It&#x27;s deliberate -- although I don&#x27;t know about being &quot;profound&quot;. :-)<p>In other words, while I take prior places of employment as signal (just as others do), I tend to discount it heavily. I know smart people working at not-great places, as well as people I would <i>never</i> hire working at some very well-respected companies.<p>In the end, I&#x27;m hiring the person now, not their history.