Stop Lying...

Now more than ever, more people go online and look for jobs.Many companies are so desperate to get more work and skills out of the people they do hire, the job of requirements are turning into flat out lies, which in turn make job listings 'unusable'. We all know that hiring managers sometimes get overzealous when they post an opening or contract role. Sometimes hiring companies honestly don't know what an interaction designer does outside of what other job listings have stated, at which point someone 'cuts and pastes' other companies skills into their own opening descriptions. In extreme cases, the job title is so misleading from the responsibilities of the job, it seems like an federal enforcement agency should step in. Example:

Title:Information Architect
Responsibilities: Wireframes, prototypes, Linux server administration and installation, Java and WebSphere
Really? I guess you could say that many companies want to fill a server admin role and an IA role....but with the same person!?

Point 1: We (working class) need an honest assessment of the skills needed today AND tomorrow so we can compare expectations. And by expectations, I mean salary / equipment needs / managerial support. Lying is not good design...

Bad Example: Not too long ago, a person I know was hired to do visual and web design work for a small company. The job requirements were very simple: Adobe CS3, HTML, CSS, and Ajax, which are all typical of a front-end presentation level role. Within two days, the job somehow morphed into a full-fledged certified .NET C# Developer position (SQL included). The company's attempt at sponsored training: Borders. Bad Design? Yes, if you consider the job said 'GUI Designer'.

Good Example: Alan Cooper is a prominent author and founder of his own consulting company. On his Careers section, not only does he 'define' each job category, job exercises are present to help prospects determine where they fall in the companies hierarchy, if at all. Here is a link to an example for the interaction design exercise. Good Design? Yes. Why? I now know that I would not be a good communication designer for Cooper, but I would be a great interaction designer.

Point 2: Hiring Managers and Recruiters must stop pushing expectations apart from one another, just in favor of pacifying all parties until after the contract is signed. For the sake of all disciplines, its not good design to be a Talent Pimp...

Real: Truth and honesty can make many things usable, including software and designs

Imagined: Lying, deception, talent pimping