American universities produce a surplus of PhD's. Should you hire one of these available, talented people? Here are a few general guidelines.
Upside:
1. Salary. A PhD has been trained not to associate the degree with a high salary, and may be hired for at least 40% less than you would pay for others with advanced degrees.
2. Drive. A typical PhD will work harder, for longer, than the typical knowledge worker, and will require less supervision.
3. Gadfly Factor. If your organization can stand it, the typical American PhD has been trained to identify patterns and point out opportunities for improvement.
4. Information management. PhD's in almost all disciplines have been trained to find, organize, and share complex information.
5. Technology. Usually the PhD has been exposed to next-generation technology at the university, and may see good alternatives to your current technologies.
Downside:
1. Spotlight. A PhD expects to be listened to, and at length, without first having to prove why.
2. Team. A PhD may have the habit of treating an organization as a resource provider and a necessary political evil, so a PhD may not understand how to work on a team.
3. Fault finder. PhD's are trained to find fault with others' work, and credentialed for doing so. In most organizations this habit may be perceived as negative, defeatist, or cynical.
4. Results. Approval of peers and citation by others is the definition of success for a PhD. You may need to work harder to train the PhD to focus on the results that matter for your organization.
5. Smarts. The PhD's intelligence and ability to think in abstractions can alienate others if the PhD fails to acknowledge the many other smart, non-academic ways to get things done.
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