Thank you, candidates

Earlier this year, I was asked to help hire for several roles at San Francisco Digital Services. That included our first dedicated research position.

We opened the Senior Design Researcher position at the end of August and closed it 3 weeks later. In that short time, we received 57 applications.

I’ve done a fair amount of hiring in previous jobs, but I joined Digital Services in January of this year — my first-ever public sector job. I didn’t know what to expect of hiring in government, and was apprehensive about having to compete with all the deep-pocketed tech companies for quality candidates. I was pleasantly surprised as the applications started rolling in, and downright impressed with the quality as I started reviewing them.

Speaking to candidates on the phone, I heard over and over from capable researchers excited by the prospect of contributing to San Francisco, even if it meant making a little less than market rate. I heard things like:

• “I walk to work every day. I’m tired of just walking past problems — I want to be part of the solution”
• “I’d like to do work that’s less profit-oriented and more aligned with my values”
• “I’ve gotten so much from this city. I want to give something back”
• “I want to see how I can help.”

These conversations left me touched and inspired. I’m too new here to be jaded, but these conversations helped reinforce my own sense of purpose and connection to the design community.

In the end, we could hire only one person to fill this role. We were lucky to have such a high-quality group of people to choose from. And we sadly had to say no to people we’d be happy to have as teammates.

To everyone who applied to this or any of our other positions, thank you for your interest in the civic space and for considering us. It’s inspiring to know you’re out there — please keep in touch.