Whether you are a trailblazer or a trend follower, you, and the people around you will be influenced by emerging patterns and industry norms. This applies to everything, from everyday decisions such as where to eat and what to wear, to more impactful ones like how to invest and who to employ.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, an estimated 1.4 million tech jobs became available in 2020 – to a market of only 400,000 candidates. The Great Resignation has seen the already emerging tech job gap widen; coupled with the impending economic downturn, it is more important than ever that organizations invest wisely in every aspect of their business, including their staff.
The recruitment process, when done right, can be complex. Far from a straightforward process of advertising a tech job, interview, employ, skilled recruiters scour the industry landscape to find the people that will be the best fit for a role and an organization not just today, but far into the future. Recruiting involves investment of time and resources to ensure the best results. So, it pays to make sure that you are getting things right. One way to help get optimal results in recruitment is to stay ahead of the tech hiring trends so that you can react to today’s trends and anticipate and plan for future needs.
1. A focus on diversity
Based on a survey overseen by Forbes to determine the priorities of recruitment professionals and identify emerging trends, diversity hiring is a key area of focus, with 80% of recruiters giving it top priority within the recruiting industry for 2022. Promoting diversity is not as simple as saying “goodbye” to the Old Boys’ network; it involves facing a series of complex and sometimes uncomfortable truths such as examining unconscious bias, implementing in depth candidate tracking, examining the recruitment process (including advertising sources) and investing in metrics that allow for clear data, regardless of how unpalatable it may initially seem. Only by adding these levels of clarity and analysis can true diversity be achieved – and with diversity comes strength. The result? More applicants and strengthened ethos, leading to better employee retention.
2. Recruit agilely
Diversifying across demographics is undoubtedly beneficial, but in a time when there are plenty of tech jobs out there and not enough graduates to fill them, it pays for organizations to be a little more open minded about qualifications and skill sets, too. Hiring a staff member with diverse skill sets allows a little risk mitigation, which can add considerable comfort in economically uncertain times. By creating a multi-faceted role and providing cross training, organizations can allow roles to evolve with changing needs whilst allowing the employee to benefit from much-valued development opportunities. Hence, a positive cycle is achieved: recruit an all-rounder- train-develop- invest- retain. Likewise, it pays not to fixate on college degrees; while they can be a good indication of skills, not much beats on the job experience, especially in the world of tech. In some instances, having the basics and proven employment success may be more advantageous than the most prestigious degree and no first-hand experience.
3. Providing a branded recruitment experience
The creation of a positive, branded recruiting experience has several advantages, not least the potential to attract a broader range of candidates which will, in turn, help with the drive for diversity. In an employees’ market, it really does pay for the employer to showcase not just what they expect from their talent, but what their talent can expect from them. By creating a strong, cohesive employer’s brand across channels, which can be perpetuated by tech recruitment agencies, an organization can gain the opportunity to sell themselves to more, better, potential candidates.
Employer branding allows you to examine not just what you do for your clients, but how you do it, and how your talent helps you to achieve it. When a great talent is looking at two tech jobs that are similar in terms of salary, the broader package could help you to seem more attractive. Culture, work-life balance, hybrid working, and reputation all influence both the quality and quantity of applicants.
4. Faster, more competitive hiring
One survey by The Harris Poll looked at the emerging trends in hiring technical talent. The survey showed that employers were offering increased remuneration to make their tech jobs more attractive to similar ones and to entice staff away from existing positions. Another key trend was in making the hiring process faster from end to end. A streamlined recruitment process will allow recruiters to attract high-quality candidates and hire the best one before in-demand applicants can lose interest or accept another offer. This is where in-house recruiters can fall; lack of resources and a lengthy period from application to interview and offer can deter potential candidates and impact the quality of the applicant field.
The key to growth is knowing when to play to your own strengths and when to let others play to theirs – to your advantage. You may have an industry-leading business, but unless it is a recruitment business, you may be better off leaving the recruitment to the professionals so that you can concentrate on your own goals.
A burning desire to do everything in-house is often seen as admirable, especially for small businesses who don’t have the scale to make outsourcing financially viable, or the resources to invest in growing that scale. However, for many organizations, outsourcing some services offers undeniable benefits, including enhanced experience, skills, and insight. In the tech recruitment world, this translates as access to a broad candidate base, leading to the attraction of increased numbers of applicants, and a strong hire. In a competitive world, it helps to heed the trends and remember that if you hire for a job well, you are more likely to hire once.
