Jirka / Jiří Soljak
Meet Jirka
- Jirka is an avid motorcyclist, and does not hesitate to go on an adventure to the Balkans.
- He relaxes by fishing.
- Thanks to his three children, he has had to accept hedgehogs, cats, octopuses, African snails, turtles, fish, a mouse, a hamster, a marten,…
- The point above means he’s pretty tolerant.
- He lives by the Berounka River on the border of the Brdy forests, just in a place where everyone wants to go for a trip, after which they never want to return to the city. When the snow falls in Brdy, everything must be moved to a side, and if you are lucky and keep quiet, you will see Jirka wandering alone on cross-country skis or snowshoes.
- It’s easy to talk him into anything silly, like pole dancing.
- He’s not afraid to jump into the icy Vltava River.
- He knows how to make others happy.
- He’ll talk a dead man down.
- He wants to keep pushing things forward.
- He’s a “everything is going to happen” kind of guy.
How did he start his career as a recruiter
As Jirka himself says “It found me on its own”. Through his years from IT technical and consulting roles to management, where he was responsible for technology, development and integration, as well as HR and then his own coaching practice. It just came full circle, and it wanted out.
What he thinks is hard about being a headhunter
Jirka thinks it is everything! In his opinion, headhunting is the queen of consulting – just like fly fishing. He rates it as a complex and difficult discipline involving sales, marketing, very broad expertise, plus all that HR legal and soft stuff like typology, negotiation, but most importantly a lot of listening. As he says, headhunting seems like it can be done from anywhere, by anyone, but then it looks like it. “It’s terribly fragile because if you don’t direct someone well, all parties suffer,” Jirka says.
What makes Jirka happy in his current job
He enjoys the variety, but most of all, how personal and human it is. When he can live their story together with clients (and candidates). He then enjoys fighting for them as if they were his own. But it is a big commitment for him, so then he’s at it again how hard it is.
What would Jirka like to learn
Jirka would like to learn to simplify things and do more of that “here and now”.
What even we didn’t about Jirka
That in 2nd grade he got a 4 grade from a backward somersault and it hurt him.
What his colleagues say about him
Jana Kosková: “Our big boss. Loving father and husband. Avid motorcyclist who even goes to the Albanian mountains, and someone who in his quiet moments is a patient fisherman. A man who always wants to explore and try new things and is not afraid of extreme experiences, for example in the form of a survival course. He enjoys good food and wine in a good company, as well as a solitary cross-country skiing trip on freshly fallen snow in the Brdy Mountains.”
Kateřina Denysjuková: “Jirka was actually the final reason why I decided to join siteq. As a boss, he is just a great mentor and a strong mental support, without which I might have given up. I could tell from the beginning that he was a pretty caring and fair type, so I wasn’t worried that he would throw me in the water as a junior. As a former IT expert, and current coach and manager, he never sees any situation as black and white. He looks at everything holistically, and while his perspective can seem complex at times, I think it’s exactly the kind of attitude a senior I want to learn from should have.”
Speed Dating
favourite food
- I once had a learned to answer trout on the grill, and since I could list a dozen other things now, I won’t complicate things and stick with this one
favourite colour
- I’m a bit colour blind, and even purple is blue to me, and we all know that is a good one
favourite person
- with all humility, nowadays it is myself, but it took me years before I understood that I have to start with this, especially with myself
favourite movie or TV show
- Definitely Fight Club
- Kill Bill
favourite book
- The Egyptian
favourite activity
- wandering
- motorcycling
- fishing on a kayak
favourite country or city or part of a city (and why)
- country – ours
- Slovenia, because there are normal people and it’s nice there, just like here
what Harry Potter character would you be
- that isn’t something I enjoy – I’m more like Bart Simpson or the devil with the rank of a horse from Máchal
least favourite food
- Dalmátské čufty, just the name alone, am I right…
what three things upset you the most
- stupidity
- smugness (the kind you get when someone thinks they are more like me)
- cold soup
Take a look at Jirka’s LinkedIn profile here.