Recruiting in tech: 6 things you should know before making your next hire

For the most part, bringing in the right people to your team is always challenging. Resume and portfolio reviews, interviews with tech recruiters, peer review sessions… recruiting in tech takes things to the next level. The truth is, this funnel-like model is outdated and doesn’t guarantee the right fit. Here are tips of what will.

What concerns people who recruit for tech roles

If you’re recruiting technologists, filling open tech positions can be slow and strenuous. There are three things to consider:

• Are we hiring the right people? Usually, companies are looking at what people have done – aka their experience. Instead, hire people based on who they are: this will help you bring in candidates for what they are capable of.
• How do we organize and foster collaboration? Instead of looking at job descriptions individually, consider each role within the whole team. Each person has a specific role to play in support of the company’s mission. Make it known from the get-go.
• How often will I have to go through all this again? Losing talent slows down the roadmap, overburdens the team, and is expensive. Bringing in new team members is hard. Retention is key. Alignment of expectations should begin on the job description, not on the 1st day on the job.

When it comes to team-building and performance, you should aim at keeping everyone’s spirits up. At the end of the day, the team’s mood is more powerful than collective intellect.

How to be successful when recruiting in tech

Let’s face it: hiring the best talent requires a new way of thinking. By doing old-school recruiting, you end up hiring someone that masters the traditional interview process. Yet, this isn’t necessarily the person who will have high performance once they land the job. Here’s a list of 6 things you should know before making your next hire:

#1: Widen the net. Diversify hiring beyond the 2-hour commuting radius, look beyond ivy-league universities. There are great people out there, and you’ll only find them if you’re willing to look under new rocks.

#2: Play fair. Every successful relationship starts and relies on transparency. Be upfront with requirements, tell more about the challenge ahead. Tell candidates what the steps are, why they have been established, and what you’re looking for.

#3: Be clear. Scorecards must be crystal clear on non-starters, must-haves, nice-to-haves, and deal-breakers. Get recruiters, hiring managers, and candidates themselves on the same page.

#4: Prepare interviewers. Especially in tech, it’s still common for employees to rise to leadership positions exclusively for their hard skills. Coach them on how to pitch job opportunities to candidates. Make them aware of inherent biases that may cloud their judgment. Give candidates a proper chance to succeed.

#5 Don’t be afraid to overrule the team. Easier said than done: if you’re the leader and decision-maker, you should lead and decide. The team’s opinion is important, but team members often aren’t up to speed on the big picture. Use your privileged viewpoint to bring in the candidate that will get the job done, even if s/he’s not the most popular choice.

#6 Hire people based on who they are, rather than just what they have done. They will evolve and become the person you need them to be.

To sum it all up, your main concern is to create an environment where the candidate can be honest. This means s/he won’t be penalized for presenting where they need support, for instance.

Also, a word for the wise: company self-awareness is invaluable. Find your own identity, brand it, and stick to it. You DO NOT need to mimic/copy the big blue-chip companies. 

Are you ready to grow your team? Ubiminds can help you tailor a strategy that will help you find the right people for your team, regardless of where they are. Let us know your needs on the form below.

Scheila Farias Silveira

International Marketing Leader, specialized in tech. Proud to have built marketing and business generation structures for some of the fastest-growing SaaS companies on both sides of the Atlantic (UK, DACH, Iberia, LatAm, and NorthAm). Big fan of motherhood, world music, marketing, and backpacking. A little bit nerdy too!