OPINION:

Help wanted: Good worker for fun-sounding job

In a world where job titles can convey power, seniority, influence, skills and a way to impress strangers at parties, I wasn’t sure what to make of two titles I read in a recent issue of VEGAS INC.

In one case, Lilian Tomovich was introduced as the “chief experience officer” — a new position — at MGM Resorts International. In another, Jojo Ruiz was promoted to “senior job captain” at EV&A Architects.

Kudos to both! But what do they do? And what’s going on with job titles these days?

For that answer, I called Redfish Technology, a nationwide headhunting firm. I spoke with Leah O’Flynn, who said her title is “team manager” — very humble, considering she’s No. 3 at Redfish.

Despite the swagger that a great job title can bring at a high school reunion, O’Flynn said recruiters aren’t impressed by titles. They can be deceiving.

But if you’re trying to hire someone who is waffling and has an ego, offering an impressive title can be strong leverage in landing the person, O’Flynn said.

“Job titles used to reflect seniority and the functionality of your role. That’s not the case anymore,” she said. Why? “Companies today need to compete with the cool startups, especially in the tech industry, where they have cool cultures and cool environments. And they’ve got cool titles, like ‘chief of fun’ and ‘director of people’ — that would be H.R. — and ‘growth hacker,’ the new, much more hip word for a marketing manager.”

(If my dad saw “growth hacker” on a resume, he’d assume the guy was a tree trimmer.)

I asked O’Flynn if she knew what a “senior job captain” was. She didn’t. How about “chief experience officer”? “In the technology world, that’s a respectable title,” she said. “It’s ‘UX,’ the person in charge of user experience. You run the online interface with your customers.”

But that’s not Lilian Tomovich’s job. Her job is to make sure every guest at MGM has the best possible experience at the resort itself — from the friendliest interactions with staff to the freshest flowers and cleanest rooms. “It’s no longer enough to provide goods and services; now our economy ties back to the value of the experiences we can provide to a customer,” Tomovich said.

As for job captain? Ruiz works for veteran architect Ed Vance, who said that in some professions, titles are problematic.

“We all struggle with titles and every firm titles people differently,” Vance said. “That’s because you can’t call yourself an architect unless you pass the exam and are licensed by the state.

“So we come up with other titles. ... A job captain runs the internal components of a project.” Well, duh, of course! “Not everyone would understand that,” he conceded. “But other architects would.”

Tags: The Sunday
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