. A place where your motivations are understood and catered for. If you want to work 20 hours a day, risk not seeing your children until their 18th birthdays and work your way up to be "Vice-President of *insert something about architect here*" there will be hundreds of companies happy to take you on! Likewise if you'd prefer to work less time, take the option of flexible working and not be penalised for it, there are companies out there that are right for you too. "The Best" is every case is what's right for you, you can't really make a fair judgement call on any organisation until you've worked there yourself, and a great place to start is by thinking about your own motivations. What's right for you? What concessions can you make and what in your work/life balance in non-negotiable? If an employer thinks you're their perfect person there are ways to make things work out for both parties.

Personally, I like to think I've hired people for who ThoughtWorks was the right choice. They give up certain things - for some it's that hefty amount of travel - to work in an organisation that they feel works for them too. Their colleagues share the same passions, they appreciate similar things and share common goals. Before this trails off into advertising territory I'll end and save the advertising for later...

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