As recruiters work to navigate a highly competitive tech sector and find the best candidates, it can be challenging to craft a recruitment strategy. How do you get good people to come to you and what can you do to make yourself stand out in a crowded field of options?
There is no fail-safe strategy for success in an industry that moves as quickly as tech. But you can significantly increase your odds if you pay attention to job market trends and stay acutely aware of what the most promising candidates are after (and maybe expand your definition of “promising candidates” while you’re at it).
Know the landscape
One way to differentiate yourself among candidates is to understand broader trends in the tech industry as well as the specific characteristics of your particular geographic market. Cities and regions are definitely not all created the same, with wide variation in terms of pay, cost of living, market saturation, and the population of workers in particular tech-related fields. If you know how salaries for software engineers, for example, vary across different tech markets, you can make better recommendations and set appropriate expectations.
It would also be good to understand how to appeal to different age groups and have a plan for how to match opportunities with the specific concerns of your candidates. Younger candidates, for instance, are likely to name benefits like “work environment” and “flexible hours” as important considerations while considering opportunities. Older workers, meanwhile, are more likely to be focused on pay, stability, and family health benefits.
Listen to your candidates
Ultimately, the better you understand what prospective candidates are interested in, the better you’ll be able to speak their language and develop a positive reputation, which helps keep a flow of good people coming your way. You can leverage information produced by job posting sites like Indeed, which is able to condense massive amounts of data to glean insights on job seeker behaviors and attitudes. Did you know, for instance, that 68% of candidates, according to a recent data study, would turn down a job offer if they had negative views of the company from which it came? Branding is important in 2019.
Dig around and find nuggets of information to understand what’s truly driving candidate behavior. A recent Glassdoor survey found that job seekers increasingly expect you to have solid communication and follow-up skills. It’s hugely important to manage the basics of respectful interactions with the people you’re interviewing. Regularly touch base with your candidates to keep them informed about the interview/application process, and find a way to provide good honest feedback in the event of a rejection.
When you keep the lines of communication open and honest, you have the opportunity to retain the trust of good candidates you might be able to surface for other roles.
Think broadly
Finally, be sure to avoid biasing, even subconsciously, in the direction of candidates who are currently employed over ones who have been laid off or are currently unemployed. The scramble to fill roles at most tech companies is too intense to not keep your talent pool as broad as possible, including people who have previously applied to other roles for which they may not have been suited.
None of this is particularly revolutionary. But sometimes it’s just about nailing the fundamentals. If you can be respectful, master good communication, and stay informed about the trends in your industry, you can go a long way toward making your tech recruiting efforts a success.
