This Nordic Company’s Four Secrets To Hiring (And Keeping) Great Talent
October 10, 2017 8:56 AM   Subscribe

Here at Reaktor, our current turnover rate is less than 1%, and that includes the more than 40 employees in our New York office, where we work within the city’s super-competitive talent pool Stop bullshitting, take the HR department out of the room, and be honest about the downsides of the job.
posted by kaltsuro (11 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: sorry for the delayed delete; upon inspection this seems to be a pretty empty puff piece -- LobsterMitten



 
"Here are five things that we’ve found work just about everywhere."

What's the fifth thing?!?!?
posted by stinkfoot at 9:06 AM on October 10, 2017 [2 favorites]


"For highly valued software engineers."
posted by corb at 9:11 AM on October 10, 2017 [3 favorites]


This creates a whole new level of openness in discussions with our applicants. Often we’ll ask things like, “What makes you nervous?” or, “What would a previous coworker say about you?” to see if the person will stop bullshitting and get real with us. We even ask the applicants to interview the interviewer, and their own questions to us can be non-work related too–we’re willing to get personal (within legal and ethical bounds, of course.)

This sounds like standard vanilla job interview bullshit, honestly.
posted by killdevil at 9:24 AM on October 10, 2017 [8 favorites]


And designers. But your point stands.

Further, the core business is based in a locale with generous socialized benefits. Even if they extend those to the New York office, at some point, somebody looks at that cost and says "shouldn't we be a little more responsible with our resources?" Or an investor says "this won't scale and we won't put money into it."

I mean, applause for sticking to their guns. They need to keep an eye on how team interviews and equal weighting result in diversity being an afterthought and usually creating a monoculture which - surprise surprise - is an easier environment in which to offer generous benefits since nobody has the audacity not to think (and look) like you.

Sure, involve teams, reduce stress, be transparent, but also be honest about the cultural and economic privilege you're starting from and how that will scale.
posted by abulafa at 9:30 AM on October 10, 2017 [2 favorites]



Have we really sunk so low that giving employees 40-hour working weeks is some kind of revolutionary new idea?


Yes.

I was recently on an interview where the expectation was 50+ hours per week. The interviewer nearly recoiled in horror when I said that was much more than I was interested in working.

Anyway, I always favor those interviews where I can discuss things with the people I'd be working with. After all, it's the cow-orkers who make a sucky job tolerable or a tolerable job sucky.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 9:33 AM on October 10, 2017 [7 favorites]


attempting to raise the profile of a company that doesn't make page 1 of Google for its own name

I got mostly stuff for Native Instruments' product, Reaktor. But Google knows I like NI and have bought their stuff. They probably know which of their products I am going to buy next, and when. And they customize search results based on things like that.
posted by thelonius at 9:34 AM on October 10, 2017


What's the fifth thing?!?!?

It's a simple trick! You won't believe it.
posted by thelonius at 9:36 AM on October 10, 2017 [8 favorites]


Have we really sunk so low that giving employees 40-hour working weeks is some kind of revolutionary new idea?

Yes.

ditto (don't even mention the A word)
posted by sammyo at 9:40 AM on October 10, 2017


(which is disingenuous -- as job seeker I would jump into any egregious situation that would have me)

As a contrary, there are a lot of reasonable companies, but with the internet disruptive pressures few companies "at the intense end" need to even suggest overwork, folks are eager and willing.
posted by sammyo at 9:43 AM on October 10, 2017


Yeah, every organization is different, but 1% turnover could also be seen as unhealthy. I've been in organizations where less than 10% turnover is seen as a sign something is off - but again every org/industry is different.

In professional services and creative spaces, you may want turnover to bring in new skills/ideas/innovation, and having some staff leave is often a positive - they may become good customers or advocates within other organizations and are a sign your staff are in-demand in your market etc.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 9:53 AM on October 10, 2017


I think the luxury benefits are also the four weeks of vacation, which until I got out of the military I thought was normal.
posted by corb at 10:02 AM on October 10, 2017


« Older Operation Brain Drain   |   History is a comfort in times of doubt. Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments