Ask Ructions: How to Beat a Hack Job.
Dear Ructions:
Connecticut is not the easiest place to find a job. A public agency has been looking for a new executive director. My background is in the area of the agency’s authority. I have plenty of experience but am concerned my lack of political connections dooms my chances. I keep hearing the job is wired for a politician with paltry qualifications other than friends in politics.
A direct challenge to the selection process won’t help me. What can I do to make the case for merit?
Sign me,
Disadvantaged
Dear Dis,
Government by cronies continues to deepen its thirsty roots in Connecticut. Our public higher education system has become the capital of hackery—and the state’s new governor seems not at all interested in whacking away at it.
This may be one more stitch up, a rigged job. You are not without tools. Persuasion guru Stephen Martin advises that having others introduce your accomplishments enhances your power to move an audience. Deploy your allies to contact the organization’s board members and the people who appointed them to highlight your talents with examples of achievement.
The hack relies on the qualified to retreat in the face of political thumbs on the scale. Make more than your fight alone. Every politician looking for another high-paying public job (Is it ever enough?) has some detractors and rivals. Commence a hunt to identify them. They may discover a new-found taste for fairness and lend a hand.
During your interview, find a way to demonstrate you know your way around the Freedom of Information Act, which is a skill they ought to appreciate in a job prospect. This will remind the interlocutors that much of the selection process will be subject to public scrutiny. If they have subordinated their public trust to political pressure they will learn that sunshine is a powerful disinfectant. If they have any doubts, they might examine the tatters of the Connecticut Port Authority.
Execute these steps and you will be ready for takeoff.
If you are impaled on the horns of a dilemma and want to risk receiving advice, send a message to kfr@dailyructions.com. Identities will be protected. Messages may be edited.