“Hiring on Basis of ‘Kujuana’ Works for the Best,” Employer Says. Do you Agree?

Have some employers been hiring people on the basis of ‘Kujuana’ leaving out hundreds if not thousands of candidates who religiously apply for advertised jobs?

A recent graduate (Grace Kibe) who has been job searching without much success recently wrote to us with such sentiments.

She says that, “I am a recent graduate and although I have not yet found a job, I believe I will get one because God lives. My take on the issue (half baked graduates) is that employers first need not to . employ people through `kujuana’ .” She went on to add that, “Networking is good but still they need to have healthy networks….”

A job seeker identifying himself as John left a comment questioning the whole HR Process. He wrote that, “I real wonder why and how HR behave in a such way of “KUJUANA” and KITU KIDOGO. Get the right People without favoring any body.” He added that, “It pains a lot”

But every story has two sides. Hellen Waikunu, speaks on the behalf of employers. She writes that, “Let me talk on behalf of employers here, I will illustrate just few examples of the frustrations we go through trying to get good staff.

In 2013 our production department required more staff. We advertised in various media and got CV’s. We finally called in about 20 people for interview. Sadly, none of them qualified for various reasons because some demanded to be paid more than their qualifications, some didn’t even know anything about us, some had attitude, others couldn’t talk proper English, one even selected which of the listed responsibilities of the position he wanted to!

She shares that, “Generally, getting good staff is as difficult and complicated a process as it is for guys looking for jobs getting a good employer. I have even had to let people go within the first month of giving them a job!

We hired a lady for accounts, she would arrive in the office at 10:00am sleep on her desk and chat everyone up distracting them from their work! She had to go when we discovered she had been sending company financial records to her personal email! On the third week!

Due to such experiences, most employers become very sensitive and want to hire someone recommended to them by a source they can trust so that if anything happens, there is a third party to hold the employee accountable. This is not to excuse the practice but just to show you how it comes to that.

She goes on to add that, “I totally agree with Going to schools, picking the best performers, however, not many companies want to take the costs and time required for training a new hire. Most companies, hire when it’s impossible to do without that additional person and hence want someone who will hit the ground running.

One of the major major issue I have noticed is that people are very choosy about the jobs they want to do or the companies they want to work for. That’s a big big mistake! Every opportunity you get is a stair in the long staircase of your career. Start anywhere or rather where you are! Dedication and commitment will always get you further.

Most of you have heard of John D Rockefeller the American oil tycoon who begun the standard oil company which was later broken up into a total of 34 companies, some of which you may know are; BP, Mobil, Chevron, Exxon etc I am sure you may not know that his father was a conman, also that John D was once a grocery shop attendant before he was promoted to book keeper. This is just one illustration of the many out there that you start where you are, the sky the limit!

And her final say? My father always tells me that money comes last. If you go for the money first, you will loose every time. This simple advice has helped me create solid foundations for relationships that have seen me through thick times.

As a job seeker or employer, are you in support of such sentiments?

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