Recruiting Tech Talent: What Matters Most

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Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash

The ability to recruit qualified candidates and turn them into long-term employees has steadily decreased over the years. This has been even more true with the arrival of COVID-19, leading to a pandemic that changed how hiring was done. It continues to be the case and will likely only make recruitment harder for many companies.

However, adapting to those obstacles and more has allowed companies and their recruiters to find new ways to bring in qualified candidates.

Limiting Turnovers

Turnovers in any industry is defined as when an employee, most likely hired a few months to a year prior, leaves a company. The past year has seen a sharp increase in turnovers in most industries, particularly those high in demand. There are many pandemic-related reasons for this, but recruitment has seen a collective shift in candidate priorities as well.

In order to limit turnovers, recruiters should focus on identifying the reasons for those turnovers. Analyzing the effectiveness of the hiring process and candidate experiences during it could help. Often, the source of turnovers begins with a poor candidate experience.

Keeping Up with Technology

Within the IT and tech industries, this is extremely important for every business. Technology is continuously advancing. The industry itself is also competitive by nature. Should a tech company not be able to keep up with technological advancements, it will likely fail. This is a red flag for new candidates who may want to apply.

Utilize Automated Tools

Tools like online assessments for technical and soft skills have become vital to the hiring process for companies. They make the hiring process shorter while maintaining efficiency. Any automated tools that can do this is worth considering for recruitment. They have been developed for that exact purpose, after all. Additionally, they can actually be more beneficial than steps previously completed by people.

Company Culture

The use of social media has served as a catalyst for public interest in company culture. Over the past few years, most notably since the beginning of last year, candidates actively look for what a company’s culture is like. They generally focus on ethnic and gender diversity, evidence of discrimination, atmosphere, and the company’s values. Candidates want to be able to work in a business that aligns with or is similar to their own values. At the very least, they want to feel comfortable enough to apply for any positions there.

Opportunities

There has been less focus on financial opportunities since candidates’ interest in company culture. The COVID-19 pandemic also brought about desires for work-at-home and work schedule flexibility opportunities. Freelancing jobs have also skyrocketed, further adding to those desires.

Summary

The recruitment process should be tailored to a company overall, then for each job posting. Recruiters need to be aware of not only what businesses are looking for, but what candidates are looking for too. Finding a compromise without sacrificing the quality of work that needs to be done or excluding the right candidates from the talent pool is the perfect balance to good recruitment.