IT Manager's Handbook: Getting Your New Job Done (25 page)

Business-Related Degrees

If their degree is in a business-related discipline, it may indicate that they've been exposed to many ideas and concepts that they'll encounter to various extents within IT. This exposure may be valuable for someone who does systems analysis or is involved with management. It can also be valuable to have a person with these skills on your staff; they can serve as a kind of liaison or translator to the Sales and Marketing departments.

Hard Sciences-Related Degrees

If the candidate's degree is in one of the hard sciences (physics, mathematics, chemistry, e.g.), it may show that they have a stronger ability for logical and analytical thinking. Candidates from these fields may also have greater focus on detail, documentation, procedure, etc. Start with this assumption and verify it with further questioning.

Soft Sciences-Related Degrees

If the person has a degree in one of the social sciences (psychology, sociology, e.g.), they may have greater skills in user-oriented activities (support, training, process improvement, user interface design, etc.). They may have a greater ability to see things from a different perspective and not be limited by the idea of “only one right answer.” Start with this assumption and verify it with further questioning.

Technical Courses

Many candidates now list on their résumé individual technical courses they have taken, even if they haven't received any certification. If the skill in question is one you are interested in, ask about the courses, how far into the course had the candidate gone, and why did he stop?

Checking References

References are too often overlooked. Some employers ask for them (especially on the application) but never check them. Some employers check them after the candidate starts, and some check them before the offer is made. Most HR departments handle the reference-checking aspects of hiring; confirm with your HR department to see how your company handles this process.

There are two types of references to check: background checks and professional references.

Background Checks

This is the validation of the accuracy of what the candidate says on the application or résumé. This usually includes contacting schools to see if the person did attend and received the degrees and certifications he claims. This is also for confirming his past employment to see if he did indeed work at the companies he claims for the time frames he claims. The background check may also include a review for any criminal record.

Doing background checks can be tedious and time-consuming, and many companies outsource it to firms experienced at doing it. Some organizations contacted for this information may first ask for authorization from the individual (such authorization is usually included in the fine print of many employment applications). Some organizations (particularly former employers) may only give out limited information. They will typically confirm the dates of employment, but won't provide title, salary, or any comment (good or bad) about their performance.

Professional References

This is the opportunity to speak to individuals that the candidate has worked for and with to get some more insight into the candidate. It's quite common to ask for three references. If the candidate can't provide them, an immediate red flag should go up.

You should assume that any references the candidate gives you will only have positive things to say—he'd be crazy to put you in touch with people who thought otherwise about him. It's for this reason that some people place little value in calling these references or simply think of it as clerical work that HR can do.

However, there is still some value to be gained by making these calls, and making them yourself. While you're unlikely to hear anything negative about the candidate, you should ask open-ended questions to see what the references say about the candidate. Are they using similar adjectives, describing the same traits and characteristics? Does the information provided by the references match what the candidate said? Some questions you can ask include:

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“When, and for how long, did you work with John?”

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“What was his role?”

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“How would you describe him as a worker?”

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“Why did he leave your company?”

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“What types of work does he enjoy?”

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“What types of work does he excel at?”

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“How would you describe his relationships with coworkers and his manager?”

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“What types of work does he enjoy least?”

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“Is there anything else you'd like to tell me about him?”

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“Would you want to work with him again?”

With luck, the references will give you feedback that matches your own perception of the candidate (and validate what he's told you and put on his résumé). If there is a disconnect, you have to try to gauge how big a gap there is and what that might mean.

It is also becoming increasingly popular to include an Internet search when checking the references of a candidate. This may be something that the hiring manager or HR does somewhat informally or may be a specified part of the process when checking references. Very often the results may give some insight into the candidate's personality. Trade journals are filled with stories of hiring managers who found something offensive about the candidate when doing an online search or learned enough to determine that the candidate may not be a good fit with the culture of the organization.

Hiring managers have even made decisions by what they can assess about the candidate's judgment by what they've found on the Internet. For example, if a candidate has pictures of himself passed-out drunk on his Facebook page, the hiring manager may wonder about the professionalism and judgment of the candidate in keeping those pictures online (especially during a job search) and what that may say about the candidate's professionalism and behavior in the workplace. Much more problematic are hiring managers who may consider factors unrelated to job performance (e.g., political views) about a candidate that they find on the Internet.

Common Hiring Mistakes

At some time or another you'll probably discover that you misjudged a candidate. You may discover that someone you thought would be fine doing program maintenance is a stellar performer and has great potential or you may find that the candidate you thought was ideal turns out to be a dud. Hopefully, your errors in judgment will be more of the former than the latter. To avoid out-and-out mistakes, be on the lookout for:

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A poorly defined position.
If you don't describe the position accurately (the good and the bad), you may end up getting bad résumés and selecting a candidate who doesn't fit.

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Hiring for the wrong reasons.
Because you dislike the entire hiring process, you only meet with two people and pick one quickly.

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Not getting enough input.
As suggested earlier, it's a good idea to have other people meet with strong candidates. Every interviewer has a different approach and perspective and asks different questions. It's entirely possible that someone else may notice something that you didn't.

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Talking too much (or too little) during a job interview.
The best interviews occur when both the candidate and the interviewer have a chance to learn about each other. If one party does all the talking, there will be a large information gap when it is over.

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No reference checks.
Not every company does these (because the responses are often so rote or because they add time to the hiring process). Many companies are now outsourcing this function, so it might be worthwhile to alert your candidate to the fact that their references will be receiving a call.

Offering the Correct Salary for an IT Position

When you start to recruit for an opening, you should have a salary range in mind. This range can come from several key sources of salary data:

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The HR department of your company

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Recruiters

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Web and computer magazine salary surveys (e.g., salary.com, payscale.com, wageweb.com, and salaryexpert.com)

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Other individuals in your company doing similar work

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Salary levels that you're seeing from candidates who apply

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Salary of the previous individual in that job

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Salaries of the staff members, if any, who report to this position

Before Making the Offer

Make sure that HR and whichever other upper management individual(s) need to approve the final offer are in agreement on the specified range. you'll know if your range is too low based on the response you get to your recruiting efforts. If only a handful of people apply, you're probably offering too little. Although it is not uncommon for someone to change jobs for the same salary, most people expect at least a 10 percent increase. This increase compensates them for the risk that is inherent whenever someone changes a job, but it also entices them to take your job. Nonetheless, you can't offer more than you, or your company, can afford to pay. And you're probably not the only person who decides that figure. If the last individual in the position was a poor performer, that might be justification to convince yourself, HR, and the powers-that-be that you need to offer more money to attract better talent. An extended search that doesn't find any reasonable candidates can also be a justification for reviewing the salary range.

Using Agencies

Be careful when you share the salary range with any agencies you use. Because their commission is based on the annual salary, they have a vested interest in placing someone at the highest possible salary. It makes their job easier to find good candidates if the salary you are offering is competitive. If the recruiter winces when you tell her the approved salary range, don't take it too personally—she's just doing her job.

Because the agent's commission is based on the salary of the person you hire, they may be tempted to inflate the salary of the candidates they send you. As a check, ask the candidates themselves about their salary. The written application that the candidates fill out (with the usual legalese about misinformation being grounds for immediate dismissal) can also help you get a true sense of what their current compensation is.

Other Ideas besides More Money

Invariably, the candidate you like the most will be the one that stretches the envelope of your salary range. If you don't think you'll be able to attract this person with your salary offer, there are a few things you can try.

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Consider promising a salary review (not a guaranteed increase, but a review) six months after the person starts. Don't commit to a specific increase amount (after all, the candidate may not work out or the company may change its salary ceiling). But the chance of an increase in six months may be just what you need to attract the person. (Make sure to get approval from HR/management before you promise anything.)

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Make the position and environment sound as exciting and attractive as possible. Naturally, remain truthful about it. Making something exciting doesn't mean lying about it. You want the person to be as motivated to take the job as you are in offering it to him; that will make finding a middle ground much easier.

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Get the candidate to look at the entire package. Today's competitive IT environment has spawned a wide range of noncash incentives that can be far more lucrative than “mere money.” Emphasize those to the candidate. Does the position have bonus potential? Make sure the candidate includes that figure in her consideration. Does your company offer a stock purchase plan? A profit-sharing plan? A matching 401(k) plan?

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Many workers today are enticed by work-style options that match their lifestyles. Working from home, telecommuting, and flextime are all options that can be very important to some candidates. (Sometimes it can be a personality issue—many programmers are not “morning people,” for example—but often it can be a family issue. People with small children or elder-care responsibilities have enormous time management challenges and respond favorably to companies that offer them options in this regard.) Many IT jobs are—although many are not—suited to alternative work arrangements.

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Also, make sure that the candidate is fully aware of your company's benefits programs; health and insurance benefits can have very important positive tax benefits. Stock options should also be clearly specified if you are making them part of your offer. Originally a benefit only for the upper reaches of a corporation, stock options have now become a part of many workers’ pay plans throughout the ranks of an organization. Companies are offering employees a more direct participation in the profits of the organization as a whole. Is it a good working environment, with little demands for overtime and being on-call? If so, it could be a key selling point. If there is an on-site gym, make sure to mention that.

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Don't forget to talk about vacation time. With today's society, particularly in the IT world, it sometimes feels like the workday never ends. It's not uncommon for people to leave the office, go home for dinner and time with the family, and then log on to the office to answer e-mails and do more work. Many people read e-mail and do work 7 days a week, regardless of whether they are “at work” or not. If the position you're hiring for doesn't require much off-hours attention or allows for some working at home or if your company has specific policies or practices in place to minimize overwork, be sure you mention that as part of the overall package—they can be very attractive to individuals. (An animator at a studio was told that employees could only work until 6  PM—after that the boss turned off all the lights. In the interview process he did not believe this claim, but soon experienced it firsthand (
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).)