On Aug 15, 2014, at 12:44 PM, Kim, Bohyun wrote:

> I am in a situation in which a university has a set salary guideline for programmer position classifications and if I want to hire an entry-lever dev, the salary is too low to be competitive and if I want to hire a more experienced dev in a higher classification, the competitive salary amount exceeds what my library cannot afford. So as a compromise I am thinking about going the route of posting a half-time position in a higher classification so that the salary would be at least competitive. It will get full-time benefits on a pro-rated basis. But I am wondering if this strategy would be viable or not.
> 
> Also anyone has a experience in hiring a developer to telework completely from another state when you do not have previous experience working with her/him? This seems a bit risky strategy to me but I am wondering if it may attract more candidates particularly when the position is half time.
> 
> As a current/past/future library programmer or hiring manager in IT or both, if you have any thoughts, experience, or ideas, I would really appreciate it.


Salary's not the only factor when it comes to hiring ... convenience and work environment are a factor, too.

If I were you, I'd look to hire a half-time employee, and let them have flexible hours, so you could pick up a current student.  If you can offer them reduced tuition or parking (matters at some campuses ... for College Park, just getting 'em in a lot that's closer to their classes) might make up for a less-competitive salary.

You should also check with the university's legal department, as you have a class of students who specifically *can't* work full time (foreigners on student visas), so you might be able to hire a grad student that would've other problems getting hired.  Especially in the D.C. area, they have a hard time finding jobs (as so many companies are tied to the federal government, they don't want to hire non-US citizens).

...

As for the telework aspect -- it's a pain to get set up from nothing.  If you have someone that you're comfortable with and they move away, that's completely different from bringing in someone who doesn't have a vested relationship in the group.  At the very least, I'd recommend bring them in for an orientation period (2-8 weeks), where you can get a feel for their work ethic & such.

Most of the people on the project I'm on are remote ... but we keep an IM group chat window up all the time, and we have meetings 1-3 times per year where we all get together for a week to hash out various issues and keep the relationships strong.

-Joe