Recently, I have encountered something that has been bothered me. Many people who have many qualifications for a job are having trouble finding jobs. Now why is this? After sitting down and talking to them, I have come to realize that maybe, just maybe Job Posts are done the wrong way. Talking to Business owners, sometimes it sounds like they do not know what they want.

Requirements For Work: Have The Needs First

Now what I have found, I have noticed that many companies postings look the same. The same long list of requirements that seem to be as of lately, getting out of hand. I have wondered why people do this, probably due to some of the posts being done by HR and they have no idea what goes into said position. Now this is kind of the HR’s job correct? To find out what the job REALLY requires. In some cases I have run into WordPress developer positions that have C# and dot net as a requirement….never in my years have I used dot net with wordpress. This is what really strikes me, now I know that companies want to hire that shiny unicorn of a developer but I think companies should take a step back back and think about what they really need in a developer. I know companies and developers are busy people but stripping out the unnecessary could help them find someone quicker.

Lets take for example a clean wordpress developer…what is needed in a wordpress developer?

This is from the indeed application for a wordpress developer position. I really like this one cause its very to the point in the requirements.

• 2+ years of experience with WordPress and PHP.
• Front-end skills – HTML5/CSS3, JavaScript, JQuery, Other Javascript libraries, Bootstrap and Responsive Design
• Back-end skills – Experience building custom themes, plugins, widgets, WordPress filters, WordPress hooks and etc.
• Associate’s degree in web development related field, or equivalent experience.
• Version Control (GitHub, Subversion, etc.)
• Experience working with APIs – SOAP, REST and other

Now why do I like this?  The front end skills are basically everything you need to use and build for wordpress. The back end skills as well relate to everything needed for a wordpress developer. These are the basics of what a wordpress developer should know and how to do. What also stands out to me is the years of experience and the degree. 2 years of experience and an associates degree. Why is this important? Usually in most other job postings I see something along the lines of  “bachelors degree in computer science with 5+ years building for wordpress”. WordPress development and learning can be pretty much done on your own and you can certainly become skilled in wordpress development in 2 years, also there are a lot of associate degrees in web development that are beyond amazing, or even going to one of the many coding schools can help you achieve some great experience and knowledge.

Not Necessary For Work: The Wants Second

When it comes to the second part of every job post, there is always a second section…which is sometimes combined into the first, lets take a look at what Indeed did here cause they did separate them both.

• Strong knowledge of web performance optimization, caching, and SEO.
• OOP background – Experience with C, C++ ,C#, .NET or Java.
• Experience with A/B Testing and data-driven decision making
• SASS/LESS knowledge
• Third Party API Experience (Twitter API, Facebook API, etc.)
• Experience working with WP Engine Server Environment
• Shell scripting knowledge

A few things do stand out to me as pluses in web development for wordpress, the SEO and SASS and WP Engine. Now these things I have experience with, but some developers do not. I know some developers that have not touched SEO work cause they have a SEO analyst deal with that so I can understand. As for SASS and WP Engine server testing, that is something that developers can gain knowledge on easily. As for the other experience, like the experience with object oriented programming. Why would they have this as a want? This could be because as with a lot of big companies, you will probably be given the chance to move around from project to project. So they will probably want someone who will expand their horizons and not just stay on wordpress.

Don’t Pass On A Great Stallion In Hopes of Finding A Unicorn

This is something that I feel a lot of companies want these days, a unicorn. A developer who is the end all be all of everything. Or even the anything and everything of designers, salesforce admins, developers, and marketers. I feel like everyone needs to take a step back. We need to really think about what positions really need, vs what we want. The meet ups I have attended and countless job seekers, they do get turned away from positions cause the amount that is listed in the job posting makes them think they aren’t qualified. And I feel like this is causing a lot of great people to pass on a position because there are a few things the user might not know. Even I have turned down positions cause I felt like the companies don’t really put a lot of focus into their job posting. The whole throwing paint to the wall and seeing what sticks can deter great people from applying for a position. I know you want to weed out the people but sometimes you weed out the great workers.

Take A Leap Of Faith

When it comes to job seekers, I always do try to tell if they fit 70% of what is required in job posts. I say apply anyways, cause sometimes thats all you can do. Its better to try and get told no, then not know what happens. Cause all you need in the end is to get your foot in the door and sometimes companies will overlook some positions. When I apply for a job and I come across a position that has a lot of stuff I don’t know. Lets say for example its a wordpress position but then it has C++ as a requirement, I still apply cause sometimes companies I talk to are willing to hire someone if they don’t know anything about something but who are willing to learn more. You can become that companies unicorn if you are willing to work for it.

In Closing…

When it comes to job posts, I think companies need to have a very honest look at the jobs that they are posting about. From developers to marketers and especially designers. I also believe it will fall on the people in charge as well to set a realistic standard on what these positions require and work with HR or whoever in creating these job posts. Hopefully this resonates with some people in the future and some companies. Anyways till next time.

 

see you space cowboy…

Kirk Morales