Maître du Monde

Would you recommend a restaurant you’ve never been to, or a book you didn’t read?

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As a developer and as ParisRB’s organiser, I often get asked to pass on offers to “my network”.

The most common problem is simply that I’m not given relevant information. Why would I simply spam my friends with things I don’t know a thing about?

I get that most of these offer come from recruiters, and as middlemen they only get paid if the job contract is signed through them.

I’m very sorry about this vicious cycle, but I need at least:

to know the company and business model (fame and ethics)
location (commute is a significant happiness modifier)
expected work conditions (remote, time off…)
to meet the current team (mandatory in the process, great as an opener)
your philosophy
how your hiree will be managed, how expectations are set and checked
opportunities for growth

And of course you should (or are legally required to) avoid exclusive language.

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You might want to remove whatever the others are adding by default: yes, we all want dedicated, motivated, skilled autonomous, self-improving workers.

We also want coworkers who wash themselves and do not assault others, but that’s never mentioned as it should be obvious. So it’s not really what makes you different, right? Skip it.

Last but not least, on salary range, some say don’t mention it, most say you should. The key here is: most people know it’s open for negociation, especially seniors, so that won’t make them flee.

You should’t go for “depending on skills and previous experience” though, since everybody writes that. How about the very inclusive “feel free to apply even if you don’t meet all the requirements”? Men usually are not stopped by it, but many women are. So this will explain your salary range’s width, AND be inclusive.

So: upfront salary or not? I’d say: