"Must be willing to learn on the job"

Created: September 9, 2020

Today we continue our series on potential red flags in SuiteScript job postings:

"Must be willing to learn on the job"

While yesterday's red flag of multitasking really raises my hackles and puts me on high alert, this one mostly just raises an eyebrow. It's another phrase that is both ubiquitous and unnecessary: everyone, in every job, everywhere will encounter new situations in their work and will need to adapt and learn accordingly.

I've seen this one phrased a couple other ways:

• "hit the ground running"
• "not for the feint of heart" (seriously?)

No matter how it's worded, the implication is:

We have no training or onboarding program. We'll throw you straight in the deep end on day one, and you'll either sink or swim. Oh, and there are no lifeguards.

Prepare to be thrown straight onto a project and expected to know the ins-and-outs of the company processes without much support because anyone who could help is also drowning in the deep end of their pool.

Once upon a time, we learned our professions from experts and masters who took on apprentices, immersing ourselves in their work while building our own portfolio and relationships - and getting paid to do it. That's no longer true, save for a few trades - of which software development is NOT one. And most companies have refused to pick up that mantle of training. The expectation instead is that you must show up on Day One already knowing everything you need to know, or they'll find someone else.

If you're already a super senior master SuiteScript wizard, you probably don't need to worry about this; you'll be just fine.

But if you're a junior developer, or you're looking to break in to the SuiteScript space, maybe hold out for a place that will bring you on board with a solid foundational training program that immerses you in company culture, processes, tools, and knowledge.

Not sure it's possible to have such a program for your team/company? I can show you how.