Recruiting Turns to Retaining in Tech

“YOUR AGENCY’S BEST ASSETS WALK IN AND OUT THE DOOR EVERY SINGLE DAY”

by David Burn

The old advertising maxim that “your agency’s best assets walk in and out the door every single day” is meant to remind us of the importance of talent in an industry that cannot function without it. Yet the ad business is far from alone when it comes to this golden rule.

Technology is another field where competition for the best and brightest is intense and becoming more so by the day.

According to a chairman at Bain, executives have “long understood that capital was scarce and talented people abundant. Neither is true now. Today, businesses must hoard talent. A current shortage of 10 million highly skilled workers could grow to as many as 95 million by the end of the decade.”

But is hoarding talent — which sounds reactionary and unfair — the answer? There must be a better way, right?

Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Obama, pointed to the efforts the Administration is making to promote learning in science, technology, engineering and math:

President Obama is committed to creating STEM education and mentorship opportunities for young women. For example, our science-oriented agencies have STEM programs specifically for women and girls. And we’re training teachers to help prepare students across the country for rigorous STEM careers.

STEM is a good long-term answer, but unfortunately won’t produce the kind of results the tech industry needs this quarter or next. Therefore, companies must do all they can to not only recruit talent but also retain talent.

After looking at a report from the World Economic Forum and the Boston Consulting Group, journalist Pam Baker concluded that companies must “structure and nurture continuous learning within its own existing workforce. … Several studies show that one of the top recruitment aides is career development.”

But better education in and outside the workplace is a start, not an end. Jeff Hardison, who is vice president of marketing and business development for Portland-based tech startup Meridian, said there is strong demand for software developers “right now.”

Large tech companies from California are setting up shop in Portland, Hardison said, to “tap our pool of engineers” and the way for smaller companies to combat the fat offers that big firms frequently extend is to make sure that your startup is not working on another “me too” problem (like yet another photo sharing app).

“Software developers like to work on interesting challenges and we (at Meridian) have tough problems and technical leadership, which devs respond to,” Hardison said.

Hardison worked as an account executive for a high tech ad agency before jumping to the client side of the MarCom table. “I always had a pool table and a liquor cabinet before,” he said, “but cookie cutter culture doesn’t cut it. People at Meridian love the work. We go to lunch together almost every day and talk about how to solve things with engineering.”

Companies that are capable of attracting the best talent — like Portland-based Instrument, for example — push existing talent to learn new skills, said Hardison. Their innovative employees attract more of the same in a virtuous cycle.

52 Limited is a digital resource company connecting creative + technology talent with leading brands, marketing and engineering departments, start-ups, design firms, advertising and interactive agencies. If you’re looking for talent or work, visit us at 52ltd.com