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Arvind Jain, a former Google engineer and CEO of AI workplace startup Glean, receives thousands of job applications every day for open positions. However, Jain doesn’t hire based on volume — he looks instead for evidence of hard work, a trait he views as nonnegotiable. 

“I have a firm belief that hard work solves all the problems,” Jain recently told . “The yardstick for me is that when I work in a group, I want to be known as the person who gives in the most.”

Jain said that a strong work ethic matters most in potential hires. Skills are important, and experience also matters, but in his eyes, effort and attitude come first.

The only problem is that other companies also seek candidates who show evidence of hard work. The strongest candidates usually have multiple companies trying to hire them at the same time, according to Jain. “If you work hard, you always have lots of choices,” Jain said. “Every company wants to work with you.” 

Jain thinks it is difficult to find strong candidates

Meanwhile, many Gen Z college graduates feel unlucky in today’s job market. Employers often stop responding, entry-level positions seem limited, and there are growing fears about AI replacing jobs. In an uncertain job market, Jain said he is dealing with the opposite situation. 

“Students think it’s hard to find jobs, but we think it’s hard to find them,” he said. Even with thousands of applications rolling in, it is difficult to find strong talent, he added. 

However, the number of applicants for at Glean is so high that the company can review only around a fifth of the applications they receive. Jain said that the team is waiting for job-seekers to come to the website to apply. “We don’t have the resources to go out there,” he said. That means candidates must stand out on their own and make a strong impression. 

Jain’s advice to job-seekers

Jain’s top piece of advice for candidates is to become well-versed in using AI — and to do so immediately. “This is the time of opportunity,” he said. “You have this phenomenal tool.” 

He believes people who fully use AI tools can work far faster than those who do not, and that this gap will keep growing. People who know how to use AI tools can create “amazing” software, apps, images and videos that showcase their creativity, he added. 

Jain said that starting with AI is easier than people expect, and using AI well can quickly set one worker apart from another. 

“AI is not a difficult thing,” he said. “You don’t have to sit through 10 hours of a course. Just go into one of these AI tools — whether you want to use Gemini or ChatGPT or whatever — and talk to them like a colleague. Ask them to do things for you.”