Dr. Ehlmann (http://www.cs.siue.edu/faculty/?Who=ehlmannb) asked me to post this on his behalf. -Andrew
Hello,
I am looking for a computer programmer to help at a new startup in Palo Alto, California and I would like to send out the following job description to reach current CS students and alumni. If you could possibly forward the following description to the existing CS list I would greatly appreciate it. I am trying to reach as many CS students or alumni as possible.
Thank you very much!
Jennifer Stingle
WHO ARE WE:
- PageBites is a job and resume search engine.
- Learn more here: http://www.pagebites.com/
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR:
- Smart and hard-working programmers who want to help us improve PageBites.
- We want someone who can join our team immediately.
- You must have (or be working towards) a degree in Computer Science.
- For more details see: http://www.pagebites.com/careers
WE WILL PAY YOU FOR YOUR TIME:
- We are willing to pay you $100 to interview with us.
HOW TO APPLY:
- Upload your resume to PageBites.
- You can sign up for an account here: http://www.pagebites.com/home.
- Send us an email at jobs@pagebites.com with a link to your resume and the subject line: "I want to work at PageBites."
- In your email describe 3 ways you would improve our site.
- We will select qualified candidates for a phone screen.
- If you pass the phone screen, we will bring you in for an interview and pay you $100.
WHAT YOU WILL GET IF YOU ARE HIRED:
- Salary.
- Stock options.
- A $20,000 signing bonus.
QuoteA $20,000 signing bonus.
Huh!?! Is it 1992 again?
And who says there's a Bubble 2.0 on the net?
This many not be a "real" job offer. This company is a search engine for programmer resumes. They need resumes in their database in order to be any good. One of the application requirements is to add your resume to their database for searching. Since the person who sent the e-mail is not in the database (I checked) it is possible that their typical hiring practices don’t include this requirement.
The other funny requirement is that you tell them how you would make their service better. Now, this may not be a strange question to be asked during a face-to-face interview, but to ask it of potential interviewees smacks of market research.
Perhaps I am being paranoid and cynical, but if I am correct, then this company is cleverer than it looks.
Another possibility is that they are hiring, doing market research, and building their database all at the same time. In chess you should always know why your opponent made their last move before you make yours. So to be a better than average chess player you should have more than one reason for each move you make.
The last time I heard of a startup offering signing bonuses likel that it was the mid 90's as Pmotyko said. I am inclined to agree with Andrew, something doesn't quite seem on the level here.