But does whether you are impressed or not actually matter? It doesn't seem you're being particularly sensible about your opinion.
Candidate spoke about WoW in an interview
- Thread starter fergie128
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But does whether you are impressed or not actually matter? It doesn't seem you're being particularly sensible about your opinion.
Soldato
So if you know how it works why say such a stupid comment about instant messaging?
As for whether you are impressed, do you interview people? what do you do?
Unless the communication is face to face it's largely pointless from an employers perspective. Anyone can be a keyboard warrior or overly confident on voip.
Yes, I have interviewed people and as I said I would not be impressed by this or class it as relevant experience for any job.
Don't really get the hostility and if it's really 'normal' why was this thread created...
I don't know how WOW works other than it is a game people play online
however I'd value a candidate presenting something like that if done well
no ones opinion matters unless they are the interviewer.
the candidate's opinion matters too - interviews are a two way process, if the manager doesn't appreciate the example then he/she might not be a great person to work for (as far as a quantitative job is concerned). Likewise if the candidate is rejected based on that part of the interview then maybe he/she has dodged a naff job anyway.
Do you interview people for data science/analytics roles or are you in a different field.?
Not read the whole thread but has anyone mentioned or considered that he knew exactly what he was doing? As in, did he research you beforehand and stumbled upon something online that gave him a clue that you are a WoW fan?
Only mentioning as that is text book something I would do. I heavily research anyone interviewing me or anyone I have have to interview beforehand to get a feel for the person. The younger the person(s) are, the more you tend to find on them.
Only mentioning as that is text book something I would do. I heavily research anyone interviewing me or anyone I have have to interview beforehand to get a feel for the person. The younger the person(s) are, the more you tend to find on them.
For a job I really wanted I would do the same.
I have brought up things I knew the interviewer was interested in during interview. From even basic social media you can find out a lot about some people.
As for WOW being worth something....
I would be initially skeptical but would take it into account if explained properly... If explained badly this might end up a negative.
For me it's very hit and miss. I played WoW back at launch doing 40-man raids but quit it after a year because it was consuming far too much time. Sure it takes some organising, but organising people's fake online personas in a fantasy world really doesn't compare to managing real people in the real world doing real work.
Ultimately, if there were two otherwise similar candidates
1) Plays WoW and runs a raiding guild
2) Volunteers, contributes to open source projects, is involved in sports teams etc
I would take 2 *every single time*
Ultimately, if there were two otherwise similar candidates
1) Plays WoW and runs a raiding guild
2) Volunteers, contributes to open source projects, is involved in sports teams etc
I would take 2 *every single time*
Yes. However my interviewing style tends to be rather different than most people.
I break down three areas as a discussion:
a) the area above the role - this sees how they can relate and how they can work with those, fill gaps and understand if they have more to give.
b) the area of the role - uncovering the person.. what drives them and it's quickly apparent if the role doesn't make them feel like getting out of bed in the morning, picking up the problem and owning it till solving it.
c) the technicalities of the role
So for example, a straight software engineer
a) can they take an ambiguous starting point and generate a solution (i.e. solutions architect), talk about working with different cultures globally, how a estimation works in scrum .. etc. I may add additional problems to the mix at this level to test how they can manage stakeholders etc.
b) talk about things to understand how they see code, how they see data etc.
c) i.e. go through lifecycles, tools etc.
I'll do this with a whiteboard... as a discussion to solve a given problem.
I don't sit there and ask them 99 questions about their piece of paper.. after all - they'll be working with me and it's the personality and their approach that drives the business forward.
To me - the OP's example is one where they are demonstrating precisely what is needed, and the reason they do it is that they're interested in that.. I would also like to see real world interactions etc.. but a guild lead has a load of crap on their plate that isn't fun..
Bit of a late response on this one, but I did offer the guy the job, he accepted and he is doing fantastic as part of my team 
Soldato
Thread delivers
Soldato
Bit of a late response on this one, but I did offer the guy the job, he accepted and he is doing fantastic as part of my team
That's great news
It's a shame that decent candidates can be missed purely because the interviewer can't see the value in something outside of their own little bubble! Good to see it didn't happen in this case
Soldato
Wicked, that's great. I would have too if he had been good!
Deleted member 66701
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Deleted member 66701
What about for those whose gaming is their work?
I've just completed a small contract where I heuristically evaluated an interface for a new game. I wouldn't have got the contract if I didn't talk about my gaming experience.
OP - did he just jump straight in talking about WoW or did he sound out the panel first and figured one of you might be interested?
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Soldato
still consequence free, EVE is not real life. all you waste is your time. People don't die and businesses don't shut down if you screw up, at worst you get corp booted for wasting corp resources, which again means nothing because it is in a fantasy world with no consequence appart form if you are one of those nutter types that turn up at someones house after doxing them so you can get some real world payback, then you just need to be locked up in a mental ward and beaten hourly with an ironbar to your face.
Soldato
I am sorry, but is time not part of real life? Is investing time, the most valuable of resources not real life? I am sure most sane people would state that losing anything that you invested time in is not consequence free. if you spent hours building a chair, or restoring a car, building websites or writing software and then lost it would that matter because no one died and a business didn't shut down? After all, it's only wasted time.
However, I don't really value the opinion of anyone that thinks locking someone up in a mental ward and beating them hourly in the face with an iron bar is acceptable. "Yeah they have mental health issues, beat them!"
I think culture fit is a massive thing so the fact you have a connection is a great positive, we've all hired people who are competent but just not your sort of person.
While that's not an issue, for me it's preferable that you have the personality fit too.
You also say he used the WoW examples alongside relevant professional experience so it's more that he's put the cherry on top of the cake with those examples.
While that's not an issue, for me it's preferable that you have the personality fit too.
You also say he used the WoW examples alongside relevant professional experience so it's more that he's put the cherry on top of the cake with those examples.