What does your recruitment process look like for technology roles? Some organisations often use the same H.R. manager or internal recruiter for hiring all manner of vacancies, usually using the same recruitment outline.
But will the system that works to hire a new general manager or marketer be as effective when hiring for a tech role?
The truth is that it possibly isn’t.
When hiring for your next Technology Architect, Product Owner or Cyber Defense Manager, a recruitment process that has been specifically tailored to tech roles, carried out by experienced tech recruiters, will produce better results long-term for your company than a general one.
In this article, I want to share with you some little-known tech recruiting facts that could be affecting your recruitment process. Let me start with an issue that the most in-demand tech candidates always bring up with me – hiring timelines.
1. Tech Has One of the Longest Recruitment Timelines (Which Turns Candidates Away)
One of the biggest problems inhouse recruitment teams face is creating and sticking to a recruiting timeline.
Unfortunately, this is one of the most critical factors from a candidate point of view.
They want to be kept in the loop at every stage, to know at the earliest opportunity if they have been successful or unsuccessful, and not to have to wait too long between steps.
Larger companies can sometimes schedule rounds of interviews in which different people meet the candidate, and ask them very similar or sometimes the same questions.
This problem can be avoided by aiming to sync-up the recruitment panel to allow for a more streamlined interview process, but as you can understand, in busy tech companies this quite often doesn’t happen; those involved have no time to arrange it.
Tech roles can take up to 54 days on average to be filled, and 60% of tech candidates have turned down a company when their recruitment process was taking too long, so shortening your recruitment process should be on the top of your agenda.
2. Most Hiring Managers Look for Attitude Over Skills
Considering attitude to be as just as important as skills is fine for some areas of recruitment, but not for technology roles.
A general recruiter who comes into contact with lots of different candidates might put their faith in a candidate who shows a great attitude and has some of the required skills, but only a tech recruiter will be able to have the kind of conversations with candidates that will fully ascertain if they are 100% suited to the role.
Attitude is essential – but it’s no replacement for skills and experience.
Speaking of skills, let’s look at the ratio of applicants to suitable applicants.
3. Only a Small Fraction of Those Who Apply Will be Right for the Role
For the most in-demand tech roles, such as Technology Architects, Developers and Cyber Defense roles, there will likely be lots of applicants.
Speaking to every candidate in detail can be a big undertaking, and it leaves hiring managers questioning which ones to put through to the initial round of interviews.
Without a robust knowledge of the tech sector, it can be easy for quality candidates to slip through the net, while you consider others who might be less suitable.
A specialist tech recruiter will be able to see straight away from the nuances on a CV, which candidates will be able to add real value to your organisation, and those that won’t.
4. ‘Selling’ Language Can Turn Tech Candidates Off the Role
Finally – a point about the language you use in your job descriptions and recruitment collateral.
When you’re passionate about your company, and you know you have a great vacancy and want to attract the highest quality candidates, it is natural to want to ‘sell’ the position.
However, working specifically with tech candidates is different from working with ‘general’ candidates, and this should be reflected in the language you use both in your job advert and during the interview.
Tech candidates tend to have a much more logical, scientific outlook, and they can be discouraged by language that is sometimes used in recruitment such as ‘dynamic’, ‘interesting projects’ ‘sociable environment’. Stick to talking about measurable facts such as outcomes of previous projects and career progression opportunities.
What Next?
Do you have a current or upcoming tech vacancy that needs a candidate of the highest quality? Following ‘general’ recruiting protocol might not produce the best result for your company – is it time to consider working with a dedicated technology recruiter to ensure you receive the best available candidate?
If you would like to discuss a tech vacancy that you need top talent for, get in touch with our team today. We can put you in touch with the candidates you have been looking for – talk to us today to find out how.
About Flow Talent
Flow Talent have been sourcing the best professionals locally and internationally for leading organisations across the Middle East region since 2018. To find out how we can help you, click here.