[kwlug-disc] Secure email alternative

[Paul Nijjar]

On Wed, Jun 22, 2016 at 10:00:47AM -0400, B.S. wrote:
> 
> Paul, could you explain your expected use case / purpose - it's
> intriguing. (And it feels like the suggestions don't preclude GUI or
> web use, so perhaps a bonus. [RSS feeds? Android/smartphone
> receipt?])

Okay, I'll bite. I hope that it does not blow up the conversation into
a big controversy, however. 

Basically, I have been thinking about how to hire sysadmins better.
Nobody likes hiring sysadmins, and if you advertise widely then you
are flooded with resumes. Then you arbitrarily sift through those
resumes dropping people for dumb reasons like spelling mistakes.
Alternatively you restrict the places you advertise these job
postings, and then you miss out on good candidates who never hear about
the position. Given our salary structure it is even harder to find
good candidates (we have been lucky so far, but it has been a struggle
to find people who have skills, the right social approach, and can
afford to work for us). 

Another fear I have is discrimination. I would like the hiring process
to be as anonymous as possible for as long as possible, so that we are
not swayed by (explicit or implicit) bias as to what a good candidate
looks like.

As far as I know we are not hiring anybody right now. But I am mulling
over how difficult it would be to restructure the hiring process
if/when we hire again. It feels as if this is a tractable problem when
hiring sysadmins. The sysadmins you hire ought to be able to do
sysadminny things. So why not frontload the "technical interview" part
of the process by making potential applicants do sysadminny things as
part of the job application process? Configuring a mail client is not
proof that someone will make a good sysadmin, but being unable to do
so is evidence that maybe they shouldn't be applying.




- Paul

-- 
http://pnijjar.freeshell.org