The IT talent shortage has sparked a bidding war for top technical talent, making what used to be first-rate offers decline in their appeal to candidates. Since all of the offers a candidate receives aren’t usually public knowledge, businesses are unable to use them as a valuable learning opportunity and gauge what appeals to tech professionals by reviewing the opportunities they accepted. Thankfully, our experience providing technology staffing services has given us an inside look at what motivates candidates to accept job offers. As a way of helping your business improve your hiring success, here are the key factors we see attracting tech talent.
Work Life Balance
A survey of 39,000 developers conducted by HackerRank found that work-life balance stands out to candidates seeking new opportunities. Having regular interactions with tech professionals, we don’t find that too surprising. At least 57.16% of tech professionals report feeling burnt out on the job, working hours that extend beyond the 40 hour workweek. So, what convinces candidates they’ll have the balance they crave? Flex hours, telecommuting options, Friday hours, company outings, and other balanced-focused programs go a long way in attracting top tech talent.
Satisfying Compensation
Stack Overflow, HackerRank, and the Dice Ideal Employer 2017 reports all reinforce an important message: that tech professionals include competitive pay among their highest priorities. One of the most common reasons companies fail to recruit top technical talent is that they don’t live up to their pay expectations. With the market demand so high, companies will readily increase their compensation to edge out more moderate offers. That’s why if you are in the Twin Cities or the Kansas City metro area, be sure to use our IT salary guides as a way to increase the competitiveness of your compensation.
Competitive Benefits
Money isn’t all that matters. Tech professionals are also motivated by the range of benefits provided in their job offer. Though it’s not the most prominent factor, the absence of core benefits can sway IT professionals from taking specific jobs. In fact, it’s one of the main factors that discourages talent from pursuing an IT consulting career, even though certain IT staffing firms offer benefits. In fact, TriCom Technical Services provides a benefits package that include 100% paid medical and dental, fully-vested 401k plans with a generous match, and paid time off
Engaging and Challenging Projects
Whether through the languages, frameworks, and other technologies used or the nature of the workload itself, tech pros want a sense that their work is valuable in their career or the larger world. It’s not necessarily hard to appeal to candidates through this method. Companies that do so are better at marketing their open positions, using their brand and their knowledge of target candidates’ goals to craft job ads and interview strategies that sell the company’s strengths.
A Positive Work Culture
One-third of a given workweek is spent in the office. It’s only logical for IT professionals to want to spend that time in a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. According to the Optimistic Workplace, professionals in positive work environments outdo negative ones by 10% to 30%. Though companies can makes claims about their culture, IT professionals need to experience it first-hand. Make sure that interviews include a tour, meet-and-greet time with your team members, and a chance to absorb the positive vibes you’ve cultivated.
How to Effectively Recruit Top Talent
Understanding what motivates top IT talent is a starting point. However, the standards never stay the same. Compensation benchmarks change, standard benefits shift, and even the strategies for work-life balance evolve. To truly hold the secret to attracting tech talent, you need to know at a moment’s notice what the competition is doing and what top talent actually wants.
Working with an IT staffing company can keep you aware of the latest hiring trends, and provide a much needed advantage as you focus on building a competitive workforce to achieve your business goals.
