Technical Recruitment: Tech hiring guide for Employers

Introduction -Technical Recruitment

When the right tools and approaches are in place, hiring can be done faster, more appropriately, and more cost-effectively. To know how to ensure your tech hiring is effective, you need to take care of some pointers in mind. It will save you hours of precious time in recruitment and increase your recruitment efficiency.  

In the US for instance, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports according to this Tech Crunch article: there were 1.4 million unfilled Computer Science jobs at the end of 2020; by 2026 there will be a 1.2 million-person deficit in the United States when it comes to engineering positions.  The study also talks about tech-talent demands that will continue to grow rapidly, yet the supply of skilled workers still needs to be solved at a meager 400,000 graduates per year.

What is Technical Recruitment? 

Technology recruiting or tech recruitment is often defined as IT or technical recruitment of staff that comprises sourcing, screening, and assessing candidates who are fairly fit for a specific technical role in a company and who can match the hiring manager’s job requirements.

A technical recruiter is an IT or tech recruiter of an organization’s talent acquisition team who does not necessarily need to be from a technical background but must possess a good understanding of technology.

What’s really important when hiring tech talent?

The  most important attributes are: 

• Deep understanding of the technical skills and working knowledge of tech tools needed for the role

When you are hiring for a new role in your tech team or looking to fill the existing position, the candidate should possess requisite knowledge areas that are important for their success.

For example, when hiring a front-end developer – they must be well-versed in HTML and CSS.

• Candidates should be able to communicate effectively and work collaboratively 

Tech roles are mostly collaborative. Tech is ever-evolving and keeps changing from time to time. The candidate needs to communicate confidently and effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders for a smooth work transition. 

The tech team cannot afford to hire someone who is only comfortable working in a silo.

• Candidate should be enthusiastic about learning continuously and adapting to changes

The tech space is ever-changing, and candidates must always be curious and strive for constant improvement. Should be able to adopt new tools from time to time. 

Understanding of tech roles as required in the market

First and most importantly, understanding the tech requirement in the market space is very important. Let us understand through an example- 

While hiring a front-end developer – the candidate must be well-versed in HTML and CSS. While hiring a full-stack developer – the candidate must be able to code in multiple languages and frameworks; understand programming paradigms, best practices, and coding standards. 

The need for deep technical knowledge is what separates a front-end developer from a full-stack one, which again differentiates an enterprise-level programmer from the average. Hiring managers should also note that the more technical skills are required for a role, the narrower your candidate pool becomes. 

A job ad must be specific to the tech role

By reading the job ad, candidates should get an idea about what needs to be done and what the requisite skills for the job are. The JD (Job Description) should entail where the job location is, how much experience in a particular sector is required, and whether the job is office-based or remote, or hybrid.  Also, as a company, it should make sure that the job role doesn’t contain any other profile’s work otherwise it might hamper the actual work of the employee. 

Build a community for your tech niche

On a high level, companies want to develop relationships with their audiences. To create relationships with tech audiences online, companies tend to move towards a tech-enabled experience for engaging users all over the web.

Building communities is vital for successful tech recruitment because they are the glue that repeatedly brings users, readers, and followers back. A tech community can be built through apps and websites where they gain information and happenings of new topics and feel connected to the world through technology. 

Tech-community builders should focus on creating a unique platform by publishing useful content with high-value propositions. They must build a unique community with massive connections and leave the essential features that every community app requires, such as feeds, chat, analytics, location filters, search, and push notifications for a best-in-class experience that tech-savvy must get. 

Create a tech-savvy career site

While creating a careers page, some essential things need to be mentioned. A well-curated careers page should compel an individual to explore further. The site should show that the company has unrivaled opportunities for the job-seeker who is a tech enthusiast.

Simply put, a good tech-careers page should answer the question, “Why should I work here?” in an attention-grabbing way by maximizing the first moment the applicant imagines how his/her ideal career should be.  

Organize local events for tech talent

Over 80% of Fortune 100 companies conduct hackathons to drive innovation on their website. Almost 50% of the hackathons are recurring events which makes them a reliable tool for sustained innovation. As per HackerEarth analysis, close to 1000 hackathons have been conducted over 2 years globally. Wherein, the U.S. has led the way with over 350 hackathons per year, followed by India and the U.K. In the survey  it was found that private companies accounted for almost 50% of all hackathons that were being conducted, then universities hosted about 30%. Interestingly, non-profit and government organizations conducted over 10%. Not only hackathons but organizing some tech-talent competitions can also bring in many tech talents onboard. 

Conclusion

No two companies are the same. their needs and values can be different and vary from one business to other.  Your needs will be different from that of another business. Tech savvy is as important as being in the company as a cultural fit. Hiring someone who is equally culturally fit goes far beyond the company’s success and is beneficial for it in the long run.  Companies want the prospective hires to have a better experience with their hiring process. Their interview process must leave something beneficial for them to grow in their career. As a company, while hiring for tech profiles you need to be active and efficient with your interview procedures otherwise you might risk losing a valuable candidate to your competitor. Pick a recruitment strategy that suits your business needs and project requirements. 

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