How transparency can turn your company into a tech talent magnet
If you’ve ever tried to hire a developer you probably know that: engineers are the hardest positions to fill.
It doesn’t really come as a surprise:
- We’re transitioning to a world where all companies are technology companies.
- Developers are the most sought after profiles when companies hit their growth phase.
The demand for technical profiles has reached new heights (and keeps increasing at double digit rates), whilst the pool of tech talent increases at a slow but steady rate.
This puts a lot of pressure on companies’ shoulders. The stakes are high: their ability to attract and retain talent will define how they grow (or survive) in the digital economy.
No doubt, the battle to attract developers has never been fiercer. Companies are pouring a lot of time, effort and money into inspiring developers to join their team.
Obviously on the developer side the situation is more positive (although some inevitable side effects of the high demand - low offer market pop up — e.g. the growing hate from developers towards recruiters).
Developers have access to a large pool of companies to choose from and the cards are truly in their hands to choose the one that most fits their wants and needs.
“My biggest problem is that nearly all candidates are actively pursuing multiple opportunities…”
– Stuart Liroff, the VP of Talent at Academia
So as a company, how can you thrive and become a tech talent magnet in a high demand — low offer market?
Understand what developers care about
Before you start the hiring process, it’s important that you know the main aspects that developers care about when considering a new job opportunity.
Money isn’t everything
As you can imagine, salary plays a big part in the decision process. It influences the decision of 62% of developers when choosing a company.
Still, money is not everything.
Especially for the 37% who don’t even consider it as part of their top criteria when looking for a job…
The high demand for tech profiles enables developers to “easily” find jobs that will match their salary expectations.
This means other criteria shouldn’t be overlooked. Actually, they’re most probably what will make you stand out. They’re what will make your company more attractive than others.
To increase the attractiveness of your company, show your employees that their work is significant. Make them feel valued for what they do. Let them contribute to building innovative projects.
The work environment and quality of colleagues also play a big role in the decision process. It’s no secret that people enjoy spending time with people that they like, with people who they can learn from. It’s not different for developers.
Now, that doesn’t mean developers are looking to work with other developers who think exactly like them. Company culture goes further than an alike mindset. It goes beyond the perks and going for drinks.
It’s about the mission that your company strives to reach. It’s about the value that your company and your people convey.
Attracting talented people revolves around a lot more than just money. Most successful companies today have embraced the culture of openness.
Facebook, Google, Netflix, Airbnb among many others are leading the way in that field.All of them run open source projects on Github.
This allows them to not only share what they’re working on, but also to get feedback on their work and improve it while being able to spot and attract top talents to join their team.
These successful companies understand the key role transparency plays in attracting developers. They use their very own values, what they stand for and what they do as a magnet to inspire talented people to join their team.
Be transparent about what you do and who you are
To be successful and make your business thrive, your company needs great people.
The market for hiring developers is overcrowded. The battle is fierce. Yet, great companies manage to receive more applications of tech talents than they can accept.
You could too.
Sure, the demand for developers is high and the talent pool is limited.
Yet, 63% of them are open for new opportunities and 15% are actively looking for a new job.
The secret to inspire tech talents to join your team? Don’t do business as usual.
You need to stand out. People need to remember you.
Open your company to tech talents. Show developers what makes you unique: your tech, your products, your team, your culture.
It’s not the big paycheck that will make you standout.
And even if you do manage to hire developers, they might not stay around for long.
If they don’t see any impact from their work or don’t like the environment, they’ll just leave. There are plenty of other great job opportunities out there for them.
No matter how much code you’re shipping and how often, don’t keep it a secret. You should be proud of your tech team.
Don’t be shy to introduce them to candidates. Your current developers can be great ambassadors and make a big difference in the candidates’ final decision.
Be transparent. Always. In what you do, who you work with and who you are.
Thanks for reading! Hope you found this article helpful. Feel free to share your views in the comments below.
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P.S. Hack League is a new platform where developers discover exciting jobs from EU’s hottest tech companies
