Standout Jobs

It seems, more and more companies are pursuing an open office environment versus a cubicle approach. For startups, the open office is almost a standard, but for larger companies that’s certainly not the case.

But behemoth tech companies like Cisco and Hewlett-Packard are slowly but surely removing cubicles.

I’ve always been a fan of open office environments. Throw in some high ceilings to boot, if you don’t mind! You end up fostering a stronger community and team spirit in an open office. And it’s always easier for communication purposes; just scoot over on your Aeron chair to the guy next to you, without bumping into clunky cubicle walls!

Having said that, I still think the closed office is important. There’s nothing more distracting than people on the phone (or in a meeting) in an open office environment. I can’t concentrate on the phone when other people are working around me. I need a closed off space. I know a lot of startups eschew closed offices, but it’s something I’m not quite ready to give up.

The alternative to a permanent closed office for someone, is to have “meeting” or “talking” rooms — closed spaces that can be used on an “as needed” basis. If you’re on the phone all day, shuffling back and forth between your open office space and a closed room won’t be convenient, but for occasional use, it’s a handy way to balance the open office style and the need for privacy.

A recent onrec report claims that “nearly half of Brits (43%) would feel outraged if an employer used a social networking site such as Facebook…”

Um…that’s a lot of outraged Brits.

As pointed out on the NowHiring blog, companies and recruiters have been using Google and other tools (in fact, any tools at their disposal!) to find out about candidates.

Of course on Facebook people have the misguided notion that things are much more private than they are. And, the site was original designed to be a private network amongst friends, so people feel more free to post stuff that they wouldn’t want employers seeing. Oops. I’ve argued before that social networks are not personal but in fact are professional tools and should be thought of that way. Yes, they can be used for personal reasons, as long as you very clearly realize that other people are using them for professional purposes.

Candidates should also be using the tools at their disposal - Google, Facebook, etc. - to find out more about potential employers. (If you really want to go crazy, check out Jim Stroud’s 200+ resources for researching companies.)

I would always recommend that candidates do this; you need to do your “due diligence” on companies before accepting jobs with them. It just makes sense.

Stumbling through the recruiting blogosphere gives me the opportunity to provide you with some interesting, worthwhile and occasionally entertaining bits of news.

• As Jim Stroud points out, Netflix has put together a killer job ad. It’s a great piece of writing - I’d love to see Netflix do a video. I also think they could do so much more with their job site. That one piece of content is great, but the rest of it is dull, not easy to navigate and does nothing to highlight specific jobs. I have to click a few times to find any actual job opportunities. Netflix is on the right path by putting their culture out there, now they just need to take the next step.
• Do you want to raise moral at your office? People a bit down, frustrated or grumpy? The answer is clear: get people to curse more. That’s right — according to a new study, swearing in the workplace boosts morale. I’ve got some people to go curse at…with…
• The folks at WorkAustin.com (a niche job board) have put together a hilarious video: How NOT To Interview for a Job. It’s only 2 minutes long, so it’s easy to watch, and I guarantee you’ll laugh out loud.

Enjoy!

Today we noticed that Amber MacArthur at Webnation featured the Xobni recruiting video. Webnation is a cool show that covers digital culture and current affairs. You can see her mention the Xobni video about one third of the way in.

It’s great to see people like Amber, discovering and promoting stuff like this; where companies are reaching out in new and entertaining ways to potential candidates.

Go check out Webnation.

Thanks Amber - we appreciate it!

Shannon Seery Gude shares two examples of people using Twitter for recruiting purposes.

I’ve used Twitter to promote companies that have produced video job ads with us. Why not? It’s an easygoing, friendly environment for saying, “Check this company out, they’re cool, you might be interested in them.”

That’s really where recruiting through social networks can work effectively — where it remains casual, relaxed and amongst friends. Companies may try and push their way in, but they’ll have to do so much more delicately. For example, if a company chose to simply broadcast jobs via Twitter, it would probably get very little response. Companies have to be willing to build relationships with people, generate goodwill, and then turn “friends” into “evangelists”.

Your company is thinking green, right? It better be.

The recruiting business is heavily influenced by current, global trends because it’s all about people. That might sound slightly trite, but it’s not meant to be. People are caring more and more about the environment. What’s the result in the world of recruiting? People are caring more and more about green companies.

The evidence of this trend in recruiting is mounting. Alice Snell has a very nice summary of recent discussions on this topic.

No surprise, young job seekers are particularly attracted to eco-friendly companies.

“Harris Poll found that 33 percent of Americans would be more inclined to work for a green company compared to an organization that does not make conscious efforts to promote socially and environmentally friendly practices.”

That’s a lot of people. I’m sure some are only paying lip service to “going green” but you can’t ignore the trend.

Paul Copcutt references some even stronger numbers:

“In a related survey a staggering 78% said that given a choice, they would leave their current job in favor of a greener workplace. Recruiters are now reporting that candidates are demanding to know a company’s environmental stance before taking a job.”

John Sullivan lists a number of detailed steps to implementing green recruiting strategies. It’s a great list, but for any companies dipping their toe into the green waters, it doesn’t have to be this complex.

The simplest way to think about this is to realize that your green recruiting strategy is just an extension of how you brand and market your corporate culture. If your company is truly “green” it’s part of your culture, just like the work environment, the social gatherings, the team spirit, etc. Up to now, you may not have realized that the green part of your corporate culture was worth exposing and promoting — it’s clear now that’s the case.

GE has the ability to offer up sizable grants and run big contests in promotion of the environment, which is great, but you don’t have to take it that far. Get your employees talking about the importance of being green. Promote a healthy, eco-friendly environment as a job perk. Open up your culture to candidates and let them have a peek inside. Let them see (and communicate with you about) all that green-goodness…

Many people hate their jobs. It’s a shame, but a reality. Still, there’s no shortage of inspiration out there, and no shortage of hope.

Let me draw your attention to 3 posts in particular; in the hopes of motivating and inspiring those that aren’t too happy.

1. Take Responsibility and Fire THEY. Chris Brogan does a great job of reminding us to take responsibility for ourselves and our careers. “It’s when I realized that the person responsible for bringing greatness to my life was me. Only me.” If anyone can motivate and inspire it’s Chris.
2. Rewarding workers doesn’t have to be expensive. Rhonda Abrams has some entertaining and worthwhile ideas on how employers can reward employees for a job well done. How about getting your birthday off as a paid vacation? Simple enough, but a great gesture. I think a lot of companies do offer fun and cool rewards, but they don’t always promote that fact. They should.
3. 5 Ways to Stand Out and Get Your Dream Job or Succeed in the One You Have. Brandon Henak focuses on a set of goals that will leave to career success: be a whole person, be passionate, be a leader, be reflective and relative, and be externally aware.

We’re a bit late in announcing this (having been “scooped” by Heri at MontrealTechWatch), but nonetheless we’re very pleased to announce that Francis Wu is joining the Standout Jobs team as our resident Web & CSS Designer.

We were already working with Francis on a couple of things, so it was a good fit from the get-go. But when you hire contractors, you don’t focus too much on the cultural fit with the company. It’s just not necessary.

With Francis, we knew he’d fit right in. He’s a great example of what you want in a startup employee:

• Entrepreneurial (Francis has been involved in other startups, including his own adventures)
• Has diverse interests
• Follows the industry (from a business & technical perspective) feverishly
• Participates within the community (by blogging, attending events, etc.)
• Scrappy (you won’t find Francis sitting at his desk in a corner with his head down)
• Motivated by the right things: making a difference, learning, having fun and being proud

Francis is going to be one busy guy in the next few months. The work has been piling up for him, and I know the rest of the team is eager to work with someone who can put the right visual image and interface onto their expert coding.

Welcome aboard, Francis!

InterviewUp is a new service for candidates looking to get a leg up in interviews. The service allows you to track a database of interview questions, and see potential answers. All of the content is submitted by the community. You can submit your own interview questions as well - questions you’ve been asked in the past - to get feedback.

InterviewUp explains the value this way:

We know there are literally millions of people in this world who have amazing talents, skills, and incredible potential to excel in their career – much like yourself. Ever been to an interview where you wish you had all the questions and answers before the interview started? Often times, the only thing that stands between you and your dream job is the interview. Imagine if you could easily find relevant interview questions to print out and practice with – how great that would be!

Or maybe some interviewer asks you an interview question and you don’t know what the correct response is. What if you could ask a community of like-minded people – all of whom are determined to achieve their ultimate career success. We have been there, in those exact same interviews. Sitting there answering question after question, you definitely can do the job, and do it well – if only you could pass the interview!

I think this is an interesting idea. The challenge is having enough user-generated content to make it worthwhile, so hopefully people begin to really use the site and then we’ll be able to measure the value and results.

Xobni’s team is rapidly expanding. We are looking for people who thrive as part of a dedicated and innovative team, love tough challenges, and are passionate about making something people want.

Xobni offers competitive base salary, stock options, health benefits, and a great group of people to work with.

Software Engineers

Do you thrive as part of a talented and highly agile engineering team? We are looking for software engineers to help envision, design, and build the core Xobni applications.

Responsibilities

• Participate actively in software design discussions
• Develop ideas from a high-level description to a shippable product
• Perform analyses, software design, code, troubleshooting, and unit testing
• Write code that is both functional and elegant
• Set individual goals and take responsibility executing
• Diagnose performance bottlenecks and implement optimizations

Qualifications

• Minimum of 3 - 5 years of software development experience
• Experience with N-tier application development
• Successful multi-tasker, as well as a self starter who is able to work well with others and can adapt to changes quickly in a high pressure startup environment
• Very familiar with general application development
• C#/Java knowledge a plus
• Excellent technical communication, both written and verbal
• MS/BS in Computer Science or related background preferred

To apply, please submit resumes and covering letters to jobs@xobni.com, with the subject “Software Engineer”.

Software QA Engineers

Do you have passion for understanding, breaking, and testing cutting-edge products? We are looking for Software Quality Assurance Engineers to help us ship fast, bug-free products to astonished users.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute test plans
• Write unit tests and other automated testing
• Work closely with development team to understand product requirements, technology, and user feedback
• Work closely with manual testing team
• Submit bug reports, verify fixes

Qualifications

• Minimum 2 years QA experience
• Passion for testing and the ability to work independently on diverse problems
• Excellent communications skills
• Experience administering and using bug tracking systems
• Knowledge of C# is a plus
• CS/EE degree preferred

To apply, please submit resumes and covering letters to jobs@xobni.com, with the subject “Software QA Engineer”.

About Xobni

Xobni is changing the way people use their email. Our first product Xobni Insight has been released in invitation-only beta and has received great reviews. Xobni aims to become a new platform for organizing messaging and relationship information centered around email.

Xobni is located near Union Square in San Francisco, CA and is backed by substantial venture funding from Khosla Ventures, First Round Capital, Ron Conway and Baseline Ventures, Atomico Investments, Y Combinator and several angel investors.