Category: Talent Sourcing

In 2015, more than 1,100,000 developers were making, on average, more than $100,000 each in one of the fastest growing industries in the country. It’s no secret that software development is one of today’s most sought after job markets. Companies like Microsoft are going to great lengths to attract top software developer talent, offering their employees everything from dodgeball club memberships to unlimited snacks and on-campus XBox hubs. But don’t let this high market demand keep you from making the most informed decision when recruiting prospective talent.

Executives from a handful of notable, high-tech companies engaged in a recent panel discussion on the best ways to hire technical talent. Some of the companies represented included VMware, Stripe, and Dropbox. While the tech executives agreed on many hiring tips, they also disagreed about some things. This may have been because their company cultures differed, and they didn’t all have the same priorities. These tips could prove valuable, but every business really needs to develop their own hiring strategy.

Plenty of industry studies support the idea that data-driven sales help companies increase revenue. Businesses have been compelled to adapt new technology to keep track of consumer behavior; this includes information about behavior at the company level and even the industry level. Even small businesses have the chance to gather a lot of information, so the task of trying to make it meaningful might seem overwhelming at first. Still, it’s important to recognize the value of data-centered sales practices and know that intuitive and helpful tools are available that can make proper business intelligence and analysis accessible for all types of companies.

What’s next in the field of tech recruiting? IT staffing departments already struggle to find recruits with certain skills. Unemployment rates for technical people have fallen as low as 2 percent in some areas, according to a report by the Society of Human Resource Management, or SHRM. At the same time, the way that software gets developed and maintained is evolving rapidly, so it’s not enough to know which software jobs are tough to fill now; it’s also critical to keep an eye on the future. With this in mind, it might help to consider some IT staffing predictions for the next few years.

There’s little doubt that the hiring managers in charge of attracting, recruiting and evaluating technical people face many challenges today. In many parts of the U.S., it’s tough to attract qualified talent because competition for top prospects is so intense. After IT hiring managers select recruits to interview, they have to figure out which ones have the skills, aptitude and personality to get the job done and fit in well with the company or even an individual team. Companies that recruit IT staff need to have a good hiring system in place to make sure they are attracting and hiring the right people.

Which IT skills do companies demand the most right now? Computerworld conducted a survey of almost 200 IT executives in 2015. These executives ranked project management behind only software development as a position that their company needed to recruit for. In the previous year’s study, project management hiring only ranked fifth. In addition, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the demand for IT managers will increase by 15 percent in the next decade.