We talk a lot in agile about generalizing specialists. Scott Ambler has a terrific essay on what a generalizing specialist is: Has one or more technical specialties… Has at least a general knowledge of software development. Has at least a general knowledge of the business domain in which they work. Actively seeks to gain new […]
I spent the day consulting with a client who might sound just like you. He’s a senior manager in a small company. He’s overworked, trying to perform too many roles by himself. Here’s a quick summary of his roles: The CTO Scrum Master for as many as three teams (!) The tool master (he chose
I just finished Why Good People Can’t Get Jobs, by Peter Capelli. It’s a terrific read, all about the reasons hiring managers and companies have trouble finding people, and why job seekers have trouble getting in the door. It’s related to John Sumser’s series, the Hiring Paradox. I’ve never believed that there is a war
Have you read The STEM Crisis Is a Myth? It’s a fascinating article. Bob actually has data, as opposed to my anecdotal evidence, now and dating back to my article from 2001, Crisis? What Crisis? A Contrarian Perspective. (For those of you who don’t know the four letter acronym, STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and
I have a post, What’s the Culture on Your Project? that discusses the project issues of the Romney campaign. But there is a deeper issue. On a post that no longer exists there was an insightful comment from someone named redcal: who you hire to do the job DEFINES how well you do your job
If you read this blog or my Manage Your Job Search book, you know I’m a big fan of networking with loose connections. Those referrals are more likely to land you a job or help you find a candidate than asking the same people you already know. That’s why recruiters are so successful. They keep
If you’re a candidate and you are looking for a job, it can be difficult to deconstruct a job ad, especially if it’s a laundry list of technical tools. A lot of hiring managers use a form of shorthand to identify their needs. Here are some common themes that might be their shorthand: What the
I received a call from a recruiter-colleague yesterday, bemoaning a hiring manager who was waiting for the “perfect” candidate. “I’ve sent her 5 great candidates, but none of them are perfect. Doesn’t she have to fill this position?” Well, maybe not right away. And, maybe it’s not just technical skills that make a candidate a
I recently met a lead whose business card read “Lead Phoenix Developer.” I asked what that meant, and he explained that he was a technical lead for an project code-named Phoenix. His business card could have read “Lead Developer” or “Technical Lead” and made much more sense. This almost happened to me today. I’m the
I spoke with a couple of recruiters this week. They’ve been specializing in finding test people for the last 10-15 years. (I used one of them 15 years ago, the last time I was hiring testers.) They both asked a question like this, “With all this Agile stuff, where am I going to find the