Ask a Manager

A reader writes: My company has a very small number of permanent employees but we employ a large number of entry-level seasonal workers at a couple of points in the year. We don’t have landlines, only company cell phones. The phone number on our website, brochures, etc. is my number and job applicants often call […]

A reader writes: I recently posted a position that’s a bit above entry-level. People from various backgrounds could do well in the role, but I had a pretty specific profile in mind when I wrote the job description. I was thinking I’ll never find someone who checks all these boxes, but I did! This person […]

A reader writes: My organization receives hundreds of applications from candidates looking to fill our vacant positions. Hiring can be a very time-consuming process. How can I get applicants to stop applying if we have already declined them multiple times? There are various reasons for this. Some of the applicants have had negative references and […]

A reader writes: We’re looking for a temp to come in and cover one of my colleagues, Melissa, who is going on extended medical leave for six months. The staffing agency has sent us lots of candidates, but only one of them had the skills we were looking for. Anne has a few years of […]

A reader writes: My organization recently replaced merit increases with capped bonuses. While I think this is a bad policy and I’m pushing back on it, in the meantime I’m concerned about my responsibility to new hires. I would never have thought to ask about this as a candidate. I’m hiring a new junior staff […]

A reader writes: I work for a law firm and have significant input in hiring (including interviewing candidates). I have a question about how we talk about salary with candidates. None of the job ads we publish specify a salary range. They say something like, “We have no fixed salary for the position, but intend […]

A reader writes: I am hiring someone for an entry-level position. It is meant for someone straight out of college and new to the field who is interested in learning a lot, meeting loads of highly connected people, and launching a potentially awesome career. I’ve set the salary to be a little above what other […]

A reader writes: I recruit for a large company that staffs festivals, conventions, and sporting events. A lot of our applicants are young university graduates or recent high school graduates, ranging from 18-21. Our younger candidates will have their parent(s) call on their behalf, asking why an application is taking so long, why they didn’t […]

A reader writes: The admin team at the front of our office is very sensitive to strong smells (good or bad). Our company is currently hiring for an off-site position, but the interviews are happening in our office. The last few candidates who have come in for interviews have been bathed in perfume, to the […]