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0 pointsfalcolas9y ago0 comments

> I wish Sahat had reached out to more of his network before responding to random recruiters.

Has his network moved forward in what they do? I've found with my own network that so many of them are in the same (or equivalent) spots they were when I left to advance my career. Not precisely positions of power which I can take advantage of for the next step forward in my career.

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Aissen9y ago

You do not need to be in position of power to refer someone.

falcolasOP9y ago

The usefulness of contacts only really matters when they are managing (or are a key-decider in) the team you wish to apply for.

Otherwise, a reference will only add to the burden you have to overcome with the interviewers - they will consider not only your qualities, but the referrer's qualities as well. "Richard vouched for Jane? But Richard is writing testing software, and we're hiring for backend. We don't need a SDET or we would have hired Richard."

EdHominem9y ago

I've referred people senior to me and been told by the recruiter that it was significant.

Because I can't be expected to know their work as well as they do I describe their peers' opinions (well-respected in the NOC) and the soft-skills they have like mentoring, etc.

"Even though I was only an SDET, Dave took the time to help me fully understand the math involved in the problem domain and how to efficiently model it. This allowed for a 60% increase in my deliverables and put the entire team a week ahead of schedule."

oarsinsync9y ago

I'm incredibly fortunate then, as that has never been my experience. Working in infrastructure engineering, I've been referred by devs for most of my jobs and in each instance the referral has been a positive. I've also referred a number of devs despite not being one myself, who have also benefited.

blakeyrat9y ago

I don't understand this. You don't have to be a Director to nominate someone for the open Director position. At least, not at any company I've worked for... is that a "thing"?

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