For as long as I can remember, there’s been a disconnect between kinds of stuff people ask in software engineering interviews and the day-to-day work that software engineers do. As a recruiter and a former engineer, this disconnect is particularly salient because when I evaluate candidates I have to ask myself two separate questions: Will […]
How long should my resume be?
Disclaimer: I do eng hiring for startups so my advice will be based on startup experience. Big, established organizations may do things differently. I would try to keep your resume as concise as possible without sacrificing readability. Sometimes, this means you will go over one page, especially if you’ve been working for a few years. […]
What are the characteristics of great engineering recruiters?
A great technical recruiter should be able to do 2 things: (1) present engineers with companies that fit their criteria and (2) present companies with engineers that meet their standards and are likely to accept an offer, should one be made. Before I come up with a list of bullet points (though you can skip […]
What is a better recruiting strategy for small/med teams: casting a wide net or targeted?
This question has a tacit assumption, namely that these two methods, while different, are somewhat interchangeable. I would argue that they are not. The situations in which each method will be most successful are different, as are the resources you would need to execute on each of these methods. In addition to finding the best […]
In what situations should your resume include an objective at the top?
In my experience, most objectives are complete fluff with no content. I don’t care if you want a challenging position where your sharp analytical skills and programming ability can contribute to the vision of the organization. I just threw up in my mouth a little bit while I wrote that. That said, I can think of […]