No, I don't have experience in Technology X.
September 11, 2014 4:16 PM   Subscribe

Interviewing with yet another company who approached me first. But they want expertise in Technology X, something I don't have experience in. They saw my resume, right? Why are they interviewing me?

I'm an engineer and was laid off a few months ago. Been applying for every job posting I feel remotely qualified for.

I've only heard back from one of those companies I myself applied to, but I've had a few interviews with companies who approached me via contacts, linkedin, etc. And I get to these interviews and find out that they are looking to hire quick for specific projects in Technology X - gas processing. I don't have work experience in that, explicitly.

I don't get it though, they have my resume, and they've had a chance to skim it, but they still interrogate me like "hey, per chance have you loads of experience in this and just not put it down in your resume???" or some kind of equal hopefulness. Why do companies interview people for a specific job when it's clear they won't meet that specific subsection of expertise they want?

I had three interviews with one company, for three different jobs all wanting Technology X experience. Well they liked me, clear about having multiple interviews, but each were looking for the gas processing so I didn't get the job(s). The last interview, I admit I had a serious lack of enthusiasm about yet another "hey give me this job that you clearly think I am not quite qualified for" interview.

My next interview is with a company who's apparently had this posting up for several weeks now, and the department lead contacted me via Linkedin if I'd be interested. They didn't even specify in the posting they were looking for Tech X, but over the phone the HR lady said that's exactly the kind of project coming up that they're staffing up for. Perhaps they haven't found the right person, perhaps there was a lack of qualified applicants.

I've been reading up on Technology X and trying to self-study while I have all this free time, just in case this came up again. Well it has, I have an interview next week and will be able to say "no, I don't have project experience in it, but hey I studied this reliable resource of a handbook about Tech X over the last few weeks to get a feel for it". The thing about Technology X is, though, that it's more complicated and specialized than my usual design work, pretty much a career path change - I'd be close to a novice. Hard for me to sell myself, and be sold on.

I'm just hoping the Mefites can shed light on this situation, as someone looking to hire - what is going on from your perspective. Why are you bringing in someone to interview who's lacking that key experience you need? What are you looking for? Are you seriously hoping they neglected to mention they had that key experience in Tech X, or are you hoping for the right fit, and this person will get trained? Are they experiencing a lack of qualified applicants, can I even ask about that?
posted by lizbunny to Work & Money (12 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Why are you bringing in someone to interview who's lacking that key experience you need?

It is possible they already have a candidate in mind they want to hire, but need to interview multiple candidates in order to justify the hire to HR.

It is possible they are hiring your potential rather than your experience. In my experience with engineers, I'd much rather hire someone that can learn about a particular technology and excel at it rather than someone who already knows about the particular technology and is merely average at it. Exceptional engineers are uncommon; experienced engineers are very common, and are generally not exceptional. A certain amount of ramp-up time is expected with every engineer hire; at the places I've worked, an engineer is not expected to be fully productive for upwards of a year after hire.

It is possible their HR representatives are less-than-familiar with Technology X. It may be surprising, but in general, recruiters have no idea what any of the terms on a technical resume mean. This often leads to resumes being passed along that are not at all what the hiring manager is looking for. Normally these resumes get quickly filtered out by the hiring manager, but sometimes they get through.

It is possible they are posting the job expecting no one to be qualified so that they can use the lack of applicants to justify an H1B visa request. Sometimes you see this via exceedingly specific job requirements that are conveniently fulfilled only by one person who lives overseas - that way, the employer can quasi-legitimately tell the Department of Labor that there are no qualified in-country applicants.

Are they experiencing a lack of qualified applicants

You have not specified what sort of technology you are referring to, but it is definitely the case that in some/many areas of engineering, there is a lack of qualified applicants. At the moment, I am attempting to fill a position and have exactly one qualified applicant who lives >1000 miles away from the job position.
posted by saeculorum at 4:35 PM on September 11, 2014 [3 favorites]


Don't interview for jobs you can't get. You're wasting everyone's time. I'd be upfront in the interview and ask, "I have never worked with Technology X, given that, what about my resume is compelling to you?"

Let them sell YOU on learning Technology X. "From what I can glean, Technology X is complex and requires significant investments of time and study, I certainly haven't had the opportunity to do so in my previous positions. Is this something you need someone for now, or will you be offering training?"

The problem with being unemployed and desperate is that you want to feel wanted, so you talk to everyone and audition for jobs. Don't do that. The interview process is a two-way street. If the recruiter is telling you they want a Certified Technology X person, tell them, "I don't have that certification, and it would be a complete career shift for me to get it. But if you know of any positions using the Technology Q knowledge that I possess, feel free to contact me.

Concentrate your time and effort on positions you can get, not on what some HR lady calls you for.

Before you get dressed up and spend gas money, ask for a phone interview and the very first question out of your mouth should be, "The HR recruiter mentioned Technology X. I was rather surprised because I don't have that experience. Is it integral to the position?"

You will save a LOT of people grief, including you.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 4:40 PM on September 11, 2014 [3 favorites]


Response by poster: The thing about this next interview is, the Department Lead, not the HR person, saw my profile on Linkedin and messaged me to ask if I'd be interested in opportunities with them. No mention of Technology X until HR said that's the upcoming project they're staffing up for.
posted by lizbunny at 4:44 PM on September 11, 2014


If the job is 100% "Do thing X all day long, very well, from day one" and you have no idea how to do it, then maybe it's not for you.

However:

Job reqs tend to be ridiculous. In hiring for programmers, it's incredibly common for HR departments to ask for five years experience in something that has only existed for three, or to just throw in random acronyms that no one, themselves included, knows what they mean.

For whatever reason, most "skills needed" sections tend to be incredibly optimistic on the employer's part, if not downright insane. I also see programmers get hired who have literally never used the language the company uses every day. The idea is, once you're a pro, it's assumed you can learn a new language and your skills will transfer.

So, you have little to lose by going on the interview. Who knows why they want to see you, but they do. People call in candidates for all kinds of unknowable reasons. Who knows, maybe you get there and they like you and mention a different job that you're better qualified for. Unless it's going to cost you a ton in gas money or unpaid time off, there's no reason not to just go.
posted by drjimmy11 at 4:51 PM on September 11, 2014 [5 favorites]


I have interviewed and been hired for jobs that listed requirements that I didn't (strictly speaking) fill. I'd say that if you are up-front about your lack of experience/knowledge on X (but emphasize that you're willing to learn X and that your experience with Y will help fill in the experience/knowledge gap, if you can) then go for that interview. You are not wasting anyone's time, especially if they're the ones inviting you in for an interview.
posted by Aleyn at 5:42 PM on September 11, 2014


"No, I don't have experience working with Technology X, but I am familiar with it and I am eager to learn. In my last job, I had limited experience with Technology Y when I started, but I picked it up quickly and I like to think I'm a fast learner. Growing professionally and learning new skills is very important to me."

Unless it's all a lie. Then don't say it.

My guess is they'd rather have someone competent and reliable that they can train. Especially since whatever this is sounds hard to come by and very sought after, given the inquiries you keep getting about it. Why not ask? With that script, then turn it into a question back on them, "Do you offer training on Technology X or professional development?" You can say though, "I am familiar with Technology X, but I have never worked with it and I'd need to learn on the job." Or something, just to make it absolutely clear.
posted by AppleTurnover at 5:48 PM on September 11, 2014


The thing about this next interview is, the Department Lead, not the HR person, saw my profile on Linkedin and messaged me to ask if I'd be interested in opportunities with them. No mention of Technology X until HR said that's the upcoming project they're staffing up for.
posted by lizbunny at 4:44 PM on September 11

HR does have a function, for sure -- to keep people away, and to keep perpetuating HR, so they can go to lunch together and laugh about all the great people they keep away from their company.

I promise you -- had you sent your resume to HR, they'd have tossed it into the trash, without a second glance, because that is their job, you could be Jesus Christ working miracles in every technology you've ever seen -- and many you hadn't seen -- but HR would never know it, because they wouldn't look at you, at all, what with being busy planning lunch and stuff.

The Dept Lead is who you will be working for, and with, *not* HR. The Dept Lead saw you and liked you, some quality of yours, and he/she got around HR, and he/she got to a person who they think they'd would want to have on the team. Absolutely do the interview; this guy/gal wants to talk to you. Be up front, lay your cards face up on the table. Do ask what they saw in you, given that HR said blah blah blah blah.

~~~~~

I know whereof I speak. As follows:

I got my first job as a programmer -- in a flippin' bank, in downtown Houston, suits/ties/etc, those lame wing-tip shoes with tassels on them, etc and etc-- by getting to the right person, bypassing HR completely. I was highly qualified but didn't have a degree, HR would not have *dreamed* of even talking to me; I got the job by calling the computer room in every large business in Houston and asking whoever picked up the phone who is in charge of programmers, and would they please give me the persons phone number, too, or transfer me. A million, billion, ziillion people told me to buzz off, then one guy said "Hey, call Mike N_____ at 713-xxx-xxxx" and I damn sure did call him and he hired my ass.

Ten years later, when I was saving the world from Y2K, I applied for a gig as a contractor, walked into the office of the woman who was interviewing me, said hello, shook her hand, walked right past her to a gorgeous painting that hung on her wall, said something along the lines of "Jesus, where did you get this painting?" and she told me, we admired it together, talked about it and about art and whatever else, I was hired before I ever plunked my butt in the chair. She told me "Hey, anyone can program, I can see on your resume that you can program, but not every programmer can talk. You've got the job."

~~~~~

Go to this interview. They can see that you have qualities they want, and they know that you can learn whatever you'd need to learn to contribute to their team.
posted by dancestoblue at 6:43 PM on September 11, 2014 [6 favorites]


I've heard my fair share of technology people and there have been a few times I've ever hired a person who didn't have a strong competency in a skill that was needed:

- Intern that we converted to part time then full time. This is a commitment on our part to help grow someone in their career basically from scratch
- Some who is highly talented and picking up the skill would only be a matter of time. This is especially true for a really niche technology that we use and felt like they'd be good at. Their other technical/leadership/soft skills were hard to pass up and we considered them truly rare individuals.
- Someone from another part of the company who wanted to switch gears. This demonstrated a company-wide commitment to fostering/growing our employees.

To be honest, it is so hard to find really good talent nowadays. If I find a technologist who knows how to problem-solve, understands patterns, can lead a team, has worked on complex problems, but doesn't know Technology X...I'd sure as hell try to determine if it is something that we can train them on -- sometimes it's largely just syntax. There are too many encyclopedic programmers out there...book smart, copy & paste type of people. They typically interview very well, but can't develop worth shit.

My guess is that they are looking for candidates who have demonstrated that they can produce quality work, have great experience, etc. and they have a plan to train/teach Technology X.
posted by SoulOnIce at 7:03 PM on September 11, 2014 [2 favorites]


Never under estimate the possibility that the people in HR and recruiting are idiots. I constantly get recruited for senior level Drupal developer jobs. I'm in sales, for a Drupal shop, so the word does exist on my LinkedIn profile. But anybody taking 5 seconds to skim would see I'm in sales, not software development.
posted by COD at 4:57 AM on September 12, 2014 [4 favorites]


We will interview people where I work who have no knowledge of the tools or programming languages we use if we think they'll be able to learn these things quickly on the job. Hiring bright people is usually our goal.

I'd just be upfront about what you do and do not know.
posted by chunking express at 6:04 AM on September 12, 2014


Given your followup, about the Department Lead recruiting you, go to the interview. Be upfront about your lack of experience, but underscore your related experience and your ability to learn new things quickly. Also ask about what they are looking for in the position, responsibilities, areas they hope the new hire will develop, etc.

I was involved in a high-level hire at my current employer, and it was clear that (a) some candidates with relevant experience didn't sell themselves well, (b) some people with minimal experience did a great job at persuading us that they could develop it, and (c) some people without enough relevant experience showed that they weren't ready for this job yet, but that in a few years, they would be real contenders. The B and C groups came off a lot better than the A folks.
posted by brianogilvie at 7:44 PM on September 12, 2014


Response by poster: I didn't get that job, it went to someone with better experience. I got the impression that they were "saying" that the fit was more important than the skills, but really the skills were pretty high up there.

But I did get a job elsewhere, so we're good.
posted by lizbunny at 7:37 PM on October 16, 2014


« Older What should I look for in an attorney for the...   |   Coping with failure and moving forward with life Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.