Which criteria matter most to a hiring manager?

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Sorry, I've become bitter and cynical of employers in general. I'm not necessarily responding to you personally.

However, not everyone can provide references. Especially if they don't know who they can trust. Say they worked at Wal-Mart last, where all of the coworkers try to extract all the gossip from you as possible and if you say something to one person you hear it from a dozen others in less than a day. Even people that one thinks were friends (or comrades, given that in a capitalistic system a megacorporation is a form of communism anyway, and for the government to control it then the government would have to be as well) you overhear them laughing about you behind your back. Managers having their own microcosms or fiefdoms only care about their own dominion with little to no regard for their serfs. So, in such a situation, would you trust anyone? I suppose you have some canned answer to provide which you learned in vocational school, but nevertheless you are still human and possess the ability to think, but you still have to use it in order to demonstrate it.

I think the hiring criteria could depend on what type of job your interviewing for. I've had a couple jobs in retail doing custodial stuff. My interviews went fairly well. If you don't have any work experience; you likely won't get an interview in the 1st place. If you have a bit of experience; lots of open spots with employment history does not matter much because lots of people don't stay long at those jobs & the unemployment rate for that can be pretty high. The interviewers did ask me about why I left my last job but they did not check references(they mite of used my social security number or something to see if I had the work history I said I did but there was no more than that). I think they wer more concerned about if I could tell em what they wanted to hear & I was somewhat respectful/polite.

This is the kind of thing that I try to protect my employees from. You've blown up at me for describing my hiring process - a process that you're not even going through. If I had a candidate so much as raise their voice at me during the hiring process they'd be out of consideration. I don't need or want drama at the office - whatever the cause. It serves no purpose other than to lower efficiency and morale.

I realize that my hiring process is not fair and that I am at a disadvantage as a hiring manager because I experience symptoms of AS, am typically naive, and don't have the natural ability to read non-verbal communication. I have watched NTs hire employees and found some to be good at hiring good employees and others to be horrible at it. So I know that my abilities fall somewhere in the middle. My record is by no means perfect, but in general, I get people with positive attitudes that want to work hard.

You also need to understand that in this economy, I typically receive 100 resumes for an entry level position. If I'm given any reason to question the applicant's history, attitude, or qualifications, I throw them out. That includes giving all the right answers. In many ways I'm not looking for the best candidate - I'm looking for a "safe" candidate who is qualified to handle the job and hopefully grow beyond it. I don't have any "hide in the basement" type of jobs, so communication and the ability to get along with others is an important consideration when I hire a new person.



I understand this. Like I said, the process isn't fair and I'm looking for all kinds of reasons to disqualify candidates. That just happens to be one of them.

Looking at the poll questions and some of the responses...someone's just a *tad* bitter and cynical...

I personally haven't done any recruitment myself, but I've sat around people who were doing recruitment, have done my share of interviews and I know people who used to hire workers so here's my brief 2c.

People generally look for a combination of these two aspects:

+ Ability to do the job well;
+ Interpersonal skills - can you get along with other people, are you a team player, can you communicate with a range of people, etc.

Just because you are, or you perceive yourself, as the best candidate for the job doesn't necessarily mean that you're the right person *for* the job. You might have a great skillset but if you have the tendency to throw tantrums/had conflicts in various past workplaces/etc. then people would be more leery of employing you because one of the worst things to have is conflict within a team. It's disruptive for everyone involved and reduces efficiency.

References are there partly to weed people out, and also partly to ensure that the information you have supplied on your resume is trustworthy. You can write whatever you want on a resume but a potential employer has no way of knowing that what you've written is actually true, so that's why they often ask for references. It's a pain in the ass but it has to be done - which is why it's usually a good idea to leave a place on good terms, so at least you can trust that your reference will be a good one.

I've been there, done that and currently also facing issues with references because I left on bad terms with my last full-time job

What, respect? Or having someone who has a spine who can both work and think? Too many employers are unclassifiable within phylum Chordata, yet they seek out workers who are so classified since putting up with managers lacking a backbone certainly requires a strong backbone just for that purpose.



Grow a backbone. Too many people in authority don't realize the stress that the people who actually do work are under and use their misplaced authority as a weapon. Also, you have no idea what I'm going through, all you know is yourself and how you react to "insubordination".



I'm sure they would. Wait until you've dealt with hiring managers for a while, and had a taste of your own quality of medicine.



Yeah, right. You just want a worker who presents a good appearance to you. In front of you, showing you the face that you want to see regardless of dishonesty. You do want drama, as long as it is to your favor and thus appeases you.



A single worker of my efficiency could, and has, handled the work of five others effectively. Morale is all you can claim, due to my "blowing up at you", but real people vent when they've had a hard time, only actors and manipulators hide their emotions. And you probably consider expressing anger as being "violent" somehow in your delusional perception of reality, but in actually having the ability to freely speak one's mind without fear of consequences allows for less reason of developing the need to vent. Having lower morale is not something that you can control, but only the outward appearance since employees are suppressed- but then again the outward appearance is truly all that matters to people like you.



Bullcrap. Don't blame your AS for being an ASS.



Yeah, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, regardless of diagnosis or lack of diagnosis.



So, when you are searching for work, does that mean you'll be in the middle? Or do you count upon your ability to act as a "safe" employee to protect you or gain you a job? Especially if you view this forum as being equivalent to an interview, as you've treated it in a similar manner in regard to me, then your blaming of Asperger's will place you in the bottom of the list.



Wrong, you get people who act positive around you and tell you what you want to hear.



In this economy, after you are fired, what do you think your odds of being rehired are given your own manner of selection. Yes, currently there are a high supply of potential workers enabling you to pick-and-choose through them, so when you are in a pool of would-be candidates, especially with being fired recently for some random excuse that will be invented, how easy will it be for you to meet your own criteria? Answer honestly and then consider how life is like for those you reject.



To the merciful, they will be shown mercy. To the ruthless, they will be shown ruthlessness. When you deny a person the opportunity of proving themselves as a good worker, or even giving somebody a second chance, you are not just "choosing in your company's best interest" but also continuing the hardship of someone who would rather work for a living instead of living off of welfare and charity.



I'm certain you know those, so maybe while applying you can mark all the boxes correctly at Target and get an interview, before getting a letter in the mail.



Presentation is what you look for. Many people, such as those who blame their problems on AS, have communication difficulties. "Safe" is something that is able to be presented most easily by an actor who knows how to read their audience.



Not to mention the ability to present such an outward appearance in front of management while carefully abusing coworkers in such a manner as to not get caught, especially the ones they are jealous of so as to get them in trouble for not "getting along" with their crafty teammates.



Remember what you say when you are fired. Wearing the shoes of others is most difficult for those who have helped beat them down for imperfection in your own eyes.

Do not ask me I have never passed a job interview in 22 years of working. I have always gotten jobs through old high school friends or believe it or not by accident. It sucks the friends who got me jobs now live in orther states and are busy with their own families. I guess they cut me loose. I also worked at a temp. service for a few months who took anybody for the dirtiest lowest paying jobs ever. My life sucks I never made enough to support myself.

Yep, I am certainly bitter and cynical. However, I've never thrown tantrums at the job, and the most I've ever done off-work is rant and k'vetch.

What I got fired for at Wal-Fart were customers overhearing me talk about Halo with other coworkers who were also gamers. They thought that I was talking about reality, the plasma grenades, MOLINJR armor, sentinel laser rifles and such other technobabble of the sort apparently not being enough of a clue that the conversation being eavesdropped upon was about a science-fiction video game. As such, I was accused of planning a "violent act of terrorism". Hence why I think that managers are morons and don't have respect for them until they earn it from me. Yes, the customers were the ones who couldn't tell their right hand from their left foot, but the managers, who get paid, and paid by orders of magnitude more than a person who actually works, to sit and supposedly think, demonstrated the lack of ability to do one of these activities... and their ability to sit is unquestionable.

"Wal-Fart" is getting worse by the moment in terms of how they treat their employees:

-My bf got fired for supposedly talking on his cell phone on company time (he wasn't). To add insult to injury, they were going to withhold his unemployment benefits "for cause." There was a hearing over the phone among him, the manager who fired him (with company lawyers) and a judge. The manager tripped up and said that he was talking on the COMPANY phone during work time, which was not what was in the complaint. She tried to backpedal but....He got his benefits.

-Other people are being threatened with termination (their "D-day") for...really nothing. In reality, the company wants to get rid of all their full-time people so they won't have to pay as much in salary and nothing in benefits/insurance.

-Someone else was accused of passing a knife (from sporting goods) to a customer who actually stole it and ran out. This employee was taken away in handcuffs. I don't know how that turned out.

So....I completely agree with you on this one. Glad they never called me back when I applied to work there.

The corporate world is the biggest, inefficient piece of crap ever. All their hiring criteria and whatnot is based on completely superficial bull****. Seriously, the level of utter inefficiency caused by the shallow stupidity of management types makes me cringe. That's why I'm going blue collar.... As long as you go to work on time and do your work efficiently, you're golden.

I worked there a couple years ago & I was forced to quit between Christmas & NewYears after working there 25months cuz I kept getting mixed orders from management. One manager would pull me off what I was supposed to be doing & would tell me to ignore all orders not coming from her & the co-manager would have me paged to do something but I ignored the page because she didn't make it herself & I thought it was coming from another associate or something. Then I ended up in trouble for not being concerned with safety. I quit cuz I was to stressed out. My department(floor maintenance) had been extremely shorthanded for a while & I had been working 6days a week & averaging over 55hours a week to help out. We also had a contract crew assisting us & we wer told to stay out of their way but they wer causing problems that we had to fix. A month or so after I quit; my supervisor was transferred to receiving & another person in the department quit & the the rest of the department was transferred to other departments & the contract crew took over full-time. I think I was forced out because I mite of had a hard time working in other departments cuz I have some disabilities besides AS so they may of been afraid of some legal/PR issues with firing me cuz my reviews wer great, I was an unofficial backup to my supervisor witch basically meant responsibility but no real power. I cared to much & was to willing to do extra. The co-manager was extremely unqualified because she had just been promoted to co-manager a month or so before but then the head manager was transferred to something in district so she was temporally promoted to head because there was no one else.

I miss the work I was supposed to do & some of the people I worked with.

About 6months latter I had an interview for a custodial position at a sporting-goods store. They asked me about why I left & I told em that I had been getting mixed orders from management & how shortly after I left; the department disappeared. I didn't rant or say much more than that thou. They asked me why I was applying there & I told em how my supervisor & another person in my department had worked at the sporting-goods place briefly when WM wasn't letting em make overtime & they wer good workers so mentioning em as references mite of helped but they never checked. I also said something about teamwork & communication cuz I was kind of the communicator at WM cuz my supervisor was tied up doing special projects so I was checking-up on everyone else & communicating/strategizing. They wer impressed & I got hired. I only stayed 3moths cuz I had problems doing certain aspects of that job cuz of my disabilities but that's another story. I think having a positive go getting attitude helped with that interview. If I wer to have an interview for something completely different that I have no experience in(even if it's a very menial low-level job like fast-food) I would NOT have that kind of attitude I had at the sporting-goods store interview. It's easier to have a positive additive about something when you know you can do it than something you've never done. I guess what I'm saying is having a sense of confidence in your skills & experience can be a big plus for the interviews

I'm not going to respond line by line to what you (iamnotaparakeet) wrote before, but I think there are a few points that need to be made. Not for you so much (I don't think we're capable of reasonable communication) but for others who read this. You've jumped to name-calling and assumptions about my character that are not in the least bit fair.

1) Accusing me of blaming [my] AS for something or other.

I would never do this. If you search for my posts about AS, you'll see that I consider it to be an inseparable part of ones self. I believe it is present at birth and to attempt to remove AS from the individual would destroy that individual and [possibly] replace it with another. It would be as illogical to blame AS as it would to blame my left arm for something.

However, the DSM does state that the requirements for AS include deficiencies in several areas. If I state that I am at a disadvantage to NTs in areas consistant with the diagnosis for AS - I consider that to be fact. It's not blaming AS - AS doesn't cause those things, those things point to a diagnosis of AS. If I wasn't at a disadvantage to NTs in those areas, the AS diagnostic rules would not apply. Keep in mind that for words like "deficiency" and "disability" I defer to the definitions made by the authors of the DSM and not my own. I do not consider myself at a disadvantage to NTs in general - I believe almost all people have above and below average qualites about them and if you added them up you'd end up relatively close to a constant.


2) Accusing me of ruling my employees via fear.

I don't do this either. Obviously it's impossible to prove this to anyone that doesn't work for me. Since you're convinced that I must rule in fear and only hire people that say what I want - I couldn't logically ask my employees what they think because they must be lying to me.

The thread topic is "Which criteria matter most to a hiring manager?" not "How do you treat your employees?" I haven't discussed any part of how I treat my employees. I have discussed my hiring process. There is a distinct line between a candidate for a job and an employee. If a candidate for a job isn't on their best behavior (resorts to name calling and/or openly disrespects you) during an interview, chances are that their behavior on the job will be just the same (or worse). Any discussion about how I treat my employees is complete fabrication since you don't work for me and I haven't given any details about it.


3) Accusing me of being ruthless in my hiring process

You've done a good job of trashing me and my hiring process without offering any possible solutions of your own. How do you avoid doing this when you have 100 people apply for 1 job? Should I just hire all the good people, run the company into the ground, and put everyone on unemployment?


4) My company must be the same as Walmart or Target because that's where you've worked. My management style must be the same as the managers at Walmart or Target.

I work for a small business. It's one I co-founded. At the end of the day, there's no passing the buck for me. If the business fails or suceeds it is squarely on my shoulders and those of my co-founders. I bust my ass for 12,16, and sometimes 20 hours a day to make sure things are going right. My employees see this - they work 8-5 M-F and they offer to work later. I don't make them work late or even let them work late. I tell them to go home, spend time with their families and to come back to work the next day ready to go. These are people who I have to keep a distance from - I am their manager, not their friend - but I have met their spouses and their children and I genuinely care about what happens to them. Even if that puts more work, more stress, more burden on me.

I can't help the fact that you've worked for idiots. Before I had the money to start my own company, I worked in similar "chain" type workplaces. I've had idiots for managers. I've had idiots for co-workers. Should I end up back there, I'm sure I'll experience the same thing again.


And now back to your regularly scheduled name-calling and assumptions...

Hire a few of the good people, the ones who wouldn't normally get through due to imperfections in their manner of interviewing you or in their applications. Such things are formalities and as such they are set up for those who know how to do them well, though not necessarily the work itself.

At the Wal-Mart I worked for, the General Manager was replaced a few months from when I was fired and replaced by a new guy who wanted to impress corporate by the quantity of papers he could process, but without regard for the people who were operating the store. But even before that, when I worked as a Sales-Floor Associate prior to transferring to Deli, I can sympathize with the experience of constantly being yanked around by various members of management. Each department has it's own manager, and Wal-Mart tries to keep as minimally staffed as possible, so they end up being understaffed with respect to each department. As such, it is basically a game of Tug-Of-War by each Assistant Manager to get workers to help in their department, although at the same time the primary responsibility of the employee is the departments that are officially assigned to them, so that they carry the liability for all things.

In my experience, the single best thing to have for getting jobs overall is non-verbal camouflage. If you can present yourself as hot sh8t and just know what buttons to push, you can fool these poor, unfortunate, pressured, overtaxed, time-is-money hiring HR managers into hiring you above others without this ability, regardless of any other criteria that may or may not make you suitable for the position. I don't blame people, just the system that sets us all against each other.

Unfortunately, the employees I manage have tasks that involve heavy customer interaction. I suspect that the average Walmart or Target customer does not have the same expectations of the staff as my clients do. My employees are expected to communicate in a professional fashion verbally and in writing as their primary job function - all day long. It would be detrimental to my business to hire persons incapable of puttng together an organized and coherant resume/email or who are unable to interview or deal with stressful situations in an professional fashion.

Occasionally we do special projects outside of customer view where we will hire anyone who wants to work and will show up on time. But when in front of the customer, we provide them what they want (and what they think they are paying us for). Blame whoever you want, but without the customer, we're just another failed business.

What is your type of business exactly?

You'd actually be surprised what the expectations of an average Wal-Mart customer are, especially if the customers are having a bad day and use the employees as a verbal punching bag to vent their frustrations upon. This actually happens quite often at the checkout lane when one of their items rings up a higher price than they wanted. When I worked at the deli, it was the same deal, just anything could set them off. But in the eyes of a financially rational private enterprise organization such is perfectly acceptable: the customers are the suppliers of lucre, so they have more freedom and the workers are the receivers of some minute quantity of lucre, so they have less freedom.