People & HRSomeone applying and interviewing

When I read a job advertisement, I want to know what the work actually is, so I do not accept a role quite unlike the one I applied for.

Khi tôi đọc một tin tuyển dụng, tôi muốn biết công việc thật sự là gì, để không nhận một vị trí khác hẳn thứ mình đã ứng tuyển.

Job context

Who
A candidate considering a role
When
Before applying and before accepting
Trigger
Starting and finding the work unlike the description
Situation
Every piece of information comes from the employer
Constraints
Asking too much reads as difficult

5 Pains

  • Job descriptions are written vaguely

    High

    One text reused across different roles.

    Root cause: Descriptions are written to attract applications rather than to describe

  • No idea why the role is vacant

    High

    Why the last person left is never said.

    Root cause: Why the last person left is usually unfavourable to the employer

  • The actual salary for the role is unknown

    High

    So it is impossible to judge whether applying is worth it.

    Root cause: Withholding pay improves the employer's negotiating position

  • Asking closely invites judgement

    Medium

    Candidates are expected to be enthusiastic.

    Root cause: The candidate is the asking party, so the norm favours eagerness

  • The interviewer cannot describe it clearly either

    Medium

    Because they do not do the work.

    Root cause: The recruiter is usually not whoever will work alongside

5 Desired Outcomes

  • Know what the daily work actually is

    Functional
  • Know why the role is vacant

    Functional
  • Know the pay before investing effort

    Functional
  • Ask closely without being judged

    Social
  • Speak with whoever they would work alongside

    Social

5 Existing Solutions

A solution is not the same thing as a product, a customer can hire a behaviour or a workaround too.

  • Read employer reviews online

    Product

    The only counter-source, weighted toward those who left unhappy.

  • Ask someone working there

    Behaviour

    The most accurate source, dependent on knowing anyone.

  • Ask to speak with someone on the team

    Behaviour

    The most effective step, and few candidates know they may ask.

  • Ask directly why the role is open

    Behaviour

    The most valuable question, rarely answered fully.

  • Take the job and see

    Workaround

    What most people do, at the cost of several months of a working life.

2 Opportunity Gaps

  • Whoever describes the job is the employer, and the description is written to attract applications rather than to state the work, and those two goals oppose each other.

    Why existing solutions fail: The only person who could describe it accurately is whoever does the work, and they are not asked to write the advertisement, so the most accurate account of a role sits with someone absent from the process.

    Potential opportunity: Having whoever does the work write the day-to-day section, kept apart from the pitch.

  • Withholding pay improves the employer's negotiating position, so the cost, thousands of candidate hours spent on roles they would never accept, falls entirely on the other side.

    Why existing solutions fail: The first company to publish pay loses its negotiating advantage while others keep theirs, so nobody goes first, a shape only a common rule can undo.

    Potential opportunity: Publishing pay ranges as a market-wide norm, so nobody is penalised for going first alone.