Technical Hiring and Cultural Fit
blog.fogcreek.com
blog.fogcreek.com
Is this culture the one you're going to need in the future?
What if you have a need, and there's nobody that fits your culture? If you're understaffed, is it really better to keep asking your staff to work extra while you satisfy the culture requirement, even if it's just while someone ramps up?
Lastly, "culture" seems to be another way of saying "we don't really know what works, so we just look for people we personally like".
I've worked with many people I didn't like, or even got along with (I'm sure others could say the same of me). Focusing on tasks and goals, communicating regularly, and having decent work habits went very far.
Has anyone actually found a use for cultural fit? I mean its not like they help weed out jerks. If someone is a jerk they'll either be a jerk in all interviews or be on their best behavior until they're hired.
What should we be looking for in a cultural fit interview that isn't just "looks like us, works like us plays like us"?
When talking about software, I'd refer to a company's development culture. What does the team value in engineers? What are attitudes towards things like testing, shipping code, etc.?
I'd be interested to see some of the job ads. Do you have any links?
Obviously, if there's no way to anonymize it without completely changing it, don't.
This never sits right with me. Diversity for the sake of diversity.
> Once you’ve learned one or two computer languages, you can learn any computer language.
It helps but going from one disparate stack to another can be troublesome for many I've worked with. Almost a complete non-starter, ie going from .NET + sql server to python + django + web services or from Java + hibernate to nodejs + angularjs.
What I've found difficult to work with is people that think that anything they do has "magical" properties. I.E., they don't actually understand at least one abstraction level. That also boils down to time(and willingness, and a proper mentor). But it is a different order of magnitude, depending on what is missing.
Learning new programming languages is easy (except Haskell, attempt no landing there) and is also a matter of time. Learning the ecosystem that goes with it takes longer (again, time). Learning how to code idiomatically requires experience (time once more, but only if actively programming).
But we must acknowledge the amount of time that people spend in jobs now. If it takes a year to gain mastery and people leave after 2, like you said, there's just not enough time for people to learn from scratch.
Diversity in a team can be a feature that is valuable in and of itself. Different backgrounds, ways of thinking, approaches to problems, life experiences, etc.
There is something to be said for trying to prevent (or break up) a monoculture. Monocultural companies are slow and rigid, and ultimately liable to lose perspective.
Rather than having to spend money on extremely bs team-building exercises to get your employees to not hate coming to work, just hire a team of balanced sexes. A bit of flirting, imagined sexual tension, and does-she-like-me-what-do-i-feel-about-him goes a long way to creating an atmosphere where employees don't burn out. (Just make sure to hire non-toxic people and avoid the all-guys-are-rapists / all-girls-are-sluts ideological extremists)
The tech sector has a long way to go.
This is the entire debate of affirmative action, and people come down on both sides for valid and unquantifiable reasons.
Another way to think about it is to recognize that you have an unconscious bias for people that look and think like you do. A big problem with tech geeks is that see themselves as being unbiased and objective in all things (eg. meritocracy, best argument wins, etc), and so ironically they are more susceptible to rationalizing their own biases. So acknowledge you're not omniscient, recognize the bias, and consciously counteract it by giving people who are different for whatever the benefit of the doubt. I have often profited dramatically from hearing someone out who at first seemed to hold crazy untenable ideas.
I've had a hand in hiring some of the above. I do acknowledge I have a bias towards those who can express themselves well in english but accents are welcome.
You want to work with them because they are competent and results-oriented? Good.
You want to work with them because they are eager and capable? Good.
You want to work with them because they look kind of like you and like the same beers you do? Nope.
Short of always requiring a detailed reason why a candidate was passed over, there will always be the possibility to fudge an illegal act of discrimination to look like a legal one (and even a detailed explanation requirement wouldn't fully fix the problem).
> I think the biggest thing is to acknowledge that we are all human and we like people ...
This sentence was off to such a good start!
It has been hard for me to have any strong opinions about hiring. Many people disproved all previous assumptions. Skills do matter, some people are much better than others. Some people are good to talk to and are comforting to be around but they don't get the job done. They can use their soft skills to convince you why something was impossible to do.
Problem solving skills, learning skills, risk taking behavior, passion for something, tenacity, optimism etc are also very important in judging a candidate for a technical role.
Why can't the jerks learn to get along with people? Why must we, collectively, bend over backwards to put up with their bullshit?
Culture misfits, sure - some people just aren't super personable, but are still good at their job. But being a jerk is a choice, and one that not many people are willing to put up with.
In some cases, wouldn't the answer be mental health issues (eg. autism)?
So, I don't think what happened at Mozilla is a good example of the whole "guy in the corner" thing.
Does the CEO of Mozilla perform any type of leadership role? I also don't know, as I've never worked there or been there while others were working.
That is pathetic. Do I agree with his views? No. Who cares. He's the creator of the Javascript language. He made a small donation.