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Comment by kozmikyak | Hacker News Reader

It's a bit like the pity I have on people that make phone calls for telemarketers. The position itself is a fiction, designed to maximize placement ("hard sell") at the expense of honesty. Yes, there are people stuck in those jobs. I have pity on the people stuck there. But the position itself is inherently corrupt.

The whole move of hiring away from people with some technical knowledge (enough to even _read_ resumes) towards impersonal, technically uneducated HR departments, out to tech recruiters who often are even worse at keyword searching than the HR departments, has been to the detriment of the job market.

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I completely agree. The industry itself has become more and more corrupt over the years. However, I think it is a case of the acts of a few tarring everyone with the same brush. There are people within the industry who are genuinely well versed and technically minded, and benefit from this. That's what I aspire to be like for however long I'm in this job for. But it's an uphill struggle.

We're salespeople. No one grows up wanting to be a salesperson. I've got a degree in Classical Civilization. I have no idea why I've ended up as a salesperson. But I don't think that should make me a bad person just because I put as much effort as possible into my current job. I'm not looking to completely change the view of the industry, just to show more of a human side to it. Besides, I've built relationships with managers who I now consider friends, and I've made placements with people who have ended up absolutely loving their jobs. There are positives to it, and that's what keeps me going.

However, I think it is a case of the acts of a few tarring everyone with the same brush.

I honestly used to think the exact same thing however I've quickly come to realise that the opposite is true. There are infinitely more shitty recruiters than decent ones but that's not to mean the shitty approach works.

The very fact that you frequent HN is a big plus in your favour. HN was incredibly helpful and supportive of me during my quest to prove all recruiters aren't scum so hopefully if you stick with your job and continue to contribute here, they'll show you the same respect you show them.

I've read your blog and agree wholeheartedly with the points you've made about the industry. I think it's a case of being the underdog if you want to do the job properly. In an ideal world, I'd be recruiting for one of the clients I deal with. That'd be the perfect solution to the problems I have with the job right now. I'd be building my tech knowledge without (I assume) such aggressive targets and the constant barrage of failure (to put a bleak spin on it).

Alternatively, I'll just continue to learn to code until I get a job doing that with wherever I've made a placement. That's been a serious consideration of mine for a while now, but we're looking at another couple of years of working at it, and I don't think I've got it in me to stay in this job for that long!!

I doubt it is the case of the few -- it is much more likely to be the case of the vast, vast majority. If not, you would hear from the good ones far more often.

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