Tuesday, March 16, 2004
Interview with Kevin Kelley, Sr. Human Resource Specialist
Here is an interview I have done with Kevin Kelley, Sr. Human Resource Specialist with Lattice Semiconductor. If you are interested in finding out more about Kevin or learning about Lattice as a possible place of employment, please contact me or Kevin. Please put Semiconductorjobs in the subject heading.
1. How long have you been with Lattice Semiconductor and what is your
position within the company?
I joined Lattice Semiconductor Corporation in May of 2002 with the official
title of "Sr. Human Resource Specialist" though I am essentially a Sr.
Generalist with management responsibility of the HR infrastructure for the
Lattice Pennsylvania design facility.
2. When we spoke the other day, you let me know that prior to working
for Lattice, you had not ever worked in the Semiconductor Industry. What
about the Industry and Lattice specifically made you take the plunge.
Prior to joining Lattice, I was an Independent Consultant for Ortho-Clinical
Diagnostics, a Johnson & Johnson company, and prior to that I worked for
Lockheed Martin Systems Integration. The large company experience made
coming to a smaller, almost start-up operation in Pennsylvania an extremely
exciting prospect. The lure that ultimately hooked my interest however was
the vast technological opportunities available in the FPGA and FPSC
architectures as they related to Lattice's future. That, combined with a
truly outstanding group of engineers and HR peers, made the opportunity with
Lattice more appealing than the other offers I had on the table at that
juncture.
3. The last few years have been interesting in the Semiconductor
Industry. What has Lattice Semiconductor done in order to ensure the
business ran smoothly from a Recruiting standpoint?
From a recruiting perspective, the company has relied more heavily of the
core competencies of it's HR team rather than outside vendors. Once those
competencies were partnered with the management teams, the sky was the
limit. Additionally, HR has become a more of a strategic business partner
whose input is valued from the top down. Having the buy-in from senior
management and a larger role in planning for the future has afforded the
organization am opportunity to stay competitive, even in the down market.
It should be noted, that Lattice suffered through the same slings and arrows
as it's competitors in the depressed economic times, but never performed a
lay-off or headcount reduction.
4. You had contacted me originally about posting a few openings on
Semiconductor Jobs. Do you see an increase in open requisitions? If so, what
kinds of people are you looking for?
The number of requisitions has remained relatively constant, as we have
continued to hire over the course of the last several years. As the economy
improves however, I think your readers will see a great deal of employment
opportunities presenting themselves within our corporation. We are looking
for a variety of skills to work on/with our technologies, however I am
primarily looking for SERDES Design Engineers and FLASH Design Engineers
presently. These engineers will work in our San Jose facility. Your
readers can view those (Req # 820-297 and 820-299 respectively) and other
positions on the Lattice web site:
Lattice Semiconductor
5. Why would someone who is employed and satisfied or at least,
somewhat satisfied with their current situation consider making a move to
Lattice Semiconductor? Also, are you finding it difficult to target these
kinds of candidates?
It is simply a great place to work. There are tons of companies to choose
from that work in the same or similar technologies as we do. What separates
us from the rest of the pack are the people you work with, the technology
you work on and a leader whose vision of the company is contagious and
always on target. Am I finding it hard to target particular candidates? To
be honest, I would say yes. These people don't grow on trees and if they
did, they likely would be the one tied to the branch. They are hard to find
and even harder to pluck from their existing company. In time however, they
will see where Lattice is heading and relish an opportunity to join a
company that will be an industry leader, not only in the CPLD market, but
also in the FPGA arena.
6. Is there anything you would like to say to potential engineers about
why Lattice is a great place to work?
I have already touched on these areas in previous questions, but to
reiterate its the people, technology, leadership and opportunity that makes
this a place above all others.
7. What are your expectations when interviewing a potential candidate?
Professional, attentive, and above all else a passion for what they do. If
they are not passionate about the products they have worked on, and the
opportunity/possibility for the future, they likely won't fit within our
company. The people I hire are the ones that truly stand out from the rest.
8. What gives Lattice a competitive edge over its competition?
It's people.
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
1. How long have you been with Lattice Semiconductor and what is your
position within the company?
I joined Lattice Semiconductor Corporation in May of 2002 with the official
title of "Sr. Human Resource Specialist" though I am essentially a Sr.
Generalist with management responsibility of the HR infrastructure for the
Lattice Pennsylvania design facility.
2. When we spoke the other day, you let me know that prior to working
for Lattice, you had not ever worked in the Semiconductor Industry. What
about the Industry and Lattice specifically made you take the plunge.
Prior to joining Lattice, I was an Independent Consultant for Ortho-Clinical
Diagnostics, a Johnson & Johnson company, and prior to that I worked for
Lockheed Martin Systems Integration. The large company experience made
coming to a smaller, almost start-up operation in Pennsylvania an extremely
exciting prospect. The lure that ultimately hooked my interest however was
the vast technological opportunities available in the FPGA and FPSC
architectures as they related to Lattice's future. That, combined with a
truly outstanding group of engineers and HR peers, made the opportunity with
Lattice more appealing than the other offers I had on the table at that
juncture.
3. The last few years have been interesting in the Semiconductor
Industry. What has Lattice Semiconductor done in order to ensure the
business ran smoothly from a Recruiting standpoint?
From a recruiting perspective, the company has relied more heavily of the
core competencies of it's HR team rather than outside vendors. Once those
competencies were partnered with the management teams, the sky was the
limit. Additionally, HR has become a more of a strategic business partner
whose input is valued from the top down. Having the buy-in from senior
management and a larger role in planning for the future has afforded the
organization am opportunity to stay competitive, even in the down market.
It should be noted, that Lattice suffered through the same slings and arrows
as it's competitors in the depressed economic times, but never performed a
lay-off or headcount reduction.
4. You had contacted me originally about posting a few openings on
Semiconductor Jobs. Do you see an increase in open requisitions? If so, what
kinds of people are you looking for?
The number of requisitions has remained relatively constant, as we have
continued to hire over the course of the last several years. As the economy
improves however, I think your readers will see a great deal of employment
opportunities presenting themselves within our corporation. We are looking
for a variety of skills to work on/with our technologies, however I am
primarily looking for SERDES Design Engineers and FLASH Design Engineers
presently. These engineers will work in our San Jose facility. Your
readers can view those (Req # 820-297 and 820-299 respectively) and other
positions on the Lattice web site:
Lattice Semiconductor
5. Why would someone who is employed and satisfied or at least,
somewhat satisfied with their current situation consider making a move to
Lattice Semiconductor? Also, are you finding it difficult to target these
kinds of candidates?
It is simply a great place to work. There are tons of companies to choose
from that work in the same or similar technologies as we do. What separates
us from the rest of the pack are the people you work with, the technology
you work on and a leader whose vision of the company is contagious and
always on target. Am I finding it hard to target particular candidates? To
be honest, I would say yes. These people don't grow on trees and if they
did, they likely would be the one tied to the branch. They are hard to find
and even harder to pluck from their existing company. In time however, they
will see where Lattice is heading and relish an opportunity to join a
company that will be an industry leader, not only in the CPLD market, but
also in the FPGA arena.
6. Is there anything you would like to say to potential engineers about
why Lattice is a great place to work?
I have already touched on these areas in previous questions, but to
reiterate its the people, technology, leadership and opportunity that makes
this a place above all others.
7. What are your expectations when interviewing a potential candidate?
Professional, attentive, and above all else a passion for what they do. If
they are not passionate about the products they have worked on, and the
opportunity/possibility for the future, they likely won't fit within our
company. The people I hire are the ones that truly stand out from the rest.
8. What gives Lattice a competitive edge over its competition?
It's people.
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
Friday, December 12, 2003
Interview with Curt Sellers, staffing Manager at NuCore technologies
I am very happy to bring you this interview with Curt Sellers who is the staffing manager at a company called NuCore Technologies. They are a startup company in Silicon Valley that makes image processing chipsets for Digital Cameras. Curt and I have known each other for a very long time and we originally met way back when he was a recruiter for S3. Here is the interview. Enjoy!!
1. How long have you been recruiting in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been an in-house recruiter for semiconductor companies for almost 9 years.
2. What about NuCORE interested you as a possible place of employment?
I was introduced to NuCORE in April of 2001 - a horrendous time for
networking and semiconductor start-ups. NuCORE had just closed about $18 million in their series C financing which was very impressive. I consider myself to be a very technology driven person and NuCORE's products, image processing chips for digital cameras, were familiar to me from my days at S3. The more I researched the company the more I was convinced that they really had a solid, viable product and strong financial backing. NuCORE had never had an on-site HR person so it was a completely blank slate to start with. That was irresistible.
3. Why would someone voluntarily leave their organization and come work for NuCORE? What is the competitive edge that you hold?
Good questions, especially in the wave of start-up failures and the risks associated. I'd estimate that about 2/3 to 3/4 of our hires are already employed when they join. I suppose the reason for joining is different for different people. NuCORE has a lot to offer a variety of personalities. First, its a new industry people are familiar with and hear about. When they come in, its a technology they can actually see right before their eyes - better quality images. Once they meet us and see the technical competence of our staff, a successful and growing business model, solid financing it becomes an easy sell. You can go to the local electronics store, pick up a camera with our chips in it and show it to your friends and family. It is a source of great pride to our employees.
Our competitive edge is image quality and processing speed. Our chips are in still cameras that can take 3.5 images per second until your memory card fills up and with the touch of a button, take movies at 30 frames per second until your memory is filled. Both of these feats are unheard of for a still camera. In addition to the speed, our A/D converter virtually eliminates all the noise associated with converting CCD sensor signals to a digital form. Subsequently our image files are cleaner and about half the size of typical digital photos so you get twice the storage out of your flash memory card.
4. What skills has NuCORE been looking for over the last year and who is NuCORE looking to hire now?
When we were a pure start-up, we needed every kind of skill set to get the
company going. Now that we are past that stage we need to expand our staff
in the various critical areas to expand our product lines. Currently we are
focusing on our MPEG resources, so we have about 6 openings:
1. An MPEG ASIC engineer to design video blocks
2. A verification engineer to make sure things are put together correctly
3. A firmware engineer with an mpeg background to make sure we can drive the various engines properly
4. An ASIC engineer that I would term as a "generalist" who can work on any given number of critical blocks
5. A Procurement Manager to do hands on buying, PC planning and help us implement an ERP system
6. An all in one software marketing person that we haven't quite yet figured out an appropriate title for. We'd like someone capable of doing everything from product planning to tech writing to applications engineering when
necessary.
NuCORE is ALWAYS looking for people with digital image processing/digital camera experience, particularly analog engineers that have used switched capacitor filter designs. As a fabless semiconductor company, NuCORE's
final product is an A/D converter and digital image processing chips, but to be able to sell these we have to build reference designs for customers. That means hiring embedded software engineers, board designers and QA people.
5. I am sure that NuCORE over the last while has seen a massive increase in the amount of candidates who have applied to you. How have you managed to deal with the traffic and more importantly, how has NuCORE made sure that everyone candidate who has applied was given a fair shot when the right position came available?
All resumes, calls and applications come to me first. With me being the single point of contact, I don't have to worry about resumes slipping through the cracks or not being considered at all. NuCORE doesn't have many competitors and the market of image processors for digital cameras is very much still emerging. Subsequently, we are still under the radar so the number of applicants is manageable by one person. The engineers and managers here are honestly some of the best I've ever worked with. We have come up with some great job descriptions that are very objective and pretty specific in what we need, so it is relatively easy to screen resumes and callers to see if they have the necessary experience and background.
6. What are your expectations when interviewing a candidate?
I would expect that truly interested candidates come in prepared for the interview by having read our website and have a basic understanding of the products and market. Another expectation is that the candidates should be open and ask questions. You can often learn as much about a person by the questions they ask as you can by the answers they give to your questions. Since we are not engineers, most recruiters can only do a moderate level technical assessment. What I am really looking for as the HR representative of the company is: Will this person be a positive addition to the company and make a long term contribution; Do they have a working style and value system compatible with the team and company; What does this person need to keep them motivated. To be able to assess that, my expectation is that candidates will be honest in their answers. I give a full disclosure about working at NuCORE and the risks. I expect that I'll get the same candidate answers and questions in return so we can have an honest exchange about the possibilities of working together.
7. How do you make sure that once an employee starts, they stay?
Most of all, NuCORE's success has made this pretty easy. Success and
progress have a way of being their own reward for a job well done. As the Human Resources Manager for NuCORE I see it as my job to make sure employees have the tools and environment necessary to do their jobs well - from the basics like heath insurance to clear and consistent company vision from the executive staff. The management is very good at encouraging an open culture where people are free to constructively express concerns and feel their inputs are valued. Since the employees don't work for me directly, I must work with the managers to make sure they are in touch with their people and provide avenues to blow off stress. Like all start-ups, we are cash conscious, but the executive staff knows they need to spend a little to keep our employees happy. The extravagant fringe benefits of the dot-com days are gone, but we still have amenities like nightly dinners, a game room with a pool table, ping pong table and other games.
8. The goal at Semiconductor Jobs is to create a proactive approach to the hiring process within the Semiconductor Industry. Instead of marketing needs once your top design engineer leaves, it is about making sure you can maintain an on going communication with top engineers in the industry on a frequent basis. Do you feel that this is a good approach and what kinds of things would you include in these communications?
I think its an excellent forum. The perceptions of working and the job
market are probably vastly different from each side of the table. Anything to bridge that gap and create a greater understanding between companies and employees is positive. Often times employees will never tell their employer how they really feel. It would be great if Semiconductor Jobs had a forum for people to express the real reasons why people decide to join and leave companies. CEO's, recruiters and managers often think very differently from engineers about what motivates employees. I'd love to hear about programs they enjoyed and the hot buttons that set people off so other companies can avoid those pitfalls.
9. Where have you had the most success with respect to hiring?
At least 50% of our hires have come from employee referrals and NuCORE only recently started offering employee referral awards. Even without the awards, people still referred their friends, which is a great testament to the culture and devotion here. The second most popular source has been job boards. Although, I have more success searching the resumes posted than hoping the ideal candidate will apply.
With so many people looking for work, its been an employer's market.
Luckily, I haven't needed to go work the phones like we did in the mid to late 90's. As an in-house recruiter I need to focus my efforts and time management. Third party agencies can help a great deal in that respect. They can dig up people you don't have time to find yourself and work on one set of jobs while you work on another. Its can be expensive, but if they find the right people, its worth it.
10. What are your long term goals as they pertain to being a recruiter in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been the only HR person in a company as well as managed a group of recruiters. As my career progresses, I can see myself staying on the overall HR management side with an active role in staffing at some level. I'd hate to loose my hands-on recruiting skills. I think you tend to know the employee base better if you are involved in the search and interview process. I will definitely stay inside companies. I don't have the right personality or discipline to be successful in a 3rd party agency.
11. Is there anything you would like to say to possible candidates who may be a fit for NuCORE?
Yes. Take a look at our home page. We have great demonstrations of the technology and a lot of sample photos. Then email me at csellers@nucoretech.com, I respond quicker to emails vs. phone calls. Take a look at the job descriptions posted on Semiconductor Jobs and NuCORE's website at www.nucoretech.com, if you are interested, email me and we can see if there is a fit. The positions change often, so feel free to check
back.
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
1. How long have you been recruiting in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been an in-house recruiter for semiconductor companies for almost 9 years.
2. What about NuCORE interested you as a possible place of employment?
I was introduced to NuCORE in April of 2001 - a horrendous time for
networking and semiconductor start-ups. NuCORE had just closed about $18 million in their series C financing which was very impressive. I consider myself to be a very technology driven person and NuCORE's products, image processing chips for digital cameras, were familiar to me from my days at S3. The more I researched the company the more I was convinced that they really had a solid, viable product and strong financial backing. NuCORE had never had an on-site HR person so it was a completely blank slate to start with. That was irresistible.
3. Why would someone voluntarily leave their organization and come work for NuCORE? What is the competitive edge that you hold?
Good questions, especially in the wave of start-up failures and the risks associated. I'd estimate that about 2/3 to 3/4 of our hires are already employed when they join. I suppose the reason for joining is different for different people. NuCORE has a lot to offer a variety of personalities. First, its a new industry people are familiar with and hear about. When they come in, its a technology they can actually see right before their eyes - better quality images. Once they meet us and see the technical competence of our staff, a successful and growing business model, solid financing it becomes an easy sell. You can go to the local electronics store, pick up a camera with our chips in it and show it to your friends and family. It is a source of great pride to our employees.
Our competitive edge is image quality and processing speed. Our chips are in still cameras that can take 3.5 images per second until your memory card fills up and with the touch of a button, take movies at 30 frames per second until your memory is filled. Both of these feats are unheard of for a still camera. In addition to the speed, our A/D converter virtually eliminates all the noise associated with converting CCD sensor signals to a digital form. Subsequently our image files are cleaner and about half the size of typical digital photos so you get twice the storage out of your flash memory card.
4. What skills has NuCORE been looking for over the last year and who is NuCORE looking to hire now?
When we were a pure start-up, we needed every kind of skill set to get the
company going. Now that we are past that stage we need to expand our staff
in the various critical areas to expand our product lines. Currently we are
focusing on our MPEG resources, so we have about 6 openings:
1. An MPEG ASIC engineer to design video blocks
2. A verification engineer to make sure things are put together correctly
3. A firmware engineer with an mpeg background to make sure we can drive the various engines properly
4. An ASIC engineer that I would term as a "generalist" who can work on any given number of critical blocks
5. A Procurement Manager to do hands on buying, PC planning and help us implement an ERP system
6. An all in one software marketing person that we haven't quite yet figured out an appropriate title for. We'd like someone capable of doing everything from product planning to tech writing to applications engineering when
necessary.
NuCORE is ALWAYS looking for people with digital image processing/digital camera experience, particularly analog engineers that have used switched capacitor filter designs. As a fabless semiconductor company, NuCORE's
final product is an A/D converter and digital image processing chips, but to be able to sell these we have to build reference designs for customers. That means hiring embedded software engineers, board designers and QA people.
5. I am sure that NuCORE over the last while has seen a massive increase in the amount of candidates who have applied to you. How have you managed to deal with the traffic and more importantly, how has NuCORE made sure that everyone candidate who has applied was given a fair shot when the right position came available?
All resumes, calls and applications come to me first. With me being the single point of contact, I don't have to worry about resumes slipping through the cracks or not being considered at all. NuCORE doesn't have many competitors and the market of image processors for digital cameras is very much still emerging. Subsequently, we are still under the radar so the number of applicants is manageable by one person. The engineers and managers here are honestly some of the best I've ever worked with. We have come up with some great job descriptions that are very objective and pretty specific in what we need, so it is relatively easy to screen resumes and callers to see if they have the necessary experience and background.
6. What are your expectations when interviewing a candidate?
I would expect that truly interested candidates come in prepared for the interview by having read our website and have a basic understanding of the products and market. Another expectation is that the candidates should be open and ask questions. You can often learn as much about a person by the questions they ask as you can by the answers they give to your questions. Since we are not engineers, most recruiters can only do a moderate level technical assessment. What I am really looking for as the HR representative of the company is: Will this person be a positive addition to the company and make a long term contribution; Do they have a working style and value system compatible with the team and company; What does this person need to keep them motivated. To be able to assess that, my expectation is that candidates will be honest in their answers. I give a full disclosure about working at NuCORE and the risks. I expect that I'll get the same candidate answers and questions in return so we can have an honest exchange about the possibilities of working together.
7. How do you make sure that once an employee starts, they stay?
Most of all, NuCORE's success has made this pretty easy. Success and
progress have a way of being their own reward for a job well done. As the Human Resources Manager for NuCORE I see it as my job to make sure employees have the tools and environment necessary to do their jobs well - from the basics like heath insurance to clear and consistent company vision from the executive staff. The management is very good at encouraging an open culture where people are free to constructively express concerns and feel their inputs are valued. Since the employees don't work for me directly, I must work with the managers to make sure they are in touch with their people and provide avenues to blow off stress. Like all start-ups, we are cash conscious, but the executive staff knows they need to spend a little to keep our employees happy. The extravagant fringe benefits of the dot-com days are gone, but we still have amenities like nightly dinners, a game room with a pool table, ping pong table and other games.
8. The goal at Semiconductor Jobs is to create a proactive approach to the hiring process within the Semiconductor Industry. Instead of marketing needs once your top design engineer leaves, it is about making sure you can maintain an on going communication with top engineers in the industry on a frequent basis. Do you feel that this is a good approach and what kinds of things would you include in these communications?
I think its an excellent forum. The perceptions of working and the job
market are probably vastly different from each side of the table. Anything to bridge that gap and create a greater understanding between companies and employees is positive. Often times employees will never tell their employer how they really feel. It would be great if Semiconductor Jobs had a forum for people to express the real reasons why people decide to join and leave companies. CEO's, recruiters and managers often think very differently from engineers about what motivates employees. I'd love to hear about programs they enjoyed and the hot buttons that set people off so other companies can avoid those pitfalls.
9. Where have you had the most success with respect to hiring?
At least 50% of our hires have come from employee referrals and NuCORE only recently started offering employee referral awards. Even without the awards, people still referred their friends, which is a great testament to the culture and devotion here. The second most popular source has been job boards. Although, I have more success searching the resumes posted than hoping the ideal candidate will apply.
With so many people looking for work, its been an employer's market.
Luckily, I haven't needed to go work the phones like we did in the mid to late 90's. As an in-house recruiter I need to focus my efforts and time management. Third party agencies can help a great deal in that respect. They can dig up people you don't have time to find yourself and work on one set of jobs while you work on another. Its can be expensive, but if they find the right people, its worth it.
10. What are your long term goals as they pertain to being a recruiter in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been the only HR person in a company as well as managed a group of recruiters. As my career progresses, I can see myself staying on the overall HR management side with an active role in staffing at some level. I'd hate to loose my hands-on recruiting skills. I think you tend to know the employee base better if you are involved in the search and interview process. I will definitely stay inside companies. I don't have the right personality or discipline to be successful in a 3rd party agency.
11. Is there anything you would like to say to possible candidates who may be a fit for NuCORE?
Yes. Take a look at our home page. We have great demonstrations of the technology and a lot of sample photos. Then email me at csellers@nucoretech.com, I respond quicker to emails vs. phone calls. Take a look at the job descriptions posted on Semiconductor Jobs and NuCORE's website at www.nucoretech.com, if you are interested, email me and we can see if there is a fit. The positions change often, so feel free to check
back.
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
Monday, November 24, 2003
Interview with Karina Miller, Staffing Manager at Impinj
I am very pleased to bring you Semiconductor Job's 1st interview with Karina Miller who is the staffing manager at a very successful Startup Company in Seattle called Impinj.
Part of the goal at Semiconductor Jobs is to bridge the gap between potential employees and corporations in the Semiconductor Industry. Karina Miller recognizes the importance of developing and maintaining relationships with individuals who one day may choose to consider Impinj as a place of employment.
Impinj is a great place to work and it is great to see someone in Human Resources so interested in the success of the company. I say this with a smile on my face because the truth is everyone at a company should be interested in the success of their company but sadly it is not the case.
Karina has been a supporter of what we are doing at Semiconductor Jobs and we thank her for that.
Enough said. Enjoy the interview, pass it around, if you are interested in learning more about Impinj, you can visit their website or contact Karina Directly
1. How long have you been a recruiter working in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been in recruiting for the past 17 years and working in the semiconductor industry since March 2001.
2. How long have you been with Impinj and what made you decide to join them?
I've been with Impinj since March 2001. What attracted me to Impinj was the unique combination of an excellent career opportunity in terms of both challenge and growth; very high-caliber people; an interesting, unique, very promising, and potentially high-impact technology; and an outstanding equity opportunity. Even though I had never worked in the semiconductor industry, I had heard of Carver Mead, so I knew the company had something special going. There's only so much you can learn in a job interview, but it was readily apparent that this group of people had an excellent mix of business and technical backgrounds, a strong sense of values, and would be fun to work with.
3. You and I have been in touch for a few years now and there is no question that you are one of the most effective internal recruiters out there. I have a number of recruiting partners and they also would agree with me. What do you attribute your effectiveness to?
My mantra in recruiting is to "get the basics right." This means things like: providing excellent service, treating people well, understanding what is going on in the business and the market, helping hiring managers understand their needs, making sure I understand what the company needs a new hire to accomplish, staying in close communication with hiring managers throughout the process, closing all loops, following up with every candidate, doing high-quality work, providing candidates with all of the information they need for an interview, being respectful and honest with people, staying positive, maintaining flexibility, paying attention to details . . . I could go on. I'm continually monitoring these things to make sure we're doing the best job possible on the things that I think really matter; and I'm continually asking candidates, new hires, and hiring managers how we can do better. After that I like to look at ways to innovate.
4. With respect to hiring, what kinds of people is Impinj looking for? Are these new positions or are these the kinds of people you are always on the lookout for?
We have a variety of needs right now, and our priorities are constantly shifting. All of our openings are on our website, which is directly linked to our database, so updates are live. We are always looking for strong analog, mixed signal, and non-volatile memory IC designers who are interested in doing design work that is challenging and unique. In general, we look for a strong breadth and depth of full-cycle IC design experience with prior experience on challenging or innovative designs, and a track record of commercial success. Other common positions that may or may not be open at any given time include communication system engineers, digital design engineers, layout designers, and device engineers. We have an online resume form that candidates can use for specific positions, or, if there's no specific match, candidates can submit a general resume form, and we'll flag according to skill areas so that we can call them when there is a potential match.
5. The last few years in the semiconductor Industry have been very frustrating for so many people. Many great engineers had been laid off and many recruiters had moved on to other types of work. You however have remained. How has Impinj dealt with the last few years and what kind of value have you added to the company?
We were in the fortunate position of being well funded and focused on R&D. Our first products hit the market just before the upturn. Now that things are picking up, we are seeing a high level of interest in our non-volatile memory (NVM) product, AEON, which is the only erasable and rewritable NVM available in a standard digital CMOS process. We've secured significant government funding for our advanced, mixed signal ASIC R&D work. And, we are working in one of the hottest segments of the semiconductor market -- RFID -- which is enabled by our patented device technology, our NVM, and our mixed signal design expertise.
My goals have been: 1. To get the word out about Impinj; 2. To build a flexible, scalable recruiting program that covers as many bases as a small startup can effectively cover, and also minimizes the time our engineers and hiring managers need to spend on recruiting so that they can focus on product development; and 3. To translate our goals and values into recruiting, assessment, and HR programs that enable us to hire and retain people who will help Impinj be a successful company.
6. Why is Impinj a great company to work for and what would you say differentiates Impinj from the rest of the companies developing similar products?
I did an employee survey earlier this year, and virtually everyone said their #1 favorite thing about working here is the people -- both from the perspective of working with people from whom they can learn, and from the perspective of working with people who are great coworkers. Other key areas were: learning opportunity; career growth; and challenging, interesting work that could have an impact on the industry because of our unique technology. Our patented technology is exciting for engineers who want to be in a company that is changing some of the fundamental assumptions about the semiconductor business. I can think of other great companies to work for in terms of the people and the work, and some of them, unfortunately, have not succeeded. Some of them are already successful, public companies, so they no longer have as strong of an equity opportunity to offer. We offer a combination of challenging, interesting, career-advancing work on products that meet customer needs and are already showing commercial success; a strong equity opportunity; and fantastic people in terms of technical and interpersonal skills.
7. How does the recruiting process work within Impinj?
We use a great applicant tracking system called OpenHire to manage the recruiting section of our website, manage all of our candidate sources, and manage applicants through the process. It enables the recruiting team, hiring managers, and other technical reviewers to efficiently and collaboratively review and share comments on resumes, phone screens, and in-person interviews, which in turn enables us to manage and track a higher volume of positions and candidates than we would otherwise be able to handle. The result of the efficiency gains is that we are generally able to be more responsive to candidates and our recruiting partners. My goal with any recruiting-related process is to do the best job I can to meet the communication needs of all parties involved, including candidates, hiring managers, and recruiting partners.
8. Do you depend on advertising to attract talent or do you proactively go out there and work the telephones like third party recruiters do?
We started out with a full-court press -- trying everything to see what worked best. Now that we have a track record, we have found that employee referrals, networking referrals, and 3rd party recruiters have been the best sources for us. We use job boards selectively, and have made a few great hires that way.
9. Being a recruiter yourself, and also working with third party recruiters, what are your total expectations from third party recruiters from your perspective.
Obviously, finding candidates we will hire is the primary goal, but for the relationship to really work well, I look for third party recruiters who will listen to our needs, represent us well, be honest with us and candidates, close the loop with all candidates in a way that represents us well, and generally try to follow our processes. I realize that these are not necessarily easy things to do, so I really appreciate third party recruiters who do all of these things well.
10. What has been the most effective way for you to attract top engineers and what has been the most effective way for you to keep your top employees?
The best way to attract top engineers is to hire top engineers; and the best way to keep top engineers is to hire top engineers who are also good co-workers. Overall, we've done a fantastic job of that. Other important factors include: being successful and making sure everyone understands how they are contributing to the company's success; providing interesting and challenging work; keeping employees informed about what is going on in the company; maintaining high standards; creating a culture of trust, collaboration, innovation, and teamwork; and acknowledging and rewarding employees for their contributions. We also have things like casual dress, flexible schedules, great parties, an excellent location, a deck with a BBQ, free beverages, and a lot of other little perks that make Impinj a great place to work.
11. If you were to poll the people working at Impinj, What would you say the top reasons would be for them coming to work everyday would be?
The people, the work, a belief in the likelihood of the company's success, and an understanding that what they are doing is making a difference.
12. What is the greatest thing (that you can talk about) that has happened to you while being an Impinj employee?
The opportunity to build the recruiting function from scratch; help the company hire these amazing employees; and then watch customers get excited about our technology and products, and tell us how great they think our people are, is very exciting. I feel fortunate to be a part of making it all happen.
13. My opinion is that there will be a massive need for companies such as Impinj to maintain ongoing relationships with those engineers that have the skills to work for your company. Do you agree and if so, what are you doing about this.
Absolutely! We keep in touch with top candidates and sources via e-mail and phone and track everything in our database. I'll need to take that effort to the next level as we grow.
14. From a recruiting standpoint, do you feel that Impinj is at a disadvantage not being in California?
We are opening an office in Irvine in December. In some cases, we have been able to attract candidates who are willing to live anywhere but California, so having the two locations should work well.
15. Is there anything you would like to say about being a recruiter in the Semiconductor Industry?
The industry and technology are fascinating, and the people have been really great. I also love the opportunity to recruit internationally.
16. Is there anything you would like to say to the engineers out there who will be reading this interview?
If you're interested in a great career opportunity, technical challenge, and startup equity opportunity, and think you might have the technical skills we need, we'd love to see your resume, and we promise to respond.
17. How can potential Impinj employees contact you in order to develop and maintain a relationship so that they one day may be considered for employment.
The best way is to apply online at www.impinj.com. Please be sure to let us know that you heard about us on semiconductorjobs.com. If you're not ready to apply, but want to learn more, you can e-mail me at karina.miller@impinj.com
You can visit the Impinj Website Here
You can view their Open Positions Here
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
Part of the goal at Semiconductor Jobs is to bridge the gap between potential employees and corporations in the Semiconductor Industry. Karina Miller recognizes the importance of developing and maintaining relationships with individuals who one day may choose to consider Impinj as a place of employment.
Impinj is a great place to work and it is great to see someone in Human Resources so interested in the success of the company. I say this with a smile on my face because the truth is everyone at a company should be interested in the success of their company but sadly it is not the case.
Karina has been a supporter of what we are doing at Semiconductor Jobs and we thank her for that.
Enough said. Enjoy the interview, pass it around, if you are interested in learning more about Impinj, you can visit their website or contact Karina Directly
1. How long have you been a recruiter working in the Semiconductor Industry?
I've been in recruiting for the past 17 years and working in the semiconductor industry since March 2001.
2. How long have you been with Impinj and what made you decide to join them?
I've been with Impinj since March 2001. What attracted me to Impinj was the unique combination of an excellent career opportunity in terms of both challenge and growth; very high-caliber people; an interesting, unique, very promising, and potentially high-impact technology; and an outstanding equity opportunity. Even though I had never worked in the semiconductor industry, I had heard of Carver Mead, so I knew the company had something special going. There's only so much you can learn in a job interview, but it was readily apparent that this group of people had an excellent mix of business and technical backgrounds, a strong sense of values, and would be fun to work with.
3. You and I have been in touch for a few years now and there is no question that you are one of the most effective internal recruiters out there. I have a number of recruiting partners and they also would agree with me. What do you attribute your effectiveness to?
My mantra in recruiting is to "get the basics right." This means things like: providing excellent service, treating people well, understanding what is going on in the business and the market, helping hiring managers understand their needs, making sure I understand what the company needs a new hire to accomplish, staying in close communication with hiring managers throughout the process, closing all loops, following up with every candidate, doing high-quality work, providing candidates with all of the information they need for an interview, being respectful and honest with people, staying positive, maintaining flexibility, paying attention to details . . . I could go on. I'm continually monitoring these things to make sure we're doing the best job possible on the things that I think really matter; and I'm continually asking candidates, new hires, and hiring managers how we can do better. After that I like to look at ways to innovate.
4. With respect to hiring, what kinds of people is Impinj looking for? Are these new positions or are these the kinds of people you are always on the lookout for?
We have a variety of needs right now, and our priorities are constantly shifting. All of our openings are on our website, which is directly linked to our database, so updates are live. We are always looking for strong analog, mixed signal, and non-volatile memory IC designers who are interested in doing design work that is challenging and unique. In general, we look for a strong breadth and depth of full-cycle IC design experience with prior experience on challenging or innovative designs, and a track record of commercial success. Other common positions that may or may not be open at any given time include communication system engineers, digital design engineers, layout designers, and device engineers. We have an online resume form that candidates can use for specific positions, or, if there's no specific match, candidates can submit a general resume form, and we'll flag according to skill areas so that we can call them when there is a potential match.
5. The last few years in the semiconductor Industry have been very frustrating for so many people. Many great engineers had been laid off and many recruiters had moved on to other types of work. You however have remained. How has Impinj dealt with the last few years and what kind of value have you added to the company?
We were in the fortunate position of being well funded and focused on R&D. Our first products hit the market just before the upturn. Now that things are picking up, we are seeing a high level of interest in our non-volatile memory (NVM) product, AEON, which is the only erasable and rewritable NVM available in a standard digital CMOS process. We've secured significant government funding for our advanced, mixed signal ASIC R&D work. And, we are working in one of the hottest segments of the semiconductor market -- RFID -- which is enabled by our patented device technology, our NVM, and our mixed signal design expertise.
My goals have been: 1. To get the word out about Impinj; 2. To build a flexible, scalable recruiting program that covers as many bases as a small startup can effectively cover, and also minimizes the time our engineers and hiring managers need to spend on recruiting so that they can focus on product development; and 3. To translate our goals and values into recruiting, assessment, and HR programs that enable us to hire and retain people who will help Impinj be a successful company.
6. Why is Impinj a great company to work for and what would you say differentiates Impinj from the rest of the companies developing similar products?
I did an employee survey earlier this year, and virtually everyone said their #1 favorite thing about working here is the people -- both from the perspective of working with people from whom they can learn, and from the perspective of working with people who are great coworkers. Other key areas were: learning opportunity; career growth; and challenging, interesting work that could have an impact on the industry because of our unique technology. Our patented technology is exciting for engineers who want to be in a company that is changing some of the fundamental assumptions about the semiconductor business. I can think of other great companies to work for in terms of the people and the work, and some of them, unfortunately, have not succeeded. Some of them are already successful, public companies, so they no longer have as strong of an equity opportunity to offer. We offer a combination of challenging, interesting, career-advancing work on products that meet customer needs and are already showing commercial success; a strong equity opportunity; and fantastic people in terms of technical and interpersonal skills.
7. How does the recruiting process work within Impinj?
We use a great applicant tracking system called OpenHire to manage the recruiting section of our website, manage all of our candidate sources, and manage applicants through the process. It enables the recruiting team, hiring managers, and other technical reviewers to efficiently and collaboratively review and share comments on resumes, phone screens, and in-person interviews, which in turn enables us to manage and track a higher volume of positions and candidates than we would otherwise be able to handle. The result of the efficiency gains is that we are generally able to be more responsive to candidates and our recruiting partners. My goal with any recruiting-related process is to do the best job I can to meet the communication needs of all parties involved, including candidates, hiring managers, and recruiting partners.
8. Do you depend on advertising to attract talent or do you proactively go out there and work the telephones like third party recruiters do?
We started out with a full-court press -- trying everything to see what worked best. Now that we have a track record, we have found that employee referrals, networking referrals, and 3rd party recruiters have been the best sources for us. We use job boards selectively, and have made a few great hires that way.
9. Being a recruiter yourself, and also working with third party recruiters, what are your total expectations from third party recruiters from your perspective.
Obviously, finding candidates we will hire is the primary goal, but for the relationship to really work well, I look for third party recruiters who will listen to our needs, represent us well, be honest with us and candidates, close the loop with all candidates in a way that represents us well, and generally try to follow our processes. I realize that these are not necessarily easy things to do, so I really appreciate third party recruiters who do all of these things well.
10. What has been the most effective way for you to attract top engineers and what has been the most effective way for you to keep your top employees?
The best way to attract top engineers is to hire top engineers; and the best way to keep top engineers is to hire top engineers who are also good co-workers. Overall, we've done a fantastic job of that. Other important factors include: being successful and making sure everyone understands how they are contributing to the company's success; providing interesting and challenging work; keeping employees informed about what is going on in the company; maintaining high standards; creating a culture of trust, collaboration, innovation, and teamwork; and acknowledging and rewarding employees for their contributions. We also have things like casual dress, flexible schedules, great parties, an excellent location, a deck with a BBQ, free beverages, and a lot of other little perks that make Impinj a great place to work.
11. If you were to poll the people working at Impinj, What would you say the top reasons would be for them coming to work everyday would be?
The people, the work, a belief in the likelihood of the company's success, and an understanding that what they are doing is making a difference.
12. What is the greatest thing (that you can talk about) that has happened to you while being an Impinj employee?
The opportunity to build the recruiting function from scratch; help the company hire these amazing employees; and then watch customers get excited about our technology and products, and tell us how great they think our people are, is very exciting. I feel fortunate to be a part of making it all happen.
13. My opinion is that there will be a massive need for companies such as Impinj to maintain ongoing relationships with those engineers that have the skills to work for your company. Do you agree and if so, what are you doing about this.
Absolutely! We keep in touch with top candidates and sources via e-mail and phone and track everything in our database. I'll need to take that effort to the next level as we grow.
14. From a recruiting standpoint, do you feel that Impinj is at a disadvantage not being in California?
We are opening an office in Irvine in December. In some cases, we have been able to attract candidates who are willing to live anywhere but California, so having the two locations should work well.
15. Is there anything you would like to say about being a recruiter in the Semiconductor Industry?
The industry and technology are fascinating, and the people have been really great. I also love the opportunity to recruit internationally.
16. Is there anything you would like to say to the engineers out there who will be reading this interview?
If you're interested in a great career opportunity, technical challenge, and startup equity opportunity, and think you might have the technical skills we need, we'd love to see your resume, and we promise to respond.
17. How can potential Impinj employees contact you in order to develop and maintain a relationship so that they one day may be considered for employment.
The best way is to apply online at www.impinj.com. Please be sure to let us know that you heard about us on semiconductorjobs.com. If you're not ready to apply, but want to learn more, you can e-mail me at karina.miller@impinj.com
You can visit the Impinj Website Here
You can view their Open Positions Here
To subscribe for weekly updates, Sign up for our Semiconductor Jobs Newsletter
