It in the coffee business: I was one of many hostages salaries twitching eye Bashny.Net

Yet all and all I'm thinking about retraining in the lab, trying to find solid ground in shaky Belarusian reality are the originals, decided to get out of the "trap high salaries." Sergey Shamber, former HR Director of the company Altoros, left of the it sector, where he worked for 10 years (by the way, it's almost the first Belarusian HR seeking first Belarusian rubyists), coffee hedonism — opened the online store freshly roasted coffee.

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Himself a programmer, a Barista, the seller and the courier told dev.by about what it's like to quit a high-paying job in 40 years, with "almost zero" start-up capital to do the job for everyone. And it's about movers with space ambitions (when he started recruiting in trade), ways to bring the thief to clean water, forgivable for the programmer oddities, ideological rubyists and Mercantile dotnetkicks, "black lists" and poor people with large salary.

10 years ago: from trade in a small design Studio with big problems— I was born in Shchuchin. There was a military airfield, my father is former military, we lived in the aviation camp. In 1993 I received one of the first private universities in the country — the Belarusian commercial University of management in Grenoble, international economic relations. Lucky that in those years, private education has tied up a lot of expectations, teachers were in some kind of euphoria: uh, turn back now! Then all such universities are "averaged". After graduating he moved to Minsk in graduate school, wrote a thesis on the subject "Human resources" quite a lot taught. But somehow even ashamed: I am not a teacher, when the real experience of zero. In 2002, took a break for a year or went in the army and thought about the meaning of life.

In those days I had a childish idea that there must be some special Belarusian model of management on a par with Japanese or American. So I went to HR, starting with a recruiter.

Trading company, where I served another "zero kid" consisted of a large network of outlets in the markets and shops. They were looking for sales staff — porters, sellers. A couple of years later, in 2005, looked at jobs, and went in it then it wasn't even mainstream.

... This is late to our interview at Altoros will come former MAZ worker, a surgeon, a pediatrician and engineer of forestry...

My first job in it — a small design Studio with big problems. Shortly before my arrival there went almost all of the salespeople, the Director even sold a car to pay off people. Alas, the company didn't make it and six months later closed but the experience in "extreme" conditions were super-interesting.

The loader can't rule the galaxy, and the pros — is it possible?To find good loader to not drink, do not steal, and even lived in Kolodishchi (there were warehouses) is even more difficult than the top Manager. Phone chopped off the most inveterate. One guy was nice until I was informed confidentially that he was going to conquer foreign galaxies and rule the worlds. Seriously. And goodbye to a conspiratorial whisper added, "I also have organization." Which organization? «Terrible.» And left.

Pros can be forgiven for such things — maybe trolls, and maybe the Universe will take over. Who knows.

The line in the case of pros is wider than in the case of a loader, and strangeness — a kind of norm. In the same Altoros worked people on whom we can say: what is he a little crazy! The employee excellent.

Non-standard candidates lacked. But "originality" served as a reason for refusal only in extreme cases. One candidate solution took a very long time – too non-standard man, was really scary to read his blog about the revenge the neighbor across the scroll faeces in her borrowed from a grinder (not to mention about experiments with electrodes and a severed chicken head). At the same time — if not a genius, somewhere nearby. It's a difficult decision — to hire the genius who can be crazy, or Vice versa. How did that work out? Whether took, whether he refused, can't remember.

By the way, why do people steal?In some sense, the question of environment. In the 70s there was a "filter theory" according to which the value of the diploma is not in acquired knowledge and in human ability to set goals and achieve them. It is a marker, a filter that sorts people according to their qualities. Someone passes, and some don't. Trade in higher education is not really necessary, and theft — often the norm. Therefore, the interview was necessary to determine whether a person is prone to steal. Straight did not ask, he will say "no, well, you!". Here work well the projective questions: "what would you have fired at once"? For example, the person says, well, theft. "By the way, Yes, but why do people steal"? Well, bad! Okay, most likely, such a person can even take the job, but only if the warehouses under observation and everything is "fine."

And it is not theft is a sensitive issue.

Torn pattern: carrot better than the stick?While I was very green, stiff controls made me mad: it's people, we need them like human beings, they can not whip! But when you take the calculator, it turns out that the carrot stick is more profitable. On the same market sellers whip acted in better times. There are cost-effective to invest in hiring new people than to retain old ones. It broke all of my teenage templates and sounds a little sacrilegious, but "it's business, baby."

In it, again, Vice versa.

Donetchiny and rubyists: who works for money and who is behind the idea?For example, the candidate N1 — the passion for money, and the candidate N2 — passion to work. Whom to choose? Surely the candidate of N2 and specialist better, and develops by leaps and bounds, and "overlimit" if necessary.

I remember discussing this with the owner of Altoros. Thing here is that money is the easiest management tool, especially if they are. The candidate N1 to agree easier. Candidate N2 uncomfortable: it's not clear what he will want tomorrow. Suddenly spit and say "had enough, going to sell coffee." That's how I am. And does not hold. To negotiate with such a man, need a proper and deep management team; many lack the experience or time. And so agreed on a new amount of cool.

But humanly speaking, I prefer to work with those who have a passion for work. In the book "good to great" American Jim Collins and team analyzed several dozen companies from the Fortune 500, breaking them in pairs: each pair was launched about the same, but within 30 years one of them came rushing forward, significantly increasing the cost of the shares. The researcher identified a list of General principles that allowed to make the breakthrough. Among them are people with a passion for the work.

By the way, according to my observations, among dotnetkicks more people tend to work only for money than for ruby developers. The rubyists — people, freedom-loving, independent, less inclined to work in the system. Probably not so much the technology affects the character, how many character — the choice of technology.

Best recruiter — not a psychologist, and the sellerIn Minsk get-together, many recruiters don't like it-HR, saying that girls go to recruitment to find a husband at last! Hence the projection to the entire industry if all come here for money or men. There is still important not to generalize.

In 2003, when I came to eychary, the profession was new, explicit gender associations with "women's work" was not. Why now there are mostly girls? Never know. For me the main criterion of professionalism of the recruiter — not in gender, and in relation to work.

Recruiter — it is, in fact, the seller: he sells the company. Therefore, the best training for recruiters — is the most common sales training.

For me, the best recruiter is not a psychologist or a marketer, a salesman, graduated BSUIR (though not in the it profession, and economist), with successful experience in sales. Not even because I'm the economist. Economists generally put at the forefront the principle of efficiency and benefit for the company and employee, and do not delve into the inner world of man.

"Eychary not needed"? Debate on the topic "eychary not needed" makes no sense. If Lead or PM themselves climbed on the message boards in search of the subordinates, they would be good, I think, but their time is much more expensive. No wonder the basic textbook "Economics" McConnell and Brue give you an example about painting a house: it makes sense to call the painter and not to do this work yourself, if your time is worth a lot more than time. Even when you can handle it better.

A eychary offended that their role in the company is not so great as they would like, they somehow do not give them the reins.

I will say this: if you can do more, take it and keep it. Why complain? Suggest, try, do, if all this will result, that no adequate head you will not push. At Altoros, we have launched a very complex multi-pass program based recruitment CRM technology, while many recruiters are still some database in Excel.

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"Black list" of HR, or, and here the naturistsInternal "black list" have any company — otherwise it would be ineffective. For example, in a trading company we had a list of firms "immigrants" of which not hired: the work was structured so that the sellers had or the guys are to make, or to deceive buyers. If the person has not escaped from there five days, then it is likely to be "spoiled" we don't want you

In "black lists" often get people with addiction to alcohol. In my opinion, alcohol is not the wolf ticket: there were cases when such people are hired, and Altoros hired them and other companies after dismissal from Altoros. In it people are quite tolerant and can give the person another chance, stepping on your throat. But, of course, in the case where the 5 years of drinking and couldn't break free.

Example Altoros: our CRM-system was introduced the whole story of the relationship with the candidate. After the interview the recruiter had written their impressions. There were cases when one of the recruiters wrote a negative review about a person (I read and think: God forbid such hiring!), and after some time in a new interview from the other or even that the recruiter slightest negativity is not confirmed, the candidate was made a job offer.

And Yes: we have inside information no one "groped".

This planet generally rests on subjective assessments, stereotypes, and values. Take a beach nudist for clarity — many African tribes it is a common form of clothing; Minsk argues, to set whether they riot; and one Muslim father allowed his daughter to drown, if only the rescuers had not defiled her touch. Ethical and moral aspects is complex and subjective. If a recruiter has his head screwed on, he will not make the decision based only on the "black list".

Hostage salaries twitching eyeIt's a lot of poor people — hostages high salaries. The person suffers, suffers and works, like those mice who ate the cactus through tears. However, there is a plus: you can step on your throat, to accumulate a little capital to do what you love.

It was the hardest decision of my life — nearly 40 years to start from scratch with almost no capital spent on the solution of housing problems. Family, child. And this at a time when everyone and everything around are in it! A lot of people twisted a finger at a temple.

Interesting point: several times during my career, I was very much involved in methods of time management. For example, every 10 minutes recorded than busy, and have time to do twice as much. However, earned while a nervous TIC. For the first time this happened in the same trading company. Reflect and twitching eye started looking for a new job. Since then, if suddenly puts me in increasing personal effectiveness, I immediately understand that something is going wrong it is time to change something in life. It happened a couple of years ago at Altoros. Stopped "gravity". In the morning, did not want to go anywhere.

Childrens hobby: home-made wine from apples and "Young technician" A couple of years I was thinking, why do we live, what is the point? Loomed four key principles: doing what is a passion; to be free; to benefit and pleasure of myself and others; to live in prosperity. And without twitchy.

Well, what a brilliant idea, you can check for 20 dollars with contextual advertising, and landing-page, seeing that it is a failure. So I cut down my startup idea "remote Secretary" for a leader who has not earned the Secretary. Tested — and found wanting to have an electronic Secretary is 10 times less than you need for profit.

Tried a bunch of methods to find my purpose. One of them is to remember what you liked in childhood, when you were not burdened with foreign conventions. At that time I was very intrigued by the drinks, my first Apple wine I made back in 10th grade, loved beer and coffee. And since online beer and wine are not supposed to sell, it remains coffee.

First sold "coffee subscription": you buy a subscription for the quarter and each month get a new variety of coffee, each time it is partly a surprise. Something like a subscription in childhood on magazines like "Junior technician". However, the project did not take off. These startups have already been – subscription of men's socks, for example. Alas, Belorussians more used to the scheme "money-the chairs," and to pay it forward for that clear don't want.

Old coffee, stale bread, reheated kebabOnline store freshly roasted coffee I have in mind when I cook at home my first Cup of this grain and nuts from taste of the drink. Thought: "Damn!". And this feeling still continues.

Unfortunately, roasted coffee beans live a month. Then it is like stale bread heated in the microwave or barbecue. It's simple chemistry: when roasting coffee there is a reaction between amino acids and sugars, releasing a huge amount of aromatic substances, but they are fast disappearing, and after a month almost disappear. Two months later, the coffee will be old, without nuances, fruity and floral notes, bitter. "Strong bitter coffee" is a stamp from the Soviet era bad coffee, in fact coffee with blackcurrant sour or plum shades is incredibly delicious.

Himself a programmer, and also a Barista, the seller and the courierStarting capital was about fifteen hundred dollars. The first $ 600 was nearly flat in the wind — hired for the customization engine online store freelancer from Novosibirsk. It's still half of the project had to be searched out or drinking or partying. For the next project on a new site I just gave $ 18 purchase pattern. This is a common one-page landing-page with an external module of the order, and a couple of months of work on the knee.

Fear and terror in me suggests the idea that I'm gonna be a courier, you will have to go in the wrong entrances. Already shivers down your spine, what a nightmare! And now it is almost the most favorite part of the job — with great pleasure I communicate with people (without a team-especially no one to talk to, and the family is already tired). Sometimes they probably want to vipinet kicking me out the door.

A third of my customers — pros who are willing to buy coffee a little more expensive than the market average. But I would not have allocated them in a separate category: the it guy with the same success can home brewing tasteless coffee, and not pros. Many middle-aged buyers, many leaders.

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8 grams for 120 mlHard to compete with mass-market: due to the desire to save and the lack of knowledge and alternative experience people don't care to drink. Coffee culture is like a religion, where Belarusians while the Gentiles.

Same with the offices in it, and not in it 95% of the people in the company still, what kind of coffee to drink. Even a good drink they like to spoil, came with a huge mug and the 250 ml of water through the coffee "the pill" instead of having to cook a classic Americano. To make single or double espresso 35 or 60 ml, and then dilute it with hot water. Or brew good coffee in a Cup: the proportion of 8 grams to 120 ml, and pour with boiling water and the water is 90-96 degrees, which did not have time to boil. What can I say, I've been, but everything can be learned.

Born in the USSR: happiness and wealth are not our values?Over 10 years in it I have satisfied all the needs, all the Maslow's pyramid and then gathered courage and got out of the trap. But to give unsolicited advice "people trapped" I would not.

I remember in the first years of work trying to advise candidates that the interview say the same. Just so next time they took the job. Not that said thank you — felt that they learn from the life of some jerk.

I was brought up in the USSR, we were taught that selfishness, their happiness and wealth is bad form, our man happy in a bakery do not go, not that Soviet values. And I for many years suffered: damn, what if I want to be rich, good or bad? And then I realized that happy and "selfish" brings much more benefit to society and friends, he is busy with his business, so effective. And not injected from 8.00 to 17.00 on autopilot from payday to payday.

This is the case with the farm, which has nothing to do with the squirrels stealing the harvest: protein 24 hours (not counting breaks for sleep) thinking of how to steal, so she successful, and for farmers only important go-to workday. published 

Photo: Eugene Erchak.

P. S. And remember, just changing your mind — together we change the world! ©

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