Usually because they don't want to be contacted by phone, personal email addresses, in-person drop-ins. It's a competitive job market right now.

Paul's response is probably right, but too boring. It must be dismissed as such.

Reason firms post anonymously is because it gives them a chance to pretend to be the company they always dreamed of being, as opposed to the company that they are. Award winning? Check. Design driven, collaborative, commitment to excellence, dynamic, blah blah, internationally something? check.

Bigger companies rarely bother with such (anonymous) posts. They go through recruitment agencies.

i imagine anyone who is currently employed would avoid these...what if you end up unwittingly applying for a new job with your current employer??

elinor: if they're halfway smart, firms that use blind ads generally inform their own employees that such an ad has been placed. We actually post a copy of our blind ads on our bulletin board to avoid such 'mistakes'. We also insert the following phrase in the ad "Our employees are aware of this ad."

Also those nameless ads can be a scam. There are lots of duches that copy legit ads just to get hold of personal information. I [u]never[/u] send resumes to nameless ads.

Just show your firm so people can see if they are a good fit etc.

Don't want to be contacted in person or phone?  Then please put:

"No walk-ins or phone calls please" email resume to So&so or Human Resouces.

^ purpurina -- while I understand and respect your point-of-view, we sometimes use blind ads specifically because "No walk-ins or phone calls please" language simply doesn't deter a fairly large percentage of candidates - especially in a down economy.

While we recognize that we may not receive qualifications from a certain group of candidates who may be mistrustful of our ads, we've actually had very good results with such ads in the past. However, we do try to be reasonably descriptive of our firm so potential candidates won't mistake us for firms like SOM or a 1-person shop doing kitchen remodels.

comb, that makes sense.  i used to work for a firm who thought they were waaay above listing jobs...they thought it was embarrassing or something to admit they couldn't get people through their rarefied word-of-mouth pipeline.  (ugh).

i heard from a friend once that they posted anonymous ads often...and i don't ever remember getting a warning....probably explains why i'm leery of those ads.  

also, architecture is a small world.  i hate the thought that i may be applying for a job with someone who knows me.

I've been away from these "boards" for quite some time now, and it's good to see the site has been improved and organized quite well.  I must say I was hit hard with the situation of our economy, and was left wondering to myself if I was possibly one of the only ones that was still not working in the profession now after nearly 2 years.

Seems like many here in the LA market are still having problems.  I guess my main concern and the reason why I am adding a comment here is that I recall how firms used to post jobs listings and their Co name or website.  Many of the culprits that didn't supply that information were very "shady" firms that really weren't worth the time to apply to.  It appears that now that is just the reverse. 

I don't necessarily agree with the view that they are "protecting" themselves from calls, walk-ins, etc. because people will blindly call firms (the big name firms and starchitects offices) and still ask if they have positions.  All these offices have to cite in their posting is that "no walk-in, calls, or other enquiries will be accepted."  Full Stop.

Therefore it still makes me wonder about those that post and give you no information about their status/work/legitimacy as you could be possibly wasting your time with some fly-by-night companies.  (unfortunately I had such an experience with such a company - who I still see posts on here......unbelievable!)

Just sayin'

squirrely - "firms used to post jobs listings and their Co name or website... It appears that now that is just the reverse".

What do you mean? The percentage of confidential jobs listings is in the range of 2% - 5% of the job listings here. In the first 2 pages of job listings, 2 of the 60 most recent job ads do not indicate the name of their firm.

I can see how it's easy to assume that the firms that are posting confidentially are trying to hide something by not posting their names, but that's far from the truth. I can see who it is that is posting the confidential jobs, and these firms are almost always large, successful, firms. Putting the text "no phone calls or walk-ins" does not stop people, unfortunately. Often job-seekers will even seek out the email addresses of the firm principals and contact them directly hoping that it will get a foot in the door.

I definitely wouldn't recommend that anyone apply to a position that they don't feel comfortable with, but I can assure you that by ignoring the confidential ads you might be missing some really great opportunities.

Paul,

First of all I congratulate you on the revised website (I've been away for a loooooooong time).  Looks great and I like he picture/professional inclination to the posters now (that you have as an option).

I just meant that back a few years ago, I noticed (as I scoured the boards for jobs) that many firms DID not seem to utilize the "confidential" status if you will.  Of course I don't mean to question your data, as you are one of the gatekeepers and have access to more data than say I.  I guess it was more of a observation from times past, and not of recent postings/times.

I had the misfortune of dealing with one of these "nameless" firms that was posting with a very random email account in which they asked that applicants submit portfolios and resumes.  After being selected and interviewing with the "principal" of the firm, etc and listening to his claims of accolades from well known firms, and schools (esp here in the LA area) I found it sort of found it.....well just tasteless (for lack of a better word).

I completely agree with you and understand your statement about firms trying to be confidential, however the firms that seem to do well, etc., dont seem to have issues posting their names, etc.  So why can't the small "joe architect" firms be held to the same conditions?

Just a question.

squirrelly: "firms that seem to do well, etc., don't seem to have issues posting their names"

This is a non-starter. Some do - some don't. It would be a gross distortion to suggest that our firm "doesn't do well" just because we sometimes use blind ads. That conclusion simply would be false.

Look folks, most of the anxiety, and most of the conclusions, surrounding this issue is misplaced. If you don't like blind ads, don't respond. The firm takes that risk - and knows it's taking that risk - when it places the ad.

You'll save the firm administrative time by not responding, which is what the firm set out to accomplish in the first place. If the firm can't fill the position with the responses received, then they'll adopt a different approach.

However, it's a mistake to suggest that a firm that uses blind ads is somehow 'automatically' deficient.

Comb

Point taken, however your response seems a bit on a defensive status as a result of this discussion.  If your firm is not responsible for such "play", then there's nothing for you to worry about.  No need to defend - in other words.

I was sharing my views because of the previous experiences I've dealt with, and seemingly alot of other contacts/friends who share in this viewpoint (we do talk amongst ourselves and compare notes, etc). 

So I was just sharing my observation as to the status of these "blind" ads whom seek good candidates, however do it on a very covert type manner, which makes the candidate (possibly) question the actual quality/ethics/viability of that said firm.  It's only natural to question, right?

If your firm does not apply to this condition, then you have nothing to really contest/defend right?  And believe me, I say this full well knowing that I may someday be in the position of hiring for my own practice.  However, one thing for me is clear....I won't disguise myself or what I stand for b/c I am worried about the volume of responses I may get.

Im just sayin'