Recruiting begins with Selling Yourself
For a long time it’s been status quo for companies to have a “jobs” or “careers” page on their website.
Sometimes it’s something hideous like a link to some outsourced portal that will suck the life out of you the moment you try to search for an opening in one of their 117 global offices (Looking at you, multinational defense contractors…).
At small companies, though, it’s usually just a list of a few job openings that may or may not still be open depending on how busy the person with access to the content has been lately.
Startups
And then there is this new wave of catchy, compelling and soulful attempts to sell the visitor on the corporate culture. This movement isn’t new but it’s become ever more fervent and creative.
Take, for example, the infamous Hipster campaign to give a year supply of PBR as a referral bonus.
Good Examples
When I took a job at CoffeeCup Software my interest was due in no small measure to their creativity and humor. It was clear from the “About Us” page that they took pride in their little company and enjoyed working together. Once I started there I realized quickly that their culture was real and I quickly assimilated.
Similarly, the Twilio jobs page has evolved and now shows their own strong company culture and unique brand of personality and humor.
Having worked there I can tell you that their strong company culture is one of their biggest success factors. More about that in another post maybe…
Another good example I saw today is the Wordpress Engine team. Lots of emphasis on fitting in and being at home.
They’re clearly looking for the right person instead of just a warm body.
To do that, they lay out their corporate culture before you and let you judge for yourself how you fit it.
What about your company?
What does your jobs page say about your company? Can visitors to your site get any sense of your company culture? Do you get serious applications from serious talent or crazy random CV that make little or no sense?
