In tech recruitment, teamwork between hiring managers and tech recruiters is crucial for getting top talent. But handling the different roles and backgrounds between these two can be tough. Here’s a guide to help both recruiters and hiring managers work together smoothly to build great tech teams across various domains, be it product, design, engineering, or data. Regardless of inherent power dynamics and diverse perspectives.

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Here’s the lowdown: cracking this collaboration code is the golden ticket to building stellar software engineering and/or product teams. It’s about far more than the job description. It’s about crafting a recruiting and hiring process that fits the bill and cultures that feel like a cozy fit for your squad. Think about it: a seamless partnership spells a winning onboarding process, smoother remote work setups, and ultimately, those high-quality, cost-effective hires that everyone’s after.

Leveling the Playing Field: Addressing Power Dynamics

Imagine you’re a recruiter with three great candidates, but the hiring manager’s scheduling makes it hard to set up interviews. One of those awesome candidates might bail due to delays. Thus, fixing power imbalances is about fairness in the relationship, but also ensuring talent doesn’t slip away. Teams, users, and companies will be better for it.

How Tech Recruiters Gain Power

Show You Understand Tech: Even if you’re not an engineer, show you get the basics. Emphasize your grasp of technical essentials. Boost credibility by immersing yourself in tech knowledge and demonstrating its relevance in recruitment strategies.
Build a Good Relationship: Talk openly with hiring managers. Share insights and suggestions without overshadowing the hiring manager’s domain expertise. It’s about working together and respecting each other’s roles.

How Hiring Managers Stop Being Difficult

Embrace Diverse Perspectives: Acknowledge and value unique insights from recruiters, especially those with diverse backgrounds. Encourage an inclusive decision-making process fostering varied viewpoints.
Exchange of Expertise: Collaborate with recruiters, exchanging industry insights and nuanced expectations to refine recruitment strategies. Recognize their expertise in candidate engagement and selection.

When both sides respect each other, recruiters and hiring manager collaborate to get the best talent.

Building Respect and Rapport

Simpler processes and clear talks help recruiters and hiring managers work as a team, making it easier to build top-notch tech teams. When both sides respect each other, recruiters and hiring managers collaborate to get the best talent.

How Recruiters Get More Respect and Buy-In from Hiring Managers

What if the recruiter has detailed candidate reports, but the hiring manager prefers short updates? At first, it can seem it’s just about fitting preferences. But truth is different communication styles match the needs and context of each individual.

So how can recruiters have talks that work for everyone? There are several ways they can make hiring manager’s life easier. Here are some tips:

1. Use Data Wisely: Share reports based on data about market trends, candidate behavior, and industry insights. Add value through informed decision-making.
2. Adapt Communication: Adapt communication styles, be it concise reports or detailed analyses. When you match the hiring manager’s wavelength, you’ll for sure work better together.
3. Make Things Easier: Enable hiring managers to effortlessly track progress and engage with potential candidates. Use tools that are easy to handle for managing candidates. It helps hiring managers keep up without stress. For instance: Slack might work better than an ATS for candidate submissions.
4. Tell Whole Stories: Share candidate info showing not just skills but also how they fit culturally. Offer insights encompassing qualifications, cultural fit, and potential, easing the burden of assessing numerous resumes. It makes picking the right ones easier.

Remember, establishing mutual respect amplifies the collective capability. By aligning efforts and knowledge, recruiters and hiring managers can drive towards a common goal: securing the best talent for the team’s success.

Supporting and Empowering Recruiters: Actions for Hiring Managers

As we’ve mentioned before, quick feedback matters. It keeps things moving and stops good candidates from looking elsewhere. In a nutshell, recruiters want two things from hiring managers:

1. Providing Velocity and Intelligence;
2. Facilitating Support.

Their goal is to reduce time-to-fill and boost quality-of-hire. To do this, they need you to be attentive and available. Some ways forward include being mindful to:

Provide Timely and Clear Feedback: Provide prompt, constructive feedback about candidates to expedite the recruitment process, enabling recruiters to refine search criteria ASAP.
Define Role Expectations: Clarify role expectations, skill requirements, and future growth prospects to assist recruiters in targeting suitable candidates effectively.
Invest in Relationships: Allocate time for regular check-ins to discuss strategies, challenges, and evolving recruitment needs. Offer mentorship and guidance where needed.
Boost Visibility and Advocacy: Champion the efforts of recruiters, highlighting their contributions and acknowledging their pivotal role in the team’s growth.

Better feedback and clear role expectations make it easier for recruiters. When hiring managers support recruiters, everyone wins.

Collaborate with Ubiminds for Unprecedented Growth

At Ubiminds, we offer tech-talent-as-a-service, with an emphasis on bridging the gap between remote Latin American team members and in-house, full-time employees. Working closely with CTOs, CPOs, CHROs, and in-house team leads and tech recruiters, we aim to ensure an experience for outsourced team members that mirrors that of full-time employees. We alleviate logistical and compliance complexities, enabling seamless integration within your team.

Let’s work together! When recruiters and hiring managers team up, extraordinary tech teams are possible. Contact Ubiminds today so we find you amazing people to work with.

Frequently Asked Questions on Recruiter-Tech Leader Relationships

What is the difference between recruiters and hiring managers?

Recruiters and hiring managers have distinct roles in the hiring process. Recruiters, whether technical or general, focus on sourcing and engaging candidates.

The Role of Tech Recruiters

Technical recruiters possess specialized knowledge in hiring for tech roles. This means they can guide tech leaders on whether to hire onshore, or choose nearshore software engineers for distributed teams.

The Role of Tech Leaders

Hiring managers are typically responsible for defining job requirements, assessing candidates, and making final hiring decisions. They collaborate with recruiters to ensure high performing and qualified candidates align with the company’s needs.

What is the difference between a technical recruiter and a recruiter?

A technical recruiter specializes in hiring for tech roles, such as software engineers or project managers. They possess in-depth knowledge of technical skill sets, an understanding of tech stacks and methodologies, and a clear view of SDLC processes and practices. This enable them to identify and engage qualified candidates effectively.

A recruiter, on the other hand, may have a broader focus, handling various roles across departments and industries, and may not specialize in technical domains.

How do recruiters build relationship with hiring managers?

Recruiters forge strong partnerships with hiring managers through face-to-face interactions or in virtual settings. They demonstrate their understanding of the company’s work cultures and local and international hiring needs.

This involves regular communication, and a proven understanding of the nuances of different engagement models (such as local FTEs, dev shops, or staff augmentation). The Human Resources (HR) team stands out by its ability to activate different talent pools based on the company’s strategic goals, ensuring a seamless collaboration for sourcing good fits.

How can hiring choose between in-house recruiters and third-party staff augmentation or tech recruitment agencies?

The choice between in-house recruiters and third-party agencies depends on various factors. In-house recruiters offer direct alignment with company culture and goals but might lack diverse talent pools. Tech recruitment agencies often bring expertise in wider international networks, providing access to specialized talent. This choice should focus on the need for high performing teams, considering working remotely or within distributed team settings.

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!

Tech Recruiters and Hiring Manager Collaboration: A Blueprint for Successful Hiring