RE: What is an expert?

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"tony h" wrote:
Having just participated in a recruitment process I noticed
how frequently people where prepared to attribute the
epithet "excel expert" to themselves. It is also clear that
this is usually well intended but also substantially
inconsistant across candidates.

"Well-intended"? I think you give them more credit than they
probably deserve. In my experience, almost everyone claims
they are an "expert" of whatever it is they do. That is true of
almost every profession. I no longer give any value to the claim.

(Actually, I will go a step further and say that a true expert
rarely calls himself that.)

Any ideas on what could or should be done to differentiate
candidates successfully?

I want to say that I sympathize, but you must also understand
that it is nearly an impossible problem. There is no difference
between your problem and recognizing a "tax expert".

Keep in mind that even a certification only tells you that the
person was able to pass the test. It provides little insight into
their problem-solving skills, not even their ability to use every
element of Excel with "expert" capability. Moreover, unless
you have Excel expertise yourself, it might difficult for you to
evaluate a candidate's ability to solve quiz-like problems that
you might present as a test.

Here are some steps you can take to ameliorate the problem;
but please keep in mind that they are no guarantee.

First, be sure that someone you trust and whom you believe
"really knows" Excel and its use in your company is involved
in the evaluation process.

Second, before any recruiting, sit down with people in your
company who "really know" Excel and determine what Excel
skills you require. Excel is a very broad product now; for
example, "spread***" skills offer little insight into "charting
skills", much less the ability to create interactive or aesthetic
products. And even "knowledge of macros" does not go far
enough to determine a person's skill with VBA, for example.
Some macros depend only on standard knowledge of Excel;
some require "programming skill" as well.

Also, with this self-evaluation, you might discover that some
of the "Excel skills" that you require are really from other
disciplines such as accounting, statistics and, as I mentioned,
computer programming (which itself is overly broad).

Third, ask candidates specific questions about those Excel
skills (or discipline skills) that you depend on. Yes, it might
be useful to have some "typical" problems at hand. But
usually, any problems that can be solved within the short
time of an interview or "recruitment" are usually trivial
enough that it does not take an "expert" to solve them.

What I think works better is to ask a candidate about a
real-world problem that either you have not solved yet or,
better, you solved only recently. Do not expect a neat
complete solution. Simply look at the candidates reaction
and listen to his response. If his eyes gleam with the
challenge, if he asks reasonable follow-up questions
(which should be necessary), if he offers some "off-hand
ideas" (not real solutions) that seem to be going in the
right direction, and if he can demonstrate just a few details
on the spot, you probably have a winner.

And I will add that if you are not comfortable with presenting
such a challenge, you are not the correct person to conduct
this part of the interview or screening.

Having said all that, keep in mind that it's still "a crap-shoot".
I think that is true of nearly everything -- for example, hiring
a plumber or electrician to do a job.

Good luck!
.

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