For as long as I’ve been in resourcing, there has always been a gap between the tech talent needed and the tech talent that is actually available.
Bar a couple of extreme economic blips, the trajectory of demand for tech talent has been on an increase since the 1990s with no sign of abating.
In fact, the number of tech employment opportunities is expected to increase by 12% by 2024 according to a report by Modis.
And Brexit, of course, presents its own set of challenges – albeit they’re currently very much up for debate.
Whilst the demand has continued to grow, the mix of skills needed has, of course, shifted.
Web development, Cyber Security, and Analysts are the highest in demand in 2018 according to the same Modis report.
So it’s not surprising that the way in which organisations identify talent is also having to change.
“Candidate experience – specifically, how you engage talent – is critical”
I recently met with Mark Chaffey, co-founder of Hackajob.co, who – in their words – are ‘an online marketplace that allows companies to fast track their recruitment process’ for tech talent.
Their site allows companies to interact with techies in their element – so a variety of coding games – and thus allowing employers to hire on skills displayed, not how many time Java is mentioned in their CV.
This is just one example of how techies are shaking up the hiring process.
But commentary from the Forbes Technology Council suggests that while a candidate might display awesome technical skills, employers are typically also looking for the not so obvious soft skills such as strong communication and adaptability.
So presumably, the most effective hiring processes test both tech and soft skills, whilst not disengaging in-demand candidates.
69% of IT professionals said advancing their tech skills would be their top reason for changing roles…
This is why candidate experience – specifically, how you engage talent – is critical.
Understanding the audience’s motivators is a vital starting point. Thankfully, there’s a good deal of research which explores this very topic.
Take Spiceworks Tech Career Outlook paper, which found that no less than 45% of IT professionals planned to either begin searching or actually move roles in 2018.
And what are they looking for?
Well, the same research found 69% of IT professionals said advancing their tech skills would be their top reason for changing roles, with 40% stating that to work for a company that prioritises IT was their catalyst for change.
And when asked about challenges they face currently, 55% said getting management to understand the importance of IT priorities was their key issue.
There are regional differences to bear in mind; as for differences in motivation for seeking a new job, IT professionals in Europe are less inclined to look for a new company for better benefits than their peers in North America, instead, they were more motivated to work for a company with a more talented IT team.
Finding a way to align your offer with the desire of your target audience is always the sweet spot employers look for when recruiting.
So, when the decision-making factors on both sides become less tangible or hygienic as our findings above suggest, how do you engage and hook potential talent?
Our work with a global management consultancy is a perfect example of how.
With innovation being a key strategy for this business and technology consultancy, it was obvious they needed to look at how they could introduce new tech to their recruitment processes.
Knowing tech talent’s motivators for a change in job, our client wanted to provide a personal, high-touch process to their candidates which demonstrated their values and culture and kept candidate engagement high.
Our client uses our candidate engagement technology to position themselves as a thought leader within their industry, where IT was a real focus and priority and where you’d be joining a super-talented tech team.
By introducing group chats with the aim of pushing their employer branding message rather than having a pure recruitment focus, they were also able to build their talent pools for a more sustainable hiring strategy.
If engaging tech talent is on your agenda this year, get in touch and find out how Meet & Engage can help.
