April 24, 2009 at 12:17 pm
I have a DBA opening, and possibly another next quarter, and I want to post it on a few places.
I'd like to get the ad in front of the right people, but I would like to limit unqualified responses. Years ago, I posted a very specific dev job on Monster, and well over 1,000 resumes hit my inbox. Over 80% of those folks were not even moderately qualified, or apparently even interested, as many of the qualified resumes weren't targeted for the position I was offering. I replied to less than 30 people. It was the most exhausting and depressing month I had in over three years at that company.
If nothing else, I sure learned how to actually write a resume to get someone's attention... with that many flying in, your resume had less then three seconds to keep me from deleting it.
With the economy sliding, I know there are plenty of folks out there looking, either from being let go, worrying that they soon may be, suffering from salary crunch, or overworked due to shrinking staff. If I'm gonna get 1,000 resumes, I'd like at least half of them to be in the ballpark.
I looked at the SQLJobs feature here on SSC, but it looks sparsely populated. (Mods, do have click-through numbers you'd be willing to share?)
So, other than that, where do you look for SQL DBA jobs?
(note: please don't PM me about the position.)
Eddie Wuerch
MCM: SQL
April 24, 2009 at 12:21 pm
I got my current DBA job through Monster.
If you get too many resumes, I'd say hire a temp, or get someone's teenage kid to come in for minimum wage, and have them go through with some simple criteria, so you don't have to do the machette work yourself, you just have to use the lawn mower. (I hope that's not too obscure a metaphore!)
- Gus "GSquared", RSVP, OODA, MAP, NMVP, FAQ, SAT, SQL, DNA, RNA, UOI, IOU, AM, PM, AD, BC, BCE, USA, UN, CF, ROFL, LOL, ETC
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"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everyone agrees it's old enough to know better." - Anon
April 24, 2009 at 12:30 pm
There's really nothing you can do to get to a wide audience on Dice/monster (where I'd look) and then limit responses. Even going through a recruiter, who charges you 20-30%, doesn't mean you get good candidates. I have lots of horror stories going that route as well.
Here's what I'd suggest. I'd go the networking route. I'd use your network to send the note out to people, saying you are writing a good job description, not an HR grab bag, and you are looking for people. If none of the people you know (old co-workers, user group, etc.) know someone, ask them to ask their networks, leaving out your email. Let them make the decision to recommend someone they know.
Might limit the responses you get, and might get you someone that fits better with your company.
April 24, 2009 at 1:02 pm
In the past I've looked using all the common job sites, but at this point in my career I would use my network to try to a position. Thus I think Steve's suggestion is probably the best starting point. Send the job listing out to your network and ask them to pass it along to anyone they know is looking. One benefit is that the candidates are essentially pre-screened by your network. No one wants to recommend a dud to a friend/associate.
I've seen a few "I know of a position in (insert city,state here), if interested DM me for details" posts pass by on Twitter.
Jack Corbett
Consultant - Straight Path Solutions
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April 24, 2009 at 1:14 pm
It's nice to hear the other side's opinions as I have never been in the hiring position to go through the entire process
The numbers posted (1000 resumes, 30% not even close, etc...) is shocking to hear. Why would people bother
I'd recommend Dice.com, Monster is a bit hit-and-miss IMO
But networking is a great way to start, I got the current DBA job via networking (and learned that it took my company a while to find a decent candidate, until they found ME ^_^)
April 24, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Being interested in about 30 people out of 1,000 resumes sounds about right. I got about 100 resumes from headhunters the last time we were hiring, and I actually interviewed 3.
The biggest pain was headhunters constantly calling to ask if I was interested in the resume they sent me 5 minutes ago or 3 weeks ago. My stock answer was, "When I'm interested in someone, I'll call you."
There's no way around the pain. If you want good people, you have to put the effort into finding them.
April 24, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Why not just post it on the Jobs forum on SQLServerCentral.com???? At least that will narrow it down to only a million people who actually think they know what they're doing. 😛
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
April 27, 2009 at 3:17 pm
The jobs forum redirects to the job placement thing on the left side.
I'm tempted to whack that since there isn't a lot of traffic.
Opinions?
I could send you some numbers Eddie, but they're not great. And I don't want to try and figure out where I need to go to get them. The person that worked that deal is gone, and I'm not sure who can figure it out.
April 28, 2009 at 7:11 am
I'm a developer, not a DBA. I used to use Monster, almost exclusively.
Nowadays, I like LinkedIn. This shows you if you have any connections to someone already working there, which is useful information if you are the recruiter or the one looking to be hired. I have also started looking at Craigslist. The postings there tend to be more varied and flexible. From an employer's point of view, Craigslist is free so you would have nothing to lose, monetarily wise.
May 11, 2009 at 1:09 am
You could try posting to some of the LinkedIn groups like SQL Server Professionals or PASS. It's definitely a targeted audience. Of course, it's also a place where recruiters lurk hoping to catch their next BMW payment. It's a tough one, for sure. What about trolling the local SQL user group or local PASS chapter? No guarantees there, either.
If you want to pre-screen, maybe take a look at something like Brainbench. It will cost you some money but it might save you a boatload of time. Good luck!
James Stover, McDBA
May 11, 2009 at 3:05 am
Serendipity.
The recruiter's best friend has just been launched ...
May 11, 2009 at 6:09 am
nicholasblethyn (5/11/2009)
The recruiter's best friend has just been launched ...
Heh... if the automatch requirements that people end up putting into the system are anything like the job requirements I've seen posted in other places, one of two things will happen... people will lie about their skills just like they do on a resume or only God will be qualified to meet the requirements.
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
May 11, 2009 at 7:41 am
James Stover (5/11/2009)
If you want to pre-screen, maybe take a look at something like Brainbench.
What a joke. I had a Brainbench "exam" prior to my current gig. My youngest daughter (14) could've passed the exam and qualified for my current position. Could should do the work I do? - No. Could her test results alone have gotten her the job? Yes. A lot to be said for an actual interview, whether by phone or face-to-face. We are losing touch with actual human interaction. 😉
-- You can't be late until you show up.
May 11, 2009 at 8:55 am
I think the problem with things like BrainBench is that they allow guesses. No explanation required as a follow up. If everyone treated it seriously as a way to gauge their skills it would work, but too many people want the credit without doing the work and then the system falls down.
This is a place that PASS could help out, provide ratings of someone's skills.
May 11, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Analysis Paralysis. You assume that you have to go through 1000 resume. Statistically you dont, select 100 top ones and another 30 over the next 900 at random. Invariably you will have a reasonable sample set. The issue is not fairness, you set your criteria on how you select. First in first to have a chance. This is life.
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