Across Weirdish Wild Space

Just a little propaganda for my peeps…

My boss surprised me with asking for one of these after an ask for (non-IT) language training (that, may I add, was something I had negotiated prior to joining the organization but the people who made that deal are now gone and there is nothing in writing – note to self…sigh… ).

So, I took a shot at one.

One ask was a year’s worth of language training to achieve the goal of functional fluency by the end and also a promise to take vacation time in countries where it was the predominant language to work on said fluency (and I can actually point to examples where having functional fluency in other languages was useful in my job), but have the feeling it may be a big ask without further justification or some sort of weird path. I wrote something up that kind of incorporated both my personal and organizational goals but am unconvinced it was as compelling as I’d like. As you start getting closer to the top of the organization it seems that justifying investments in your skills for progression definitely seems harder.

Anyone have any thoughts on how to deal with this, or other formats that might be appropriate to doing this ? It feels weird even having to justify some of the non-IT things I’ve asked, since they seem almost no-brainers for anyone who isn’t in IT, but I find the fact that I am in tech actually seems to be an issue when the subject of business, strategic, linguistic or other types of non-IT training comes up. I mean, on top of the language ask I’m thinking EMBA type stuff and courses you find in the pages of The Economist or HBR but am not even sure how to broach it past mentioning it in the memo and particularly since the language classes were asked to be justified.

As an example, for my team, I’ve tried to allocate the equivalent of 5% of their salaries in my budget for training courses for each individual and also told them that I’d happily support any language training they want to do since we’re an international organization. However, my boss seems either not to be too big on the idea of me receiving training or simply needs some sort of document for backup on where I want to go.

Thoughts ? Any approaches that have worked for other people ?

Well, I’m back from the absolutely amazing city of Istanbul (not Constantinople ;-) ) and will be flying out to Toronto ASAP for meetings with CivicActions who are working on the redesign and new technological underpinnings of our website.

So, anyone in Toronto within range of this, give me a yell. Already meeting with the usual suspects while in town, but always good to see who else is up to what.

It feels a little like jetsetting, but on the cheap working for a global NGO—somehow not. It does make me feel like I’ve made a very good decision for myself as far as choosing a good path, job-wise. For some reason, covering distance feels like you’ve accomplished a lot even if it’s only changing locations.

And it’s great to be in Mexico again. Utterly fantastic to hear Spanish spoken as the primary language everywhere and see it written. I’m rusty and making mistakes, but still getting by though I really need to level up before I hit the big show back here again in August. The people are as I remember them; warm and welcoming, quick to help, and even faster with a joke and a big smile.

I woke up this morning because of roosters crowing out in the fields with sunrise and I can’t tell you how long it’s been since I’ve heard that. I’m quite a ways south of Mexico City, in Morelos, along the Ruta Zapata in a tiny place called Coyococ, which mans “place of the coyotes” in Nahuatl, the old language descended from when the Aztecs ruled this entire area.

And so I find myself, typing in a hacienda bedroom, gorgeous in its antiquity and charm, and while out of range of the reception’s wireless, I can still connect when I walk over for breakfast and see how things are back at the ranch with my team. It feels off-grid but somehow not and I’m sure I could get used to taking coffee on the patio after lunch while connected to the internet and getting things done anywhere in the world.

The wise choice of phone I made back in Canada (a Sony-Ericson T610) with GSM works great down here and I can also text my team which came in handy when I didn’t know there was an internet connection to be had.

Part of the TV production crew for the music label was doing a timelapse test of some of their equipment out my office window the day before I left and I asked them if they’d give it to me. Absolutely no problem. Thanks C !

Of course, this is just going to make me really miss the old place. It’s been pouring in London ever since I got here this morning. =<

[backposted]

My original reason for being in Silicon Valley was to check out the possibility of moving our entire Business Intelligence stack over to open source. MySQL seems like a no brainer with the MyISAM storage engine optimized for fast reads and with the new 5.0 version supporting Stored Procedures and Views looks like it will be the next successor to our data warehouse as we move off DB2.

The workshop though was pretty basic from my perspective. Perhaps it should have been longer but I felt it focused on way too many of the basics of datawarehousing than on the nitty, gritty technical details that anyone who probably signed up for the course should have been aware of if they were going.

In other words, it is great if you’re thinking of implementing a data warehouse for your organization and want to use MySQL and have no idea about the basic principles behind dimensional modelling and other BI essentials. However, if you’ve already got something in place and are looking to migrate or for an alternative and are quite knowledgeable, I have to say that this course is not the best use of your time. I also felt the instructor dodged a lot of the in-depth technical questions I needed answered in order to figure out where the gotchas in a migration of this magnitude would be.

The one thing it did do, however, was reaffirm that the approach I am taking to solving my organization’s problems are essentially correct and validate he conclusions I’ve drawn.

Also, the networking was invaluable. It was great knowing that numerous other individuals with existing data warehouses are facing the exact same problems as I am and are struggling with the same issues.

For some reason, it feels a little bit weird to be travelling again, especially on business. I got so used to travelling merely for my own purposes or on spec the last few years that the idea of being sent somewhere on business seems almost alien again. I mean, I used to do it all the time when I was working in Toronto, but out here, it seems incongruous somehow. And back to the US no less.

And weirdly, travelling always makes me acutely aware of where I am and where I’m going and what I’m doing, but not until the time I actually sit on the plane. Ironically, the Horizon flight taking me to Portland was actually named “The City of Kelowna.” I hate cosmic coincidences. They make you question free will.

But it feels strange. Things have been going so well in Vancouver that I’m almost reluctant to leave the sheltered West End existence I’ve built for myself. The beach sunsets, the corner coffee shop and new coterie of friends to play with. Afraid breaking my connection with the ground will somehow end a string of fabulous good fortune.

So, I’m now in the Portland airport, trying to coax more than a weak signal out of the airport wireless.

I can tell I’m in the US now I’ve landed, there are a fleet of F-15s on an adjacent field I could see as we were taxiing to the terminal from landing.

Just an hour’s layover and then off to the Schwarzenegger state.

I will be down in the San Francisco area for a Business Intelligence workshop from June 1st to the 5th. The conference is on the 2nd and 3rd so I’m down for the weekend to visit Vancouver’s poorer American cousin. :-)

It’s a first for me visiting the Schwarzenegger state and SF itself so really looking forward to it. I don’t know what the usual cast of suspects down there I know is up to, but if you’re around you know I haven’t seen you in a while so try not to be scarce.

I’m out in Cupertino for the Thursday and Friday 9-5 each day but free after that.

For those asking, the interview went exceptionally well today.

Lurv the company, the business is fascinating and of high geek appeal, the people seem fantastic, the position appears almost tailor-made for me and it took less than 5 minutes of very minor negotiating for me to accept their offer. I’m really excited about it actually.

So, I’m pulling stakes and heading to Vancouver in very short order.

Basically, in the next 2 weeks I will be rapidly locating an apartment (or another boat !) and moving my many unpacked boxes and my hanged hat to a new home to start.

Also, if anyone knows of places in Vancouver, has some recommendations on nice neighbourhoods I should be considering downtown, or even knows someone less than insane looking for a serious roommate, please drop me a line. Ocean views eminently preferable… :-)

I’m against animal testing. They get all nervous and give the wrong answers.

Not so long ago, throughout the 19th century, there was a very popular, oft-cited, scientific methodology known as phrenology. Phrenology was used, quite effectively it was felt, to classify the character and personality traits of human beings by the highly scientific and rigourous principles of the day. It was so respected in fact, that it was used in crime investigations and several convictions were secured using the highly detailed, scientifically proven methods and measurements.

Phrenology accomplished this by measuring the bumps on people’s heads.

Phrenology’s assumption was that different areas of the brain had different functions (fair enough) and that the overlying skull bones would reflect those nascent qualities in individuals. While completely discredited as pseudo-scientific nonsense today, I think it serves as a valuable warning to the modern day.

The thing that really disturbs me is the amount that similar “phrenological” analyses are being used by a number of employers I’ve run into recently, for hiring candidates for positions at their companies. So, a few stories and some thoughts.

Anyone who tunes in to my blog will know that I had a recent escapade with a major US not-for-profit, Ashoka, who asked me about my Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. I had asked them about this before I went down as I have moral objections to the test. However, when I was called in to see the CEO (who I was told is a big believer in the test) he asked me point blank about it and, to my perhaps stupid credit, I told him honestly what I thought.

Basically, I said, I have been tested and had a MBTI though it was ten years ago, I could not recall it off the top of my head, disagreed with it and had issues with MBTI methodology. I gave little credence to it, as I felt it was inaccurate, biased, based on unsound principles, unscientific, suffered from confirmation bias, and had no provable basis in fact. Additionally, I said, much like IQ tests, it has a massive cultural bias. Most critics of the MBTI will tell you these things. I did not think it was news though the CEO in question did try to address my last point.

What I held back from saying was that I felt the tests were essentially psychometric voodoo. Pseudoscientific gobbledygook. I actually think of them as something akin to your Jungian horoscope actually as the tests are not even based on psychology but Jungian philosophy. Any one of the profiles will seem close to you because all people have those traits somewhat in their psyche. In much the same way that horoscopes are written they are so incredibly and disingenuously generic that they fit a great many people.

I am not a psychologist (IANAP), but the fact is, I do have a background in econometrics, so I know how unbelievably easy it is to use statistics to misrepresent facts. To me, this is the basis that the MBTI is built on and other psychometric tests of its ilk that purport to be able to judge character traits, sales ability, and other nonsense based on some tired, worn philosophy of propensity.

Now I am not saying I did not get the job solely because of my MBTI or my expressed reluctance to buy into the MBTI methodology of the NGO in question (they do, in fact, have it baked into their selection methodology but when I asked questions about it prior to my interviews in DC everyone below the CEO said it would not be a problem). I will say that it definitely coloured the CEO’s perception of me and he was in fact the sole person who opposed my hiring as IT Director after 10 interviews over 3 months with this particular organization.

Likewise, the original person that sent me to get the MBTI, a manager at Kraft, used the test as a way of manipulating my performance reviews to reduce the rather rave reviews I would get from my peers in the organization in my 360s (she has since been let go by the organization). Basically, since I was profile X, profile X had certain issues in these areas based on the MBTI. As such, my manager, despite no objective evidence to this would manufacture issues as evidence that I need to “work on those areas.” As performance was linked to salary increases, I figure this cost me quite a bit of money.

Yesterday, reading an email from a friend, I had an even more disturbing message from a very good friend. This story is all hearsay but does echo sentiments I’ve heard from other people along the same lines.

The story went like this : The person was interviewing at a certain local company and had done amazing in the interviews. He was qualified, had an excellent work history, and interviewed very well. It was going great. I’m sure you see where this is going.

The firm in question asked him to do a McQuaig test. I had personally never heard of one of these, but it is another one of these shadowy HR methodologies which purports to be able to predict future performance in a position based on the answers the person gives to personality trait questions. The test then profiles you into several broad areas and assesses how well this profile does in a particularly defined position. To me the flaws in such a system seem obvious, much in the way they’ve been applied to the MBTI.

Of course, the poor guy “did not do well” on the McQuaig test, which I assume meant that he did not fall in the profile range they deem as leading to excellence in these particular positions. The point is this is the only reason they turned him down for the position.

Now it is possible that the firm, merely misused or misunderstood how to apply the test. I cannot be sure and it’s one of the reasons they are not mentioned by name. My issue is with it is both a moral and philosophical one. These tests are modern phrenology. First, morally, I believe personality typing is one of those terribly misguided attempts to apply profiles that are perhaps more appropriate to large groups and pigeon-hole individuals. It is based on belief and faith, more than any real scientific evidence (at least that I’m aware of). People are unbelievably complex in their variety, richness, backgrounds, influences and beliefs and there is no way on earth someone is going to tell me that people fall into x number of categories. I also believe that a lot of personality traits are culturally imposed rather than derived from individual personality. And this is definitely the case, I think in the modern workplace. In many cases, I also think this is a symptom of people having an innate desire to quantify the unquantifiable, which is something I’m seeing as a reaction to being unable to assess quality in any comprehensive way in an organization. The propensity to pigeon-hole in business is scary and furthermore a distinct danger to people who do not conform (as I feel many people these days do not) to traditional profiles of the median. Every person I know is an outlier. Furthermore, it’s very bad for business : No person I know of does only their described role in a company these days. So, pigeon-holing a person’s success based on a narrow profiled definition of the role they are hired for (which may not even be correctly profiled) is a ludicrously bad policy.

I also believe the firms espousing these tests as a rigorous methodology intentionally mislead employers in saying they are “proven effective.” I would really like to see how they have proved their effectiveness in assessing future potential employees. Exactly, how do they tell how effective the rejected candidates would have done in the similar job given not being given the test ? Seriously. I can think of no way, no scientific way that this could be proven.

And if you don’t believe me that this is a scary and widespread problem in the HR consulting industry and corporate HR departments, here is a final story. During my time with Greenpeace International in Amsterdam, the Executive Director decided to re-organize the way GPI worked. Now, a more cynical man than I might say, this is a popular past time of new EDs and an excellent way of looking like you’re doing something while avoiding thornier and more difficult questions of organizational effectiveness, modern relevancy and the massive reserve-draining overspend on the Esperanza that is forcing you to cut staff. Ahem…

The complete reorganization needed a way to cut a lot of people and do it in a way which complied with Dutch law which is amazingly protective of permanent employees (to a certain degree, too protective, since it is impossible to get rid of deadwood even if they deserve it. But I can totally understand erring on the side of the employee rather than the company for a change). My more cynical friend will have noted that he pogrom, er… re-org, was also an excellent way of removing political opponents from the organization – especially those who were opposed to the EDs “new vision” for Greenpeace. Many, many people were.

So, an HR firm was hired at great expense which decided to have everyone re-apply for the new jobs via a matching process. Now, the interesting thing was that in order to assess our suitability for these positions everyone was required to fill in a form which assessed our ability to do, in many cases, the positions we were already performing. It should also be noted, no one in a senior management position was required to fill in those forms. Ahem.

Luckily, Greenpeace is a protest organization. The outcry was long and loud and embittered and probably one of the most effective campaigns they’ve run in recent memory. I think at the point someone threatened to take it to the Dutch government’s employment body, management backed down and invalidated the tests that had been completed at great time and organizational expense by virtually the entire organization.

[disclosure : to be totally up front, I should point out I was not selected to head up the IT department and the break from the agreed to process on selecting the IT Manager being followed and my objections to it led to a very ugly and very public spat with the Director of IT at that time – who has since been removed from the organization after many complaints including mine (it is impossible to fire people in the Netherlands). The mismanagement of the entire affair and the lack of competence of the IT Director involved was the final straw for me on Greenpeace and led to me refusing a permanent offer with the organization and resigning. The person they did select for the manager position (actually a really great guy who I like immensely) left after 6 months]

My big issue is that I think these tests are not only misleading but dangerous. Besides the fact they are discriminatory based on about as stable a basis as the bumps on peoples’ heads, organizations are using them to make real decisions which massively impact real peoples’ lives. And while I think that certain answers to questions like “Do you think often about climbing the bell tower and thinning out the crowd below with a high powered rifle ?” or “Do you enjoy the music of Britney Spears?” do give valuable insights into the psychology of the person answering the questions, it is clear that there is no scientific method in use today which can scientifically be shown to be able to predict individual peoples’ behaviours with certainty in any situation, let alone the complex dynamic of a job [and please, anyone who has evidence to the contrary, I’m totally willing to be shown it – economics labours under similar misconceptions about being able to predict individual behaviour and I’m equally dubious even with a degree in it.]

Now don’t get me wrong. I have absolutely no problem with companies testing candidates on the knowledge and demonstrable skills required to do their job. I’ve written several tests for firms I was interested in working for and never had a problem with them when they were based on the skills or knowledge I would be required to have in order to perform my tasks effectively. However, this current cult of personality tests that seem to be masquerading as science are doing an immense disservice both to the companies that are using them and the people they are turning down. And remember, the companies trying to sell you that these tests are effective indicators are doing just that, selling you a product.

And I think the tide needs to be opposed in terms of its usage. I am definitely making a stand here and now that I will refuse to even entertain working for an employer that uses these sorts of personality profiling tests, wants to feel the bumps on my head, or asks me my astrological sign.

I encouraged my friend to call the Employment Standards Act people here in Canada and find out what sort of ground these things stand on for the case of the McQuaig test. Sadly, I doubt there is a legal recourse in these situations as the test is most likely applied to everyone without discrimination (ie. the test discriminates, but not the employer) but while it may not be illegal, it definitely strikes me as immoral and unethical to use these things.

I’d be interested in hearing from other people about their stories on this front. Getting an idea of how widespread the practice is and any ideas on how to stop or at least promote responsible use of these things is possible (for instance, one person at Ashoka told me they thought that the MBTI was useful for self-reflective purposes only. Nevertheless, the organization still has it in the selection processes despite, what seemed to me to be, widespread disapproval of the process).

Oh, and you should believe me ‘cause my IQ test said I’m a genius…

playing : Where’s Your Head At by Basement Jaxx

Ashoka said no.

I’m not even sure what to write right now as I am so unbelievably disappointed and frustrated. I’m embarrassed, feeling foolish and lower than at any point I’ve been since I returned to Canada. In fact, I think I’m writing because I am going to be so ashamed when I have to tell people that have spent months dealing with me while I’ve been waiting for a decision. I feel in some sense like I’ve let someone, somewhere down. But writing keeps me from hurling Tourette’s-like expletives in a completely undignified fashion. Cathartic, right ? I just came back from an extremely aggressive and punishing workout which I’ll be paying for tomorrow, but it was needed. Trust me. You don’t want to see what I wrote before I wore myself out.

Fished in. That’s what keeps running through my head. That organizations that talk about bottom up, grassroots, consensus decision making but are really just funneling you up to the CEO so he can make a no decision despite everyone else saying yes are really not consensus based. They’re kingdoms.

Feedback was basically that the CEO, Bill Drayton, the guy who asked about what I was like in high school and my Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, was the guy who kakked me. In fact, I felt sorry for Paul, the poor guy that had to deliver the bad news since I was fighting hard not to say something I’d regret (though I did ask him, perhaps a bit too curtly, to cut the platitudes and give me some honest feedback and not try and smooth over this situation). Paul seemed super nice and a very cool guy and is their CDO. I liked him a lot and get the impression this is very uncool. And I know he was one of the guys really pulling for me to come and work there. In fact, talking to him I got the distinct impression everybody I spoke with except for Bill wanted me there as IT Director (Paul also kinda hinted at this).

And it’s hard getting judged by some guy who can’t even read or write his own email, gets his secretary to print them out for him so he can write answers on the printed pages, gives them back to her to type up and then send them. I mean, c’mon ! How are you supposed to talk to this guy about technology ? (I actually used audio visual aids at one point)

It’s maddening as I felt there are loads of really great people at Ashoka, and I would have really liked to work with them making a difference. And I mean, really. I did not meet one person who didn’t impress me (well, with the exception of Bill Drayton). And from everything I hear and that I’ve seen written (admittedly by themselves) they do great work in places that really need it.

I mean, I really thought Ashoka was an amazing fit with me : Entrepreneurial, grassroots, worldwide scope, more concentrating on helping people than the fundraising, and really open to what I had to say about IT (at least until I got to Bill). Maybe I should have been a little more wary of an organization too cozy with McKinsey, the Big 4 and a few too many A list schools. Or one I had never heard of before this year. I guess the punchline is that they have no one else lined up to interview for IT Director so they manage to spend another year without anyone heading up IT, even though their systems are borked in a lot of respects.

That’s 2 now though : Greenpeace International has the same problem. Virtually to a person; amazingly dedicated, smart and driven people – completely fucked up executive management.

Anyway, I feel like I’ve been subjected to a medical exam or something : poked, prodded and probed and then thrown back out into the street feeling dirty and more than a little ashamed. Asked batteries of psychometric questions that are more BS type HR consulting firm crap than giving any sense of my suitability for the position.

Enough ranting…

So, where do I go from here ? I really don’t know… I need some time to think a bit and regroup as I was really pulling for this one. It’s a bit faith shaking. I’m beginning to really question whether the NGO sector is right for me.

I feel like I’m being karmically kicked in the teeth for trying to be a better person and trying to use my skills to make the world a better place. I know it sounds hokey, but the jazzed feeling I get doing these things is really the reason I’m doing this stuff. It sure isn’t for the cash. And basically, not a lot of things have gone right for me since I moved out of the private sector. Maybe the universe is trying to tell me something.

Maybe the problem is I’m a bit too much like Mulder. I want to believe…

Well, got up way too early this morning for my conference call with Kinshasa (is that bright ball of fire on the eastern horizon always there ?).

They had not seen my resume but had pulled my name from a UN database which did not have enough detail for them to tell I am a little senior for this role. Basically, it’s a sysadmin/hardware tech position (including fixing desktops) for the very impressive Radio Okapi (lien en français) in the Congo under MUNOC (english link). A lot of sysadmining, streaming audio, teaching reporters and end user support so absolute fluency in spoken and written French is required (and if you know any Congolese dialects you’re a shoe-in ! ).

I’m passing on it as I’m looking for something more senior, but on the outside chance you know anyone who is interested in this, please let me know and I’ll forward to Kinshasa. It is the UN after all.

playing : Amor pa’mi by Sergent Garcia

Just for those of you who keep asking about the Ashoka hiring situation…

No, they have not hired me. Yet. Or not. I still can’t tell. Yes, I know they said that Bill Drayton would be my last interview, but apparently, they were mistaken. They called back on Monday. A call I was hoping was an offer. Or at least a yes… Hell, even a no at this point. No such luck.

The asked some weird followup questions about high school. There was some misunderstanding on what I said (does anyone else find the fact they are asking about my school, extra curricular and job activities from nearly 20 years ago disturbing ? And don’t even get me started about the fact they did ask about my Myers-Briggs which I consider akin to psychometric voodoo). I clarified the misconception and in fact, wrote a followup email to make sure it and other things I said were clear (I actually graduated with the highest marks in my county and took several scholarships as well as getting one to Western). They also asked me if I could take a phone interview with the President, Sushmina Ghosh today. Sure, I said.

They bumped the call early this morning to this afternoon (so much for trying to plan my day) but Sushmina was really very nice and we had a great conversation. I really liked her actually. She laughed at all my jokes which always makes me appreciate people. :)

For those keeping track : This is the 10th interview by someone in some form from Ashoka. As of next week it’ll make 3 months since they started interviewing me (4 months since I sent them my CV), 2 different business trips (Van, DC) to 2 different countries (mine and that USA place).

At the end of the conversation, I asked her directly whether they were leaning yes or no and she said everyone who had spoken to me needed to all meet. It could go either way. And she was travelling next week so it might be 2 more weeks “worst case scenario”. She did promise no more interviews and gave me an overview of their panel process. Ashoka has no real HR department so they’re using the same process they use to select Fellows, the people they finance as social entrepreneurs, to hire employees. I’m really beginning to think it doesn’t work for hiring having been subjected to it.

Now, the thing I don’t get is that everyone, and I do mean everyone, I’ve met at Ashoka has impressed me. I get the feeling they’ve felt I am a good fit with the organization. These are the type of people I would like to work with. And the fact is, they have big IT problems. They could use my help. I think I have some interesting ideas for them. So, I’m kind of confused. I normally get hired after one or by the third interview. More than a 2 week process is unheard of and even then, I at least get a “no” so can move on in good conscience. So, I’m a little confused here. Lack of transparency is also an issue as they have some sort of murky candidacy profile they type up which gets passed around and added to and is never seen by you. Everyone refers to it though (“Yes, Mr. Manning… I can see zat from your file. Ve hav a complete dossier on you, you know… ” he said narrowing his eyes as he rifed over the voluminous pages of the document.)

What really scares me is that this organization is supposed to be entrepreneurial based. And in a certain sense, at least to me, that means capitalizing on opportunities that present themselves in a timely fashion. So, what gives ? I mean, I really don’t know anyone else except someone as stubborn as me who would wait around 3 months to get an answer from a charity. I mean, I’m expecting a yes, but can I tell you how extremely upset I am going to be if its a no ? Sometimes I feel like I am being punished for trying to lead a more ethical life and contribute to society. Which does seem a little karmically unfair from my perspective.

I think the other problem may be that most of the senior decision makers (CEO, President) accomplished what they have to this point by not using computers so it is a hard sell telling them technology will help solve their larger problems since they refuse to use computers (though they definitely seem to be aware they have larger problems which is better than many organizations).

Furthermore, I feel waiting this long shows a real lack of respect for me. Their foot dragging has real world consequences in terms of my time, finances and other opportunities which they seem to be quite cavalier about abusing (well, they have apologized often, but apologizing and not changing behaviour is really not apologizing is it ?)

So… now you’re updated. Cross your fingers for me. Don’t hold your breath though.

And thanks to everyone who has called or emailed and commiserated and told me they don’t deserve me and to rethink working for an organization that is so obviously incapable of making decisions in a timely manner. You all rock.

And yeah, in case it’s not obvious, I am getting a little frustrated now. You know how I hate waiting. Blogging is very cathartic though.

[update: Ashoka has informed me that apparently I am the only person being considered for the post.]

My first real job, when I was 15, was managing a record store. I loved that job. Listened to music all day, gave advice on cool and got paid for it.

I had just picked up the parents at the airport and we were looking for places to eat which are few and far between in Peachland at 7.30pm after Labour Day. Luckily, the Peachland Pub was open and by chance was doing some retroTrivia night.

Short story, we (and I mean I) kicked ass. Seriously had forgotten I was pretty good at the Name that Tune game from hearing just a song sample from the 50s through to the 90s. Much fun though. Much more than it sounds once you add alcohol into the mix. Missed a few I was kicking myself over (Split Endz and CCR as artists though had the titles). And it was nice to be able to do something with the parents that wasn’t Sunday dinner for a change.

We came in second. We lost by 10 points to a team with over 10 people so I feel like we more than held our own. And managed to make $20 out of it for coming in 2nd, so didn’t suck.

Apparently, it’s become hugely popular in the area (we had actual ringers that came) for the montage at the end where you can win the current pot of $400 if you guess all 5 songs correctly. I only got 3. The other 2 were phenomenally obscure to the point that I had never even heard of the groups let alone the songs. I was not alone either.

Still, pretty awesome for a slow Thursday night in Peachland.

Technically, this is supposed to be the last interview Ashoka is going to put me through. I have to admit I was getting a bit nervous about it as it was with Bill Drayton, the guy who founded Ashoka and the former Deputy Director of the Environmental protection Agency. The guy was very active in the Civil Rights movement in the sixties and by all accounts a very bright, accomplished and driven individual. Sadly, I’m told he hates computers. I also joked since it had taken so long to finally meet him that I wasn’t sure he existed, like he was Remington Steel.

Still, they bumped my meeting as a major donor was meeting with him (an, ohmygod type donor actually. Even I was impressed with the name they dropped.) so I was beginning to worry. Still, I finally got in to meet him while he munched away on his lunch and we talked at length about various things.

First off, he bears what I can only describe as an uncanny resemblance to the physicist Stephen Hawking. At least as he was before the illness struck him. He is an excellent listener and said some very insightful things about what the ultimate goals of Ashoka are which put to rest many of my concerns about where their focus is on social justice versus business entrepreneurism. He did ask some bizarre questions like what my Myers-Briggs letters were and what I was like in high school (both questions of which I discounted as I told him I didn’t really believe in the Myers-Briggs - detest it would be closer to the truth - and that who I was in high school was not representative of who I was now). It was interesting talk but much shorter than I would have liked it to be. He asked for contact information on me for followups and let me know that they needed to convene a panel of all the people who had spoken to me so far before they could make an offer.

I spent the rest of the time talking with some of the people I’d be working with. I think one of the reasons I am so attracted to the organization, besides their focus, is on the amazing people they seem to attract. I like the idea of working with smart, really driven people again.

On verra.

I have to say, I have never, ever, in my entire life gone through 8 interviews for a job and still not been sure whether I am hired or not.

The interview went very well actually. I met with Jack Edwards, who heads up Latin American development for Ashoka. Nice, very friendly and incredibly interesting guy. Spent years living in Latin America and using his holidays to volunteer for organizations doing pro bono surgical and medical work in some of the poorest parts of Latin America. Liked him a lot. We spoke for over 2 hours and I felt like I said a lot of really salient things and conveyed myself well.

I’m pretty sure he’s given me a pass onto the next level which is, apparently, the final hurdle I need to face, the founder of the organization and current CEO Bill Drayton. The guy has kind of got me a little intimidated. He was Deputy Director of the EPA in the States before Reagan gutted their funding and effectiveness. He founded and pushed the organization forward and its his vision responsible for it in its present form. Oh yeah, and he hates computers. Did I mention I was interviewing for IT Director ?

Everyone however tells me, from the receptionist down to some random guy in the elevator that most people never get this far so I must be doing quite well.

Guess we’ll see.

I ran out to the site again early in the morning. I figure you don’t get that many opportunities to work with a real archaeological team on a serious dig so wanted to make the most of it.

Lucky I did actually. Prof. French had set me to work on shovel testing and about a trowel blade length down I ended up coming up with a microblade (lamala?) in one of the sifts. The prof was super happy about it and said it was actually a major find.” Us newbie volunteer types have been getting super lucky this dig it seems.

I was actually upset to leave and wanted to stay, but hopped into the car and zoomed back along the gorgeous scenic drive back to Kelowna. Great drive actually. There is no radio in the high mountains, so I strapped on the iPod and screamed down the highway singing in the car. Phenomenal drive of clear open highway and the spectacular views really kind of make you feel quite patriotic about Canada looking out over mountains and forests and these amazing vistas.

Class was great but the 37 C heat today was really taking it out of me both from the work on the site and the drive to the school. Had to polish it off as it was the final class for the course and besides that wanted to go out for a beer with some of the people from class afterwards. Was nice actually though it was way too hot and I have to admit I was thinking it would have been much nicer on a beach somewhere.

Came back to the house and kind of kipped out for a while and then ended the evening, vaguely braindead out on the deck watching the skies for the Perseid meteor shower. Saw a few nice shooting stars but have to admit it was a lot more disappointing than other years and showers I’ve seen.

The short drive out to the dig is quite beautiful and winds past real live cattle country and ranches. The dig itself is on this beautiful section of Nicola Lake and incredibly picturesque. It’s salvage archaeology as there is a limited time before the developer starts bulldozing stuff. It’s a pity really, because the site, at least to my untrained eye is obviously much bigger than originally thought and seems like it was an important processing spot both to the Kamloops and an earlier people we’ve not definitively determined later. The politics between the developer, the ranchers and the band are the archaeologist though are very complex and intricate. I’m glad I’m not in the middle of it.

I met the crew who were largely Native, super nice and lots of fun and

Prof. French, who I adore for asking a lowly amateur out on a dig (it is really, really hard to get in on digs these days even if you pay), set me to work screening dirt from one of the major trenches they were excavating.

I was actually getting a little jealous as even the shovel testers were finding more stuff than I was until I finally came up with some basalt debitage. Took my little victory photo of it and after a long time doing this, we ended up going to lunch and afterwards I worked on looking for surface finds.

One of the other archaeologists found this stunning projectile point just lying on the ground at one point. It is a perfect example of Kamloops style I am told and looks like something out of a textbook being completely whole and not even broken a little (very rare).

The work was not hard, but it was very dirty, and really very hot (35 C). I did manage to find a really interesting chalcedony flake away from where everyone was digging which I got congratulated for as apparently they are not very common. They actually marked it in the site map though I doubt it was in its original provenance (and was really bummed I couldn’t find the larger piece it had been flaked from).

I really loved spending the afternoon doing the work though. Computers seem so abstract sometimes it is really nice to be able to work on something concrete and anchored to the past and the earth in an intimate, visceral way. Decided to stay overnight and do a little more in the morning before screaming down the highway in the car back to my final Anthro class.

After that, we went for a beer at the lovely Quilchena ranch, a combination hotel and real live operating cattle ranch. It’s amazing how good beer sometimes tastes after you’ve swallowed that much dust and sweated that hard in the sun.

Then we went to dinner at a local pub and I evilly convinced some of the archaeologists to come out for ice cream at this local place and waylaid them into coming to my hotel and playing on the rather surreal waterside built onto the pool. Was amazing fun and a fantastic end to the day.

I am so glad I came. Hope I get many more opportunities like this in the future.

Yes !!! My old archaeology prof just called and invited me up on her new dig just north of Merritt. I’m so hyped !

Looks like I have to drive up the Coquihalla Connector Tuesday night and stay over in Merritt to get there for the morning, but still… How cool is that ???

I’m really excited. It’s really hard for non-professional archaeologists to get in on serious digs and I’m super honoured to be invited on one.

I’ve just got so much going on this week. The amazingly lovely SJ was really super cool about moving our dinner to Monday night instead of Tuesday. Um, and somewhere in there I need to study for my Anthropology final. And er, put off final interview till the week after for those jobs.

It sounds like a real interesting dig. My prof sounded exhausted but told me it is a salvage archaeology dig that she’s turned into a research dig. Apparently, there is a highway going through. More details as I get them.

Stay tuned !

OK. Now I need a job.

So, what am I looking for ? Despite the Fortune 500 resume, I’m really hoping to use my MSc as a legitimate break in my career and move into the NGO or Not for Profit sector permanently. Yes, I know I’ll earn less, there is less prestige and as one friend kindly pointed out “it’s a one-way ticket” but the fact is I feel much better about what I am doing with my life when that’s one of the things I’m doing with it.

So, my long-term objective is to get a
Senior IT position in an international NGO or Not for Profit that is closely aligned with my personal beliefs on humanitarian aid, social justice, sustainable international development and conservation.

Basically, if the cause is just and the quarrel honourable… Tech makes the most sense but at some point I want to move into more active strategic executive roles, so I’m flexible. There are very few tech jobs and precious few senior ones in NGOs so I anything that is promising is open season as long as they can pay me something close to what I was earning about 5 years ago before I went and got all that international experience and did the MSc. And I’ll relocate anywhere interesting. Ocean frontage especially. So, if you know anyone who is looking for someone in this vein, or who might know someone who is, let me (or them) know.

Here’s my latest resume/CV in Acrobat/pdf for NGO/Not for Profit related positions and another for senior corporate positions. They scale to A4 if printed in Europe I’m told. Please forward them to whoever you think could use my skills and, well… is not evil. As always, feedback on the resume greatly appreciated. Either comment in the blog or mail me directly.

Oh, and huge props to the lovely SJ here in K-town who helped me out making the thing more recruiter friendly and readable to non-techie types.

The first serious round of resumes I sent out came back overwhelming with me being either too senior or not senior enough for the positions I was applying for. Not quite sure how that happened, but it’s got me more than a little worried I am positioned experience and education-wise in a sort of dead zone between making myself too senior for mid-tier IT positions and not having enough continuous experience in one position to satisfy the evil recruiters who fill the top dog type posts. This is a problem. Anyone who’s got any insights to help me out here, I’d sure appreciate some advice.