Ask HN: Are tech companies asking too much of their candidates? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Are tech companies asking too much of their candidates?

10 pointswtvp4 comments

I see many job posts that appear to require candidates to have both broad and deep knowledge of the entire stack.

With related experience using a number of competing[1] services and technologies.

Maybe individual specializations have grown to encompass much more than I realized. Particularly in distributed systems and devops, where there's a lot of options and activity.

I'm sorry I don't have any examples, I'll try to add some when I return home. Wanted to get some unbiased opinions first.

[1] I'm not sure how anyone could gain professional experience with a number of competing services unless their company is constantly changing stacks or the employee leaves to other teams.

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There's something big about hiring that I never realized until I started doing it: most hiring managers never get trained in hiring and don't put much thought into it. Job descriptions often go through several layers, with a line manager, a director/VP/CTO, and HR all making modifications. By the end it's often a franken-document that doesn't reflect what any one person is looking for.

My advice is to understand what the company actually uses and values when deciding if it's a good fit. For example, let's say you're a Java programmer who sees an awesome job description that asks for both Java + Scala, but you know the team/company primarily uses Java. What you can do is spend a few hours studying up on Scala and playing around with it. Then, on your resume, put down "proficient in Java, some experience with Scala". That last part gets you past the HR screen. If you're asked about Scala you can say something like "oh yeah I've been playing around with it, I'm really looking forward to getting more into it!" You'll get grilled on Java and get a free pass on Scala. Also, very important: it's not a lie (please don't lie on your resume, it's the easiest way to get rejected when you're actually a good fit).

Yes they are.

This is hard stuff now. It requires passion, devotion and constant work. Devops is extreme in that - requires master of all, jack of nothing personality (something I personally support as a way of personal growth, it broadens your horrizons and doesn't keep you locked in).

This is not specific to IT industry alone TBH. I see "amazing" specs for the jobs in various domains, even to extent where it simply isn't possible to master that diverse set of skills to the level that is required. Seeing something unrealistic such as that is a marker for me not to get involved with such company.

Keep in mind, some companies just put in some buzzwords and don't really expect anyone to know specific ones but use them in hope to attract geeks (you know clojure? great, you are probably above average just by that fact alone so if somebody comes with that knowledge you probably have an instant hit).

It is mostly tinderisation coupled with self-aggrandizing delusion: a lot of businesses may just do with above average candidates, of which there is a plenty almost everywhere.

They can ask for whatever they want, but they are going to choose from the candidates they get, so your question is, for the most part, moot.

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