Polygraph in IT companies. 5 stories of IT specialists about lie detector checks

How much do computer engineers make

In most countries of the world, polygraph examinations of employees are not prohibited by law ( except for Germany, Austria, Australia). In this way, managers want to identify "unreliable" employees or candidates. Judging by the  discussion at the forum , Ukrainian IT specialists have a sharply negative attitude to this practice.

We decided to find those who were not against the polygraph test and agreed to pass it. Several IT specialists on condition of anonymity told us about how this happened, what they asked about, and how much the polygraph influenced their attitude toward the company.

Illustration by Alina Samolyuk

How to check on a polygraph. Special sensors are fixed on the human body, which record changes in its condition. For example, pneumographs are attached to the chest. They are responsible for recording changes in respiration. A tonometer is needed to record changes in pressure, and sensors that attach to the arms and legs are responsible for recording muscle contraction. In addition, the polygraph examiner fixes galvanometers on his fingers. If a person becomes nervous, the body will sweat and the sensors will detect a change in the electrical resistance of the skin.

Refusing a polygraph was tantamount to dismissal

I was a Senior Developer at that company. Mandatory polygraph examination was introduced a few months after the opening of the new office as mandatory. All employees and candidates of that time had to pass it.

When we were told about the lie detector test, I was loyal to it. However, many colleagues were extremely negative - it is clear why. First, the atmosphere itself is tense. Secondly, it is intrusion into personal life. At that time, probably 30% of employees perceived it negatively, 30% - without much enthusiasm, and another 30% - pofigistichno. The rest were not against such an inspection.

For example, I was interested in such an experience. Refusal of a polygraph was tantamount to dismissal. I had no fundamental reasons for refusing, so I agreed.

Everyone was told in general terms about the process. The inspection took place directly in the meeting room. There was a nice polygraph specialist sitting there, who also told me about the nuances of the process and connected me to the equipment.

I was absolutely calm. The questions they asked were directly or indirectly related to the sale of leads, the disclosure of corporate secrets and everything that could lead to it. They were formulated in such a way that it was possible to give a confident and unambiguous answer. For example, the company was interested in the question: "Have you ever disclosed the NDA?". It was rebuilt as follows: "Have you ever disclosed the NDA, which led to financial or other losses of the company?".

I no longer remember exactly how long the inspection lasted. I think about an hour and a half. In general, if it influenced my attitude to the company, it is minimal. In fact, I always expect something similar from Israeli customers.

I have not seen another polygraph test in any company. But if I come across this, this factor will not be decisive when I make a decision about the offer.

I am convinced that the polygraph gives many false results - both positive and negative. And checking it is not worth complicating the recruitment process so much, unequivocally.

The adequacy of the certification to his professional project

A computer certification will certainly enhance your profile more, but targeted training will increase your chances of acquiring advanced skills that will allow you to boost your career!

For young people who are in training or looking for a job, it will be a question of choosing a certification directly related to their field of study, which will complement the theoretical contributions of your training with a purely practical component. Above all, you will need to clearly define your professional project and directly target the certifications that will allow you to achieve your goals.

For example, if the student aims to become a web and / or mobile developer, an Oracle certification can be very rewarding given that it covers the main programming languages, which represent the very heart of development, unlike other certifications in automation or industrial IT, for example, which deviate from the targeted field computer engineer careers.

Examples of highly valued certifications

As indicated above, it is the reputation of the organization that issues the certification that determines the value of the certification. Certifications issued by organizations like Microsoft which issues MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional) or Amazon which has a division specializing in Cloud Computing services called AWS (Amazon Web Services) are highly valued and appreciated around the world. professional.

In addition, several companies operating in the field and producing technological or IT solutions such as Cisco and Oracle also offer certifying training courses relating to the handling of their own solutions, which are widely used in the IT field and whose mastery shows almost essential !

Choose an engineering school that incorporates certifications into its curriculum

Some engineering schools offer the opportunity to take relevant IT certifications alongside their education, thereby enabling students to enrich their knowledge and further consolidate their skills.

Opting for a computer engineering school that incorporates professional certifications into its curriculum will not only save you a lot of time and effort, but will also give you a head start over similar profiles in the IT market. employment, since you will be better equipped at the end of your training to face the world of business. A very attractive point for employers!

Ultimately, mastering IT tools and specific software is the challenge for each IT engineer, on his way to building a solid and valued profile in the company. IT certifications are therefore the ideal way to achieve this goal.

Still, what to choose to be a software engineer?

Based on the range of subjects and courses at this university, it follows that "Computing" is the best choice if you want to become a software engineer.

For simplicity, let's say you are hoping to get one of the highest paying jobs (~ $ 100,000 per year) as a software engineer in North America. These jobs are usually found in large software companies (e.g. Microsoft, Google, Amazon, etc.). Or high-growth midsize companies (Dropbox, Lyft, Snapchat, Pinterest, etc.).

Typically, they look for an opportunity to write good code and create interesting projects in a candidate programmer, as well as knowledge of basic computer science, data structures and algorithms.

The best way to activate this skill set is to quickly learn the basics and spend your time solving problems and writing code.

Based on the software engineering curriculum and the employment of software engineers, this will be more difficult to do in the Software Engineering course.

Another advantage of Computing Engineering is that it provides more electives. This is great because depending on what is in demand in the labor market, you can adjust your training. For example, if mobile app development is in demand, you can start learning about it computers question.

A few notes

Different universities have different requirements for these specialties. This article should be a good starting point, but you should still take a look at the program requirements at the university you are interested in.

Some universities do not even have such a direction as "Software Engineering". For example, the University of British Columbia in Vancouver might give you a degree in computer engineering and computer engineering, but not software engineering. But they have a software concentration in their computer science program as well as in computer engineering.

Conclusion

If the university you are interested in does not have a major in software engineering, you can opt for computer science if you want to become a software engineer. Computing is more hardware oriented than computer science or software, so it is less tied to the work of the typical software developer. Translated into Russian by the Programmer's Library.

The basic requirements for both areas are also similar and consider algorithms, data structures and operating systems.

Let's look at the key differences:

Software engineering has more requirements in electrical engineering and software development, such as software testing, software design, and specifications.

Computing enables teaching with a wider range of high-level computer science courses. You can choose from a variety of topics such as security, software engineering fundamentals, computer vision, machine learning, and database management.

Telecom and networks engineer

Computer engineering vs software engineering

The telecom and network engineer must manage the day-to-day life of the network through which information in the form of voice and data passes. It thus meets the demand of certain units: manufacturing, trade and distribution.

The profession of telecom and network engineer first requires technical skills. He also knows how to work in a team. This quality is particularly required of him when he trains his colleagues in the new network architecture .

Communication networks, the sinews of war

Information must circulate at all costs ... and quickly. It is the telecommunications engineers who have the heavy responsibility of linking the various sites together.  Responsive, curious and passionate about IT, they design, develop and experiment with new technologies to make telecommunications systems ever more efficient.

Optical fiber, video consoles, mobile phones ... All these innovations that the population benefits from every day would not have seen the light of day without these high-level professionals. These scientists also have a managerial role. They most often supervise the technical teams responsible for the design of telecommunications equipment such as telephones, faxes, switchboards and even networks.

An essential profession for companies

The telecommunications engineers working increasingly for advice to companies and the Digital Service companies (NSE) which themselves put their skills to the companies. Today, companies need very efficient communication systems and above all, always operational.

In the event of a major failure, the engineer must travel to perform tests. Designer of this same system, he is best able to solve the problem in record time.

Finally, in the labs, they work with other researchers, an essential collaboration for the proper functioning of research and the creation process.

Shortage of senior engineers in the Dutch oil and gas industry

The Department for Oil and Gas Technology of the Royal Institute of Engineers (KIVI) has conducted research into the supply and demand of engineers in the Dutch oil and gas industry. Among other things, this highlights the shortage of both senior engineers and female engineers. There are also concerns about the potential loss of innovation development among students due to increasingly school-based university education. At the start-up level, supply and demand appear to balance each other well. The findings of the investigation were presented on Wednesday 9 September to Merit Clocquet, Technology Pact program leader at the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

KIVI has mapped out the expected demand for engineers in the coming years and what specific knowledge and competences companies in the oil and gas industry expect from newly graduated engineers. The survey shows that there is a shortage of senior engineers with professional and sector-specific knowledge and that companies want to actively increase the percentage of female engineers.

Other points for attention are the demand for teachers in higher education with a background in the sector and the image of the sector. The increasingly school-based system in university education has the risk that it can lead to less innovation development and creativity among students. Novice engineers are strongly advised to work on their professional basis first. Positive points were the balanced balance of supply and demand from engineers. People were also positive about the salary level computers related jobs. 

Note for editors:

About the Royal Institute of Engineers (KIVI)

KIVI has been the professional association of engineers in the Netherlands since 1847. KIVI is committed to supporting engineers in their professional practice and propagates the importance of engineers and technology for society. To this end, KIVI cooperates with higher education and the technological industry and in a European context with other professional organizations for engineers.

What is a linear meter?

A linear meter is a somewhat redundant term for measuring length in the International System of Units (SI). A linear meter is different from a square meter, which is a unit of area, or a cubic meter, which is a unit of volume. Typically, the word "linear" is omitted because the meter is meant to be a unit of length and not an area or volume. However, in some cases this is written as a “linear meter” to avoid confusion when multiple units are used in a particular job or task what type of engineer should i be.

The metric system, which is the basis of the modern SI system, gets its name from the counter, which is one of the seven basic units of the SI system. A meter is defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum during a span of 1 / 299.792.458 of a second. This definition has been around since its first official designation by the French Academy of Sciences in 1791, when it was described as one tenth of a millionth the distance from the North Pole to the equator.

This initial meter definition was later found to have a margin of error of 0.2 mm (0.008 in) due to the inability to account for the distortion of the Earth's spherical shape due to centrifugal forces associated with rotation, which cause the Earth to be slightly convex at the equator and slightly flattened. at the poles. Later, a new prototype for a flow meter, using the previous definition as a base, was made from an alloy of platinum and iridium and held under controlled conditions.

In 1960, the definition was changed again to further improve the accuracy of the linear meter. The wavelength of a particular type of radiation from the decaying isotopes of the element krypton was used to determine the meter. The current definition, based on the transit time of light in a vacuum, was adopted in 1983. All of these definitions have changed little in the day-to-day use of a linear meter by most ordinary citizens. These definitions have always been useful to scientists and those who require the utmost accuracy of measurements.

The meter is one of the most recognizable units of measurement today, even for countries like the United States that are slowly adopting the metric system. That's the equivalent of just over 3.28 feet, or 1.09 yards. A thousand meters is a kilometer, a standard device used for long distances in many parts of the world.

In some cases, the term linear meter is used when discussing the amount of material, such as lumber. In these cases, it is sometimes confused with square or cubic meters, units of area and volume. To avoid confusion, a linear meter should always be viewed simply as a length measurement. For example, when discussing lumber, a linear meter means a piece that is one meter long, regardless of other board dimensions.

Neural networks

After I went through neural networks at the university, a lot of water has flowed under the bridge. We finally got our hands on the old and long-postponed lecture of the small ShAD.

Interesting: computer science vs computer engineering

In 2015, the moment passed when the computer began to determine the image better than a person (it is quite difficult for a person to distinguish an ordinary Husky from a Siberian Husky).

Classical neural networks are when each neuron is connected with all neurons of the previous layer, and everything is relatively simple there (we taught the recognition of pixel symbols in our labs). But, if you use them for image processing, there will not be enough resources, so they use Convolutional Neural Networks. This is a type of neural network that uses only limited weight matrices (small size), which are "moved" over the entire processed layer.

For example, you can train a neural network to detect eyes in a photograph and then quickly identify them in a photograph (the second slide describing the scientific work of Gatys LA on stylizing images seemed quite amusing to me. Lecture in 2015, let me remind you).

To solve problems related to text (translations, generation of texts), Recurrent Neural Networks are used - these are networks in which there is a feedback. When consistency matters. Here you can already write bots for, for example, technical support. Or my old idea of ​​a fix is ​​to translate any text into the style of Dostoevsky. When computers start writing programs for themselves, these are also recurrent neural networks.

But the magic begins when we start combining the two together. Convolutional + recurrent networks give us, for example, the ability to translate video to text (I've always wondered how this is done). There is a famous video where one developer walks around Amsterdam, and he describes everything he saw. [funny that this video was made with post-processing, I mean not in real time. Since the iPhone 7 Plus is already kind of more powerful than my eyir, we can already assume that applications for people with visual impairments will appear soon. I pointed my phone, and you were told in real time what was happening on the street].

First recursive, then convolutional. And you can do the generation of images by text (for example, help the build editor to select images for the text).

Using convolutional networks + reinforcement learning, we can train the network to solve any game (for example, the same teaching mechanics can be used for almost all Atari games). [note: checkers, for example, were decided almost by brute force - a computer can bring any game to a draw, chess is already a little more difficult).

PS At WWDC 2016 Apple presented two pieces: Basic Neural Network Subroutines (BNNS) and Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN). 

It is described here in more or less human language. In other words, you can already be completely dumb, you just take it and use it. For example, in order to detect a face in a photo, you can use a specially dedicated thing for this.