Thursday, October 2, 2014

What the Hell's Wrong with HR Departments, Part II


OK, so I accepted a contract position with an amazing company in Research Triangle Park near Raleigh, NC and turned down a position with the Somewhere University of North Carolina because it was two jobs at an entry-level salary.

This is the second rejection-email I get AFTER I politely told them no,

"The Somewhere University of North Carolina would like to thank you for your application that was submitted for the specific position listed above. We appreciated the opportunity to review your application and were pleased that you were interested in employment with The Somewhere University of North Carolina. The hiring department, however, has selected another candidate whose background more closely matches the requirements of the position.

We welcome the opportunity to consider your application for future employment opportunities that match your education, skills and experience. New positions are posted daily and we encourage you to visit our website at https://sunc.edu. You may also view openings at our job listing board just outside of the Office of Human Resources at 104 Tabacky Lane in Somewhere. Again, thank you for your interest in the University."

Now, a few things come to mind about these letters.
1) The HR people are trying to hide that they're incompetent and are losing candidates because the salary for doing two people's jobs is ridiculously low.
2) They have to fill out a form saying a rejection letter was sent.
3) They live in a fantasy world in which no candidate ever turns them down.
4) A combination of all of the preceding.

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Well I'm Back At It Again Rant


Unfortunately, my most recent position didn't work out and since because Florida's a work-for-hire (aka screw the workers) state. I didn't get any explanation.  Honestly, I'd really like to know what it was with details that I did that warranted being let go.  On a side note, I'm a bit relieved as the company is massively disorganized and middle-school, popular-girl cliquish and I can resume searching for something in a better state (anywhere else).

So, I'm rambling around the job sites again and wanted to list the top things that aggravate me in job searches:

1. Taleo: I hate this system.  It involves entering and reentering the same damned information over and over again,  each Taleo application site takes FOREVER to get through.  Since I'm playing a numbers game also, I need to be able to search, read the job posting as quickly as possible, decide if I'm a fit, customize my cover letter and submit as quickly as possible.  Taleo slows this process down enormously.  I've also never gotten any hits off anything I submitted through Taleo, so I just don't bother applying to any company that uses it.

2. Salary history. Sorry, I'm not giving this out.  My salary negotiations depend on what the job entails, my experience and the location.  I refuse to let a company start negotiations based on a freelance gig I took to pay bills.  Salary.com allows people to search for free on the job title and market.  I am not going to accept an offer at Orlando rates if the position is in an expensive city like San Francisco or New York.

3. Local Candidates Only.  Ok, I get it.  You need someone to start in two weeks and don't want to pay relocation.  Then effing say so in the job posting.  It's very easy, "Local Candidates within 25 miles only!" and  I won't apply or waste my time..  This is a sign of a really lazy HR department.

4. Crappy benefits.  OK, your job posting says your offer competitive benefits but what it really means is there's a $5,000 annual deductible that has to be met first. Don't even bother listing this.

5. 90-day benefits waiting period means cheap bastards.

6. Job seekers know you don't respect us.  You know what?  That works both ways.

7. We are looking for the best salary and benefits.  If you can't provide, we'll continue looking or take the job and continue looking.

8. We know you think we're all disposable "resources".

Well having said that, I back to trying to find a job.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

What the Hell's Wrong with HR Departments?



Now, normally, I just randomly post for new job listings using my standard resume and generic cover letter although I do have a few variations.  Personally, I think it's a load of garbage that you should "tailor" your cover letter/resume for each job.  I think that's evil HR propaganda designed to keep us wasting our time so we have to stay stuck in our current unsatisfying, low-paying jobs.   I have no desire to waste anymore time than is necessary filing out an application since no human being's actually going to read it.  And, if a human being does read it, it will most likely be rejected by some college intern from UCF who has no idea what they're doing. (This suspicion was confirmed recently when I called a person directly who had posted the job and, yes, she was a college intern who barely understood what she was doing.)

I've mostly stuck with applying on LinkedIn and Indeed.com which tend to produce better results than most of the other job sites.  Honestly, I don't even bother with Monster.com anymore.

Even on those sites, I'm frequently redirected to company job sites which seem to get increasingly more bizarre.

Some of you may be aware that I have dual careers paths, as an event producer/director/stage manager and as a senior technical writer.  Although I'm happier doing events, tech writing is more stable, less susceptible to economic tsunamis and affords me the opportunity to actually make dinner plans in advance.

So, I was doing my normal evening routine, watching bad sci-fi on television and responding to LinkedIn job postings in both fields.

Bizarre application #1 was for a tech writing position.  I go through the routine: Yes, I want to apply with my LinkedIn profile.  Then, the site makes me reenter all the same damned information and then upload my resume containing the same information. Then the HR demons want me to answer a series of very specific questions about very specific and obscure software.  So, being a writer, I make up a bunch of stuff and pretend I know what I'm talking about.  But what really gets my goat is that after 30 minutes of refilling and resubmitting the same goddamned information over and over and over again, these questions come at the END of the application rather than at the beginning which would have made me realize that 1) the job posted in LinkedIn made NO MENTION of this skill set and I wouldn't have bothered applying and 2) The company must have an internal candidate because of the very narrow focus of the questions.

Bizarre application #2 was for an event manager position.  I'm happily filling out the same questions, blithely ignoring the requests for my current salary information (none of their damned business since they need to pay based on the work, not on what I currently make) when I get to a section containing approximately 30 questions all based on some variation of the following, which I copied directly from the application

H(1). Has any domestic or foreign court:

- in the past ten years, enjoined you in connection with any investment-related activity?
- ever found that you were involved in a violation of investment-related statutes or regulations?
- ever dismissed, pursuant to a settlement agreement, an investment-related civil action brought against you by a state or foreign financial regulatory authority?
No
SEC Question H2

H(2) Are you now the subject of any civil proceeding that could result in a "yes" answer to any part of Item H(1) above?
No
SEC Question I




I'm completely dumbfounded and all I can think about is "What the hell is going on here?"

So, there's only one logical conclusion.  All HR personnel are life-sucking, soul-destroying spawns from hell and must be destroyed immediately.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

When HR Finally Rules the World...


As always, being sick leaves me with too much time on my hands.  The following is my musing on what happens when HR finally rules the world.

Invasive Human Capital Corp.
“Our people are our most disposable asset!”


First Name:                                                 Last Name:                                 Middle Name:                                                  
Maiden Name:                                          Aliases:                                         Childhood Nickname(s):                              
Social Security Number:                                    Blood Type:                    Height:                             Weight:                   
Hair Color:                                                   Do you dye your hair?            If yes, original hair color:              
Street Address:                                                    City:                           State:                    Zip + 4 (+ 4 required):            
Please list the names, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, social security numbers and blood types of your neighbors.
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
Date of Birth:                                 Place of Birth:                                        Type of Birth (Natural or Caesarean):     
Name of doctor who delivered you:                                                        Their Medical School:                    
Address:                                          Phone Number:                                   E-mail:                                                 
Have you ever been convicted of a crime?          
If yes, what did you do?  (Please include your dates and places of incarceration and the name and blood type of your cell mate.)                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                             
Do you have any physical defects that we can use to exclude you from our applicant pool?
Arthritis
Weak eyes
Menstruation
Genetic Defects
Gout
Annoying facial tics
Menopause
Ingrown Toenails
Flatulence
Circumcision
Pregnancy
Handicapped

Do you have any of the following character deficiencies?
Picking your noise.
Failing to put the toilet seat down (men only).
Failing to use a turn signal.
Eating ice cream directly from the carton.
Watching any of the Real Housewives series.
Failing to attend weekly church services.
Not eating enough vegetables
Yelling at your children,
Staying up too late.


Work Experience
Most Recent Employer:                                                                                                                                                               
Street Address:                                    City:                       State:                                Zip plus four:                                     
Name of direct supervisor:                                              Phone number:                        E-mail:                                     
Your direct supervisor’s home address:                                                                                                                                
Date of birth:                                                                         Name of the doctor who delivered them:                       
Supervisor’s social security number:                      
Name of direct supervisor’s spouse:                           Phone number:                        E-mail:                                     
Spouse’s date of birth:                                                      Name of the doctor who delivered spouse:                    
Spouse’s social security number:                             
Please list all the names, dates of birth, social security numbers and the names of the doctor(s) who delivered the supervisor’s children.
(If the supervisor is childless, please provide a separate written, notarized statement explaining why. If more or less than three children, please provide a separate written, notarized statement explaining why.)
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               

List every piece of software you used at this company, the version and release, your level of expertise, years used.

Software
Version
Release Number
Years Used
Last Time Used
Level of Expertise































Please indicate your level of expertise with our company-specific software:
Obscura Human Capital Software Tools                                                                                                                                 
Oblivious Office Communication Design Suite                                                                                                                    
Noone Time Management and Accounting Software                                                                                                     
YoosLess Functionality Suite                                                                                                                                                      
Buggie Efficiency Power Matrix                                                                                                                                                

Please list your qualifications and accomplishments using the exact same wording contained in our opportunity posting in the space provided below.  Failure to do so will result in an automatic rejection by our highly trained and skilled Human Capital Screening Software.
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Click to add work experience
(Applicants with fewer than 20 years need to provide a separate written, notarized affidavit.)

Certifications
Do you have any certifications?  Please select from the list below and specify the date received, the name of your instructor, their blood type, home address, phone number, social security number, and any other pertinent information you feel will help your candidacy.
Advanced Stapling
Walking with Purpose
Spoon Mastery
Hand Washing
Fundamentals of Breathing
Television Operation

Education
Name of College:                                                                                             Years Attended:                                              
(If your college is not Harvard, University of Central Florida (UCF) or the Florida State University (FSU), please provide a notarized letter from the college president verifying that the alleged college does, in fact, exist.)
Degree:                                    Major:                                                              Minor:                              GPA:         
(If no minor, please use the space below to explain why you were such a slacker.)
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
Most number of beers drunk in one night.                                      
Extracurricular activities:                                                                                                                                                              
(If fewer than 20, please explain your failure to maximize your time at college).
Name(s) of your roommate(s), current addresses, social security numbers, phone number, e-mail address and blood type.
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
Name of your college advisor:                                        Where did they attend college?                                           
Address:                                                                                                                                                                                             
Phone number:                                                                    e-mail address:                                                                            
If deceased please provide a funeral program, the name of the cemetery in which they were buried and a list of attendees at the funeral and their current address, phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
High School:                                                           Year Graduated:                   GPA:             
Most number of beers drunk in one night.                                              
Extracurricular activities:                                                                                                                                                              
After school jobs:                                                                                                                                                                           
(If none, please provide a separate written, notarized 1000-word minimum explanation.)
Awards, Publications, Patents:
Please list all award, published materials, and patents held.
(If none, please use the space below to explain why we should still consider you for this position.)
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Pre-employment Testing:
Invasive Human Capital Corp. uses a variety of psychological and intelligence test to determine a candidate’s suitability.  Please answer all questions honestly.


Most like me
Somewhat like me
Not at all like me
I like to cross dress.



I eat the last donut.



I like to yell until I get my way.



I think stealing is ok.



I cheat on my spouse.



I abuse substances.



I cheat on my taxes.



I like to make fun of people.




Problem Solving
1. Balance the following chemical equations:
a. Mg+H3PO4-->Mg3(PO4)2+H2
b. (NH4)2SO4+KCO3-->NH4CO3+K2SO4
c. SiO4+H2O-->H4Si+O2

2.

3. What is the air speed velocity of a sparrow?

Wrapping up
Is there anything else you wish to tell us that we can use to exclude you from the candidate pool?

Disclaimers
Invasive Human Capital Corp. is subject to the Gingrich Bill (H.B 2013.13.13 that deregulated US hiring practices and restoring our ability to participate in unfair hiring practies.  All information provided will be used as IHCC sees fit.  Your application may or may not be used in games of trash can basket ball.  If your application makes it past our HR screening software, it will be carefully examined by a highly-trained recent graduate of FSU with over 5 months of experience.  Candidates can be assured that IHCC will hardly take any time to review your application.  If you successfully manage to get past our stellar team of recent college almost-graduates, we will recommend your resume to the hiring manager who will probably be threatened by your age and experience.  They will immediately tell HR that you don’t have the proper skill set and we might send you a friendly and warm rejection letter.

Remember:  Human beings are a renewable resource!
Thank you for your complete submission.