[ID Discuss] Guidance for someone interested in your field

[Gary Burke]

Joshua;

This is very interesting.  Can you tell us more about these tests and 
what they entail?

--Gary

On Apr 5, 2004, at 11:00 AM, Joshua Seiden wrote:

> For what it's worth, I rarely look at portfolios when
> hiring interaction designers. I find portfolios next to
> useless, because they don't demonstrate the skills I'm
> looking for.
>
> 1. If the portfolio consists of interactive demos, it
> is difficult to tell which part the candidate worked
> on. (Interactive products are rarely solo efforts, and
> even if they are, how can I tell that as an evaluator?)
>
> 2. If it consists of shipping products, the same
> problem exists, but is compounded.
>
> 3. If the portfolio consists of static screen shots, it
> does not represent the behavior of the system, which is
> what interests me.
>
> 4. If the portfolio consists of static specification
> documents (rare, as these are mostly confidential) then
> it is likely too detailed for my needs as a hiring
> manager.
>
> I much prefer to evaluate a series of tests. By looking
> at tests, (both at take-home and in-interview) I can
> get a better sense of the candidate's skills and
> approach. This isn't my strategy, I learned it at
> Cooper, but I have yet to see one that better predicts
> the ability of a candidate to do the job for which
> he/she is being considered.
>
> This strategy has advantages for the candidate as
> well--it's difficult to build a portfolio of
> interaction design. Tests give candidates the ability
> to demonstrate what they can do in a much more direct
> manner.
>
> JS
>
>> Dave, you hire people for these sorts of jobs. Would
> you ever
>> consider
>> someone without a portfolio now?
>>
>> I've yet to go on a job interview for a design job
> where they don't
>> want to see one.
>>
>> Dan
>
>
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