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The ad ...
Posted by Dave Bull on February 21, 2012 [Permalink]
I wrote a couple of weeks back about a Help Wanted ad for the local newspaper, and it's finally ready to go:
The ad itself is of course too small to cover all the points I brought up in that previous post, but it covers the main concept, and points them to the URL for further information.
The paper is a weekly, published on Fridays, and the ad is scheduled for the next issue.
Overseas applicants need not apply ... (here in Japan, employers pay commuting expenses of their employees) :-)
Added by: Marc Kahn on February 21, 2012, 12:00 am
Hi Dave,
The dynamics of hiring has always been a mystery to me. What process does one use to assure that he will choose the "right" person for the job?
Let's say, for the sake of discussion, that you receive a bunch of responses to this ad. At first, you will need to use some kind of a process to identify the likely candidates, worthy of further consideration. After that, you'll need to narrow the selection down until you find the best fit.
How will you approach this project? What are the criteria for the "first cut"? How can you assure that the person you hire for a particular job will have an optimal chance of success at that job?
I don't know about you, but I find those questions to be quite daunting. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts.
Marc
Added by: Dave on February 21, 2012, 12:10 am
I have experience. Back at the music store, when for the last five years of my stay there I was the general manager, hiring (and firing) was my remit. My track record?
Awful.
On paper, they are all good. In the interviews, they are (nearly) all OK. You make the selection as carefully as possible. But almost inevitably, a couple of months later you find yourself thinking, "What on earth did I see in this idiot?"
So the short answer is, "I dunno!"
I'm kind of hoping that we'll get a bunch of replies. I kept my phone number out of the ad, and specified that they should contact us through our website. If we get (say) a dozen or so, then I'll clear the workroom out for a day (like we did for the Xmas party), set a date/time, and send an email inviting them all to the event. I'll give a presentation covering three areas:
- what I've done over the past 20+ years
- Mokuhankan (the concept) and where we are at present
- where I want Mokuhankan to be in XX years.
I'll then attempt to get some kind of general discussion going, trying to get their thoughts on various aspects of this work, our future prospects, and what ideas they may have for getting there. That might be difficult to get off the ground, but I'm hoping it will give me a lead on who is capable of speaking up and expressing themselves. The ones who will sit in the back and not say anything ... well, goodbye.
Anyway, that's my thinking at present ...
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