From finding reliable and qualified candidates to communicating your requirements, the hiring process may be difficult. Especially in a post-pandemic world and in a high-demand field such as the tech industry, finding and recruiting the right team members for your company is a crucial yet daunting task. Why is the process so daunting? The answer to that question lies in the particular challenges employers face while looking for tech talent.
This article aims to familiarize you with the most significant challenges hiring managers face during the recruitment process and offer you ways to overcome them. Being familiar with these potential difficulties and having strategies to overcome them is important both for employers and potential employees.
1. Finding Qualified Candidates
Nobody wants to hire someone only to fill vacancies. Employers all have checklists they refer to while interviewing potential employees and checking resumes.
As the list of qualities employers look for in a potential candidate grows, it gets more and more difficult to find the right people for tech jobs. The shortages in the market result in narrow talent pools and difficulties in finding the right candidates. The most striking shortage is the shortage of software developers. This is a position that gets more and more important every day, and the demand for it is not easily fulfilled due to talent shortage.
Another problem related to finding qualified candidates is the problem of understanding the qualifications. When recruitment teams and hiring managers are not completely knowledgeable about the qualities they are looking for in a potential employee and the proper assessments for these qualities, staffing gets complicated.
Solutions:
- Adjust your requirements. If you are finding that it is nearly impossible to find candidates that fit all of your standards, it is time to adjust your requirements. For example, you may try not to prioritize IT degree requirements, since many IT professionals are self-taught or come from other fields. You may also try to hire candidates with less experience and give them a chance to improve and thrive in your company. These new talents may turn out to be great assets. In conclusion, prioritizing technical skills and soft skills over academic achievements and candidate experience may remedy some of your hiring challenges.
- Change your hiring methods. Instead of only hiring locally, work with a broader talent pool. Consider remote staffing or outstaffing. These recruitment methods will not harm your company’s culture. On the contrary, by bringing in new talent and ways of working into the environment they will help your company flourish. In order to keep up with the times, you should consider using social media during your recruitment process. Many potential employees are on Linkedin, looking for job openings. Many use Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. They may be influenced by the posts and job ads they see there. Social media has such a broad reach that finding the best candidates through this channel is quite possible. Moreover, carrying your job postings over to social media will make you more accessible and relevant.
- Have clear job descriptions. No matter what channel you use for your job postings, you should have a short, clear job description that communicates the skills you are looking for, the salary, the requirements, etc. You should also make your company look desirable to attract more talent, and even passive candidates you may communicate with.
2. Standing Out Amongst Competition
The IT sector is a sector on the rise. Therefore, IT talent is being sought out by many employers. In order to employ the top talents in the industry, you need to stand out amongst other companies. While the competition in the industry definitely makes talent acquisition rather difficult, this obstacle is a natural part of the market you can turn to your advantage.
Solution:
- Have strong employer branding. Advertising yourself to job seekers is an important recruitment strategy. When there are so many other voices in the market, inserting your own voice into the conversation is crucial. Make sure to let workers know of the perks of choosing you as their employer as well as what makes your company special. This could be your mission, your working conditions, your reputation… Choose your focus and advertise it.
- Offer benefits. A good salary is definitely a factor that makes a job offer attractive. However, it is not the only factor potential candidates pay attention to. Other factors such as health benefits and a chance to do remote work can also convince the best talent to work with you.
3. The Digitalization of Recruitment
Especially after the pandemic that required digital communication, digitalization has become prominent in all fields of work. An inability to accept this trend has also become detrimental to recruiting efforts. Whether it’s by not paying enough attention to your company’s online presence or by insisting on face-to-face interviews, you may have damaged your chances of finding the perfect talent.
Solution
- Strengthen your digital presence. In the digital age, most workers check a company’s digital page when looking for a new job. Having an unkempt website or an empty Linkedin profile will make you less reliable and desirable in the eyes of those potential employees. Make sure that your social media accounts are running smoothly and that your website is up to date and looks professional.
- Adapt to new recruitment methods. Be open to holding online interviews, communicating with your employees and potential recruits through digital space, and always be open to new ideas. You can consider educating yourself and your employees on technological developments in the industry through occasional seminars with professionals and special adaptation programs.
4. Unrealistic Expectations
Asking for the best referrals, trusting your biases, looking for an all-encompassing skillset… These may all contribute to your unrealistic expectations when it comes to finding the perfect employees. Ironically, looking for perfection will leave you empty-handed.
Solutions:
- Narrow down your company’s needs. Start by prioritizing certain skills or qualifications above others. Then, consider less important criteria to filter out your main candidates. This way, you will have a broader catalog of workers to choose from.
- Be open-minded. Being specific about your company’s needs is good, but you should also be flexible. Instead of holding potential recruits to unrealistic standards, try to see the potential in them.
5. Inconvenient Process of Recruitment
With an inadequate hiring team, a long and winding interview process, and insufficient communication, you may be setting yourself up for failure. If the process of recruitment is not smooth on both ends, you may lose the best talents.
Solution:
- Simplify the process. Instead of calling potential recruits for interview after interview, make each interview more efficient. Choose better questions, and narrow down your expectations. Make the communication between parties run smoothly. If you have a convoluted recruitment process on your hands, each of its steps can be simplified.
- Be firm and decisive. Employees do not enjoy being left hanging, and when it’s time to hire new talent, time may not be on your side either. Being decisive and firm in your decisions to hire or not hire will save you time and help you move forward.
We are Here!
We have offered some solutions to some of the most common challenges encountered in IT recruitment. If you are still feeling daunted, you can work with recruitment agencies. Here at Gini Talent, we provide services that will help you recruit the top talent in the tech industry. If you are looking to create the best team for your company, you are at the right place.