With technology jobs topping the list as most in-demand, recruiters are busier than ever searching for top candidates and making connections for hiring managers desperately in need of their experience. With 50% of surveyed CIO’s expecting a budget increase through May 2022, hiring is expected to remain strong in the near future. Here are 7 tips on how to recruit top tech talent to keep up with demand:
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Educate on the role and establish the candidate persona
It’s the recruiter’s responsibility to work with the hiring manager on deeply understanding the role requirements and defining the skillsets needed for the position. Technology jobs often require similar skills and expertise that can seem to overlap, but are actually nuanced specifically to certain positions. It’s knowing the difference between needing let’s say a front-end engineer or a back-end engineer versus a full-stack engineer. A good tech recruiter will guide the hiring manager with the right questions to map out the role and then help set the parameters for the candidate requirements that would provide the best fit.
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Search in your own backyard
While there are tech talent databases and portals worth checking into, your own company database is a great place to start. Many IT staffing companies have a large candidate pool of like-minded prospects for new positions. As one Matlen former-recruiter–now Sales Exec noted, if you organize your network accordingly, you are often recruiting for positions that require many similar skill-sets; you can easily cross-reference and bubble up a candidate that had been considered for a different position but may now be a good match for your current need.
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Hang out where the tech candidates are
There is an entire online world of forums and communities comprised of all kinds of tech talent coming together based on interests, expertise, skillsets and more. Think LinkedIn Groups, technical help forums, GitHub, StackOverflow and more, and you are bound to find someone who fits your profile.
Industry networking events, either in-person or virtual, are a great resource to get to know the attendees, find out their interests and determine if they are interested in new opportunities.
Also consider industry crossover candidates and educational sources to recruit top tech talent as well. Veterans transitioning to civilian work-life, many often trained in various technology applications, are a good resource found through local military chapters and training organizations. Building relationships with IT schools or IT divisions in local universities or training institutions can also capture new generations of candidates into your talent pipeline early.
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Invest in tech that appeals to a tech person
As recruiters, your intake process needs to be easy, mobile-friendly, and featuring the latest in security protocols. Further, it is important to showcase the tech tools that the hiring company offers that support and underscore an investment in tech-savvy capabilities that would be attractive to a candidate. Antiquated and redundant application, interviewing and on-boarding tactics will not be appealing to a candidate accustomed to advanced systems.
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Highlight the brand differentiators and paths to growth
A high-quality tech candidate is forward-thinking. And being highly sought-after with an abundance of job choice at their disposal, they can afford to be selective in accepting new roles. It’s important that the recruiter and hiring managers convey the employer branding highlights with purpose.
Sharing opportunities for flexible work environments and benefits and wellness packages, as well as the vision for the organization, can be deal-makers when trying to secure a top tech candidate. Let them know about opportunities for learning, continued education, job-sharing and what their career plan could be if they worked for the prospective employer.
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Understand the candidate’s pain points and deliver
Today’s IT professional has certain expectations in a job and employers must be able to meet them. Salary is still a number one determining factor for accepting a position. But in recent years, employees have been focused heavily on identifying with a company culture and aligning with what they stand for, craving meaningful work and a better work-life balance when signing on. A company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion as well as supporting ideas and movements that employees are passionate about, can also deciding factors for a candidate. It’s important to understand what candidates are looking for, share commonalities and be honest about what fits.
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Don’t burn bridges: provide feedback and honest discussion
As noted earlier, high-quality tech candidates often have transferrable skills for different roles. So, while they may not be the right fit for one position, they may be perfect for the next. Talk with candidates, explain why decisions were made, what was positive, and what they might consider thinking about for next time. Recruiters, you must build a relationship based on respect and transparency, where IT professionals will consider working with you again on a new opportunity if you come knocking on their door.
At Matlen Silver, we’ve spent 40 years becoming the experts on how to recruit top tech talent, building strong relationships with IT professionals and identifying when they will be a great match for a prospective company. If you are top tech talent searching for a new opportunity or an organization looking to build the best tech team, contact us today for a conversation.
