The recruitment process is never easy, especially when you’re competing with other companies to attract the best tech talent. If you’re a startup with a limited budget, then it’s even harder to lure the cream of the crop. Many of today’s tech workers expect flexible work hours, generous pay packages, and to work with familiar tech stacks. You may be unable to provide these perks to potential employees, making them lose interest in working for you.

So, how do you go about recruiting top talent while retaining your sanity?

Without downplaying the challenges that present themselves during recruitment, it’s indeed possible to acquire this talent. At C.Soluxions, we have ample experience in helping companies find employees that are the right fit for them.

Here are a few handy tips to help you hire the best tech talent in today’s competitive market:

1. Target Good Communicators

It’s fundamentally important to hire those that are good communicators. Ideally, candidates should speak fluent English without an accent if they are from a foreign country such as India. This allows them to convey their thoughts and ideas to clients, colleagues, and management without being misunderstood.

Don’t forget this truism: good communicators are also good listeners. Take the time to test candidates on how well they listen and respond to your instructions before hiring them.

2. Focus On High Energy Individuals

You want your company going places, and that’s only possible if you hire young and energetic staff. Younger workers enjoy working with technology, and usually, have the mental capacity to solve complex problems. They also have the energy to work longer hours and under more strenuous conditions than their older counterparts.

3. Don’t Leave Out Mature Talent

While young employees are vital to any company, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t consider older candidates. Mature employees may not possess the energy levels of younger employees, but they do have plenty of invaluable experience. They’re able to solve those harrowing problems that younger staff members may struggle with and have better foresight when planning projects.

4. Recruitment Should Center On The Tech-Savvy

Regardless of the age bracket that you’re targeting, it’s essential that all candidates are tech-savvy. It’s counterproductive hiring those that have little or no experience in utilizing the latest tech stacks and productivity apps. After all, the technology revolution has radically transformed the way we interact and do business. Thus, a growing number of students are ensuring that they gain the necessary tech skills to partake in today’s technology-driven economy.

5. Identify The Team Players

When interviewing candidates; find out as much as you can about their work history. Do these candidates get along with others? Have they established a reputation of being team players? Have they contributed to any open source and community-driven projects? If you have determined that this is indeed the case, then you should add these candidates to your shortlist.

6. Aim For Cultural Fit

It’s likely that you’ve already established several core values that define your company. And, you want all your employees to align with these core values and the overall company culture. That’s why it’s so important to hire talent that truly identifies and respect these values, and doesn’t pitch up to work only to collect a paycheck. Employees that are a good cultural fit will care about the company and also make for great brand ambassadors.

7. Hire Those That Live Alone

When hiring younger talent, it makes sense to hire those that live alone. Now, why would you want to do this? For one, you want your employees to focus on work and not be distracted by boyfriends, girlfriends, moms, dads, and other family members. Secondly, you want employees that are willing to work longer hours as they don’t have anyone waiting for them at home.

8. Screen For Talent That’s Willing To Travel

It’s a good idea to carefully screen candidates for those that don’t mind traveling regularly. Even if your company’s staff is office-bound, this situation may change as your company grows. As you enter new markets, it will become necessary to send employees to other states and countries on a regular basis. And, having staff on hand that enjoys travel, and don’t mind being out of town for long periods is a huge boon for your company.

9. Adopt A Robust Screening Process

Some candidates may boast impressive CVs, yet that’s not always enough to determine whether they’re worth recruiting. Ideally, you should work with recruitment companies that have close relationships with SMEs. These SMEs can properly assess the skills of candidates and filter those that will be a good fit for your company.

Also, it’s important to have a coaching mentality and willingness to build long-term relationships with these candidates. Don’t focus one time gigs, but instead provide mentoring on an ongoing basis so that candidates can handle larger and more complex tasks.

Image: Wikimedia Commons