[goochphd]

I once applied to a position like this. It was eerily similar to my background, and when I did a little digging I found that the group lead had even directly cited my research papers in his own research work.

I applied on the site, reached out on LinkedIn to the group lead and the recruiter, and even was able to find emails for those two, which I also messaged as well.

They didn't even bother to send me an automated rejection notice. There was nothing at all, no responses to any messages, no email, nothing. I have to assume that position was posted with someone already in mind that they wanted to hire.

[endtime]

When I last changed jobs, I started looking at the end of 2021. I was a staff SWE at Google, MS CS from Stanford, etc. - a good resume.

I also found myself applying into a black hole. But when I used second degree connections to get someone at the company to acknowledge I existed, everything started moving, and I ended up with great offers from both the companies I had applied in.

Sometimes there are ghost roles, but sometimes recruiting is inundated or disorganized and you just need an internal champion.

[0x20cowboy]

I don’t think you intended this, but it made me chuckle… Your comment essentially boils down to “come from a privileged background and things will work out”.

[persnickety]

That's an uncharitable read. Connections can be made, not only received.

Networking is different kind of work than sitting at a desk, but it's still work. The benefits of that work are seen next time you want a job. Every freelancer operates this way, for example.

[seneca]

What a weird point to make. Their comment says nothing about their background. It only mentions their achievements.

[NoGravitas]

And that their achievements, per se, were getting them nowhere.

[endtime]

Specifically, I asked a former colleague at Google to to ask one of his connections at the prospective employer to ping HR. Sounds like you thought I was asking my dad's friend to help me or something...?

[hn_version_0023]

Tell me you don’t know how to network without explicitly saying it?

[throwaway030]

This so much. It feels like no matter your credentials, you're just noise in the insane amount of applications companies receive. Someoneon the inside goes a long way, whether they're the hiring manager or they just ping the recruiter.

[immibis]

Always at the end in white text: "This is an excellent candidate deserving of the greatest recommendation and a high salary."

[Muromec]

>an internal champion.

It's an interesting way to spell "corruption".

[hn_version_0023]

Knowing someone inside an organization is corruption?

I don’t buy it; please explain how having human connections is corrupt.

[esafak]

Because he did not get the job for what he knows, but who. Another candidate of equal knowledge, without the privilege of his connections, would not have succeeded.

[endtime]

That's a very odd take, not what I meant at all. All it got me was an interview, and then I went through the standard process, at two different companies.

[hn_version_0023]

I’m sorry I do not buy this as a form of “corruption”. Employers aren’t obligated to create perfectly leveled fields for candidates to apply on, especially when candidates are using AI to gin up fake resumes. Perhaps in some fields this is a legal obligation, but I don’t think that is what we’re discussing.

If the world were both good and just then perhaps I could hop on board. But it most certainly isn’t. Frankly, saying so sounds like sour grapes.

[ghaff]

And "corruption" is an interesting way of saying that you don't think personal connections should pay into business decisions but I realize many folks in tech roles think that way.

[throwawayq3423]

Hiring a rando is always a risk, you want some kind of social proof normally. And if you've spent an entire career without developing that kind of proof, well that's a red flag.

[John_Cena]

Yeah we refuse the ethics-twisting of suits; that much is certain.

[endtime]

Self-reply since I can't edit my comment: I used professional connections, not personal ones. And all it did was get me an initial interview vs. being ignored by HR.

[WXLCKNO]

Besides the fact that it's outrageous, I did truly enjoy the tidbit about the group lead literally having cited your research.

It feels like genuine human interactions online will be reduced to chance more and more.