[OT] Re: As an employer what type of project (Engineering) you would like to see ?

[geoffrey mendelson]

On Jun 11, 2009, at 12:56 AM, Oleg Goldshmidt wrote:
>
> Depends on what I do for a living, I suppose... ;-) Someone recruiting
> for a high speed networking company or project is likely to give some
> extra bonus points for any experience in the field, compared to
> something unrelated, e.g., cryptography. However, if the potential
> employer has half a brain this is going to be a minor consideration
> only.

It also depends upon how big the company is and how tight your  
deadlines are. A large company with thousands of programmers is much  
more likely to hire a "good person" with no relevant experience. They  
can afford to pay your salary for a few months and wait until you come  
"up to speed".

A small company, or even more pointedly a start-up is going to want  
someone who can "hit the ground running", i.e after you show them  
where to find the coffee pot, the toilet and their desk, can start  
being productive.


> One does not expect world class expertise in XYZ from a recent
> university graduate. Instead, things that would impress me at an
> interview would be *something* along the following lines:

Some startups do. They expect you to have had that experience in your  
final project, but usually at a graduate degree level, not a "first  
degree".

It depends upon how well you can sell yourself. One famous example  
from this list was an undergraduate who spent around 6 months on a  
project which had been around for years. He wrote an article for a  
popular magazine which left everyone with the opinion that he was the  
light behind the project. This got him some good jobs, but left a lot  
of unhappy people who had worked on it.


> * Your ability to present what you have done, what you have learned,
>  what you enjoyed in the process. Telling the story clearly and
>  logically - and excitedly - conveys that you actually know what you
>  are talking about. Your understanding of the wider context will
>  indicate that you applied your brains and were not a mindless code
>  monkey merely implementing your advisor's detailed instructions.

Some companies are looking to hire mindless code monkeys and want them  
to be that way. They like (especially in fresh-outs) someone who will  
do what they are told, and work themselves to death. Quality of code,  
quality of implementation, etc are not a real consideration, they just  
want a product that works, or at least seems to.

Some people, enjoy that work. Were you one of those soldiers who did  
exactly what you were told, nothing more and nothing less? Just enough  
to prevent you from being court-martialed? Then a job like that is for  
you and you should develop your project accordingly. Not everyone has  
to be a star and a lot of companies don't want them. They want people  
who will fit in, and not make the people who work there feel  
incompetent or stupid.

To be impolite, if you usually walk into the room and you are the  
smartest one there, then you are going into the wrong rooms. Don't put  
yourself in the position where that will be where you work. On the  
other hand if you are one of the "other guys", look for places that  
hire "herds" of programmers and be happy you are in the right place.

Since I am following Oleg's email, when I worked with him, I did not  
feel like I was the smartest guy in the room, I felt like I was one of  
a bunch of "smart guys". In other places it was obvious, it followed  
me around like doggie poo on my shoes. People were afraid of me. No, I  
am not "Mr Congeniality",
but that's not why I am there. I spent my life "pushing the envelope"  
and getting projects out of messes and not into them. Figure out where  
you fit in and you will be happy. Get it wrong, and you won't.


If that's you, then you would be well advised to find a collaborative  
project and well, collaborate. Show your team work skills, show you  
ability to fit in.
You won't get rich that way, but you won't be taking too many risks.  
You'll get to work at a reasonable hour, go home at dinner time and  
your children will know your name.

If you are the opposite, choose the farest out, wild-assed project you  
can find and follow it through until it either succeeds or crashes and  
burns spectacularly.
It does not matter, either way, just be prepared to explain what  
happened and why. It it failed, be ready to show a plan to "do it  
right" the next time.

And BTW, if you plan on doing anything with electronics or  
communications get yourself an amateur radio license and become active  
on the air.

Geoff.

-- 
geoffrey mendelson N3OWJ/4X1GM
Jerusalem Israel geoffreymendelson at gmail.com