Friday, October 7, 2016

IT Aristocracy to guillotine! How to treat IT head hunters?

Recently JUG in Warsaw published a newsletter containing quite an unusual link to an article created by a professional IT recruiter. The author is asking a very interesting question - why is she and her colleagues regulary offended by potential candidates, who are belonging to group of best educated engineers, holding lucrative position on job market. Top rated IT people. The "IT Aristocracy". I was touched. So I decided to appeal, to you readers.

Dear programmers!

I know you get 100 calls from desperate head hunters each week. I am aware, they are disturbing our flow of mind and taking us from zone away so we need to spend counterproductively next half hour to recover. But, hey, isn't that you who posted your phone/email on linkedin and N other jobboards along with shiny CV full of keywords? Is it more or less ridiculous than guys posting their ID into facebook? Have you expected that none of invited to your professional/social network recruiters ever call you? They may of course have sometimes be prepared to talk to you less than expected. Not knowing all that 3,4 letters acronyms and not knowing technology stack. That's right. They have no clue. That is why YOU are doing the job worth 6x more that what people you talk to by phone earn. They just have not dedicated half of their lives to profound depths of technological magic.
Nothing bad will happen also when we expose unprofessional behavior on the other side and talk about problems in our two-way communication. I am also aware not everyone is able to do it in such an elegant form as Rafal did.
Sometimes all of us have bad day, or just have been contacted by company which fired them 3 years ago. I can understand that each of us could behave less professionally in some conditions. Me too. I am sure that soft-skilled recruiters are also able to understand and forgive that.
But primitive, vulgar offence is not "unprofessional behavior"! That is not acceptable! Das ist unglaubich!!! That kind of freaks must be stigmatized!
Otherwise we, as the "computer people" will receive back from our society just hatred for being vulgar jerks. Just imagine that could have happened just before this or next government is run out of (our...) money and seeks for new taxpayers. Who will be the most unpopular group in our society? Whose heads will that revolution demand? Are you ready for fiscal guillotine?
One day, sooner or later, you will be looking forward to change your job. One day you will wish the head hunters to call you, and treat you not like just one more CV from million. That people are really able to help you get where you want. Unless you're a dick.
TL;DR If you are frustrated buy the rubber duck! Never offend head hunters.