The author is on to something here: "look for reasons to say yes"
The default in hiring is no. Confirming the default is a lot of work, and often, you miss a lot of great talent. Here are some situations where I've seen this play out:
NO because of degree requirement. YES candidate wrote the CMS our product was built with. (candidate didn't get job because we found out two years later he had applied and the recruiter never forwarded the resume on)
NO because of 3 years out of industry. YES to candidate because he had the same job at competitor that went public 3 years ago and had a 3 year non-compete (was a CFO, so it was real). (recruiter had a policy of I talk to every applicant, and the candidate told her who he was and why he applied... hired)
NO because of multiple 1 year gaps in employment. YES because candidate had managed multiple five year construction projects on time, on budget. Turns out the gaps were where they guy took one year off and volunteered, helping build schools in Africa. (recruiter sent to hiring manager, and hiring manager passed because he thought the guy was a "job hopper")
Exactly. I don't want to spend weeks interviewing people, my boss doesn't want to pay me to interview people, and my PM wants someone who can work on their tickets ASAP. It will be much easier for me if I can just hire you.
So "give me reasons to say yes" is great advice, along with "don't give me reasons to say no" (like lying or being an arrogant douchebag).
Use things like degrees as a green flag, rather than the absence of one being a red flag.
The default in hiring is no. Confirming the default is a lot of work, and often, you miss a lot of great talent. Here are some situations where I've seen this play out:
NO because of degree requirement. YES candidate wrote the CMS our product was built with. (candidate didn't get job because we found out two years later he had applied and the recruiter never forwarded the resume on)
NO because of 3 years out of industry. YES to candidate because he had the same job at competitor that went public 3 years ago and had a 3 year non-compete (was a CFO, so it was real). (recruiter had a policy of I talk to every applicant, and the candidate told her who he was and why he applied... hired)
NO because of multiple 1 year gaps in employment. YES because candidate had managed multiple five year construction projects on time, on budget. Turns out the gaps were where they guy took one year off and volunteered, helping build schools in Africa. (recruiter sent to hiring manager, and hiring manager passed because he thought the guy was a "job hopper")