Hiring Geeks That Fit
Do you want to hire great people? Not sure how? Read this book.
If you want your project and organization to succeed, you need great people. These people will adapt to what comes their way, to think. They will solve problems without you having to tell them how.
Knowledge workers–your geeks–are different from skill-based staff. So, you should hire them differently. You need to analyze your situation, determine what kinds of problems you have, and then you can hire the right kinds of people.
Cultural fit is critical. Hiring knowledge workers forces you to recognize and match culture; non-technical qualities, preferences and skills; and finally, technical skills. Knowledge workers adapt their knowledge to your specific situation, their context. These technical people are not just the sum of their technical knowledge; they are the sum of both what they know and how they apply that knowledge to the product.
As a result, one developer, tester, or technical manager is not interchangeable with another. This makes hiring technical people one of the most critical and difficult processes a technical manager can undertake.
Hiring Geeks That Fit takes the guesswork out of hiring and reduces the risk of costly hiring mistakes. With the aid of stories, tips, step-by-step descriptions and detailed examples, you’ll learn how to
- Develop a hiring strategy so you know how to solve your problem
- Analyze the job, so the job description and ad falls out of the analysis
- Source candidates, updated to use LinkedIn and Twitter
- Develop ads
- Review résumés quickly to determine Yes, No, or Maybe candidates
- Develop Behavior-description questions and auditions
- Create phone-screens that help you know who to bring in for an in-person interview
- Make the most of an in-person interview
- Check references
- Extend an offer that will attract a win-win acceptance or tender a gentle-but-decisive rejection
- How to create a great first day
- Learn how to create a buddy system
- What to do if you can’t find someone
You, your team, and your organization will live with the long-term consequences of your hiring decision. Invest the time for you and your team in how to hire and interview will pay off fast.
Buy this book on leanpub and decide how much you pay!
You can obtain a sample on leanpub with the preface and the entire first chapter, which discusses culture and your hiring strategy. And all the templates are in the book and here. If you are thinking of hiring anyone, do yourself a favor and buy this book. You won’t be sorry.
You can also buy this book on Amazon
And, if you are accustomed to buying my books on the Pragmatic Bookshelf, you can do that with this book. I am thrilled to announce that the Prags are carrying this book in their bookstore. As they say, “This book was written and produced entirely by the author. We are proud to be distributing it.” Thank you!
