The challenges of being a Lander*
By: Pedro Douwens Prats
Tags: Careers, Tech Professional, Transparency

I’m getting tired of reading very well written posts where all you can squeeze out is shameless self-promotion in the form of cheap content marketing with little to no content at all.

I know, I know, it works, been there, done that. Anyways, allow me to go another route this time, one that is actually very close to a rather dusty manifesto of ours that I happen to adore, specifically when we state this:

Be transparent. We want jobs with [everything] upfront. All for real. Be open about what you’ve got!

So let me be transparent and tell you what it’s like to work at Landing.Jobs.

Neither fish nor fowl

At around 40 people, organizing the workforce is no longer a walk in the park. Sometimes we think we are still the same sexy startup from a few years ago, when the shortage of office space and a few slices of pizza were enough to ensure strong teamwork. Other times, we get all corporate and devise uber-elaborate organizational structures you have to navigate with a foldable map.

If you want to work with us you’ll have to be one with a little chaos, to know how to laugh and learn with your mistakes and be willing to take ownership of stuff that is in no man’s land, to be proactive, to organize and be organized.

Good thing is that we now have an awesome office, with space to spare for all of our startup-like furniture and gadgets.

Enormous potential but not a unicorn

We’ve been sitting on a gold mine. In 6 years, 170.000 tech professionals have used us, they made 280.000 applications to 11.000 job ads from more than 4.000 companies. Imagine what one could do with this data! Well, we haven’t even scratched the surface. Business has been going well but, unfortunately, our faucets don’t pour out billions of investment dollars. Our salaries are paid from our work, not by investors who get easily impressed with powerpoint-ware.

Just like in any other business, we make 10 mistakes for every home run we hit. If you’re working at a unicorn company, you don’t even realize that. At Landing.Jobs you do.

Guess where I think you can learn more?

Greenfield, legacy and fast-pace tied in a knot

We are always inventing new stuff. New business ideas, new features for our users, new brand spanking tools that might be game changers (most aren’t!). However, with an average of 1 application per minute on our platform, we do have to make sure we’re not building a future at the cost of the present.

I’m not going to lie here. I get confused very very often. As a Product Manager I’m always short on time when trying to learn from the past, guarantee a present and build the future. Verb tenses get all mixed up.

As a Lander, you’ll need to have either a very strong mental health or be diagnosed with slight madness. Most of us fit the latter.

Purpose, meaningfulness and popcorn

We are a company founded by tech professionals meant for tech professionals. Do you know what makes you tick? Have a look at our Tech Professionals Happiness Index while we’re at this. Speaking for myself, my g-spot is close to having some kind of positive impact in the world.

Technology is being democratized. Traditional career paths are dead. People upskill, reskill and use their skills globally. Traditional companies used all kinds of power plays to hold on to talent. I used to watch these changes, optimistic about the future while holding a bowl of popcorn. Joining Landing.Jobs and becoming a Lander has been empowering. I am no longer holding the popcorn, nor have I become a popcorn chef. I’m helping tech professionals become the main actors in this film.

I’m a maker of futures, how f*ing cool is that?