The tides of our lives have been turned in the direction of technology for a long time now and with every passing day, these tides move stronger towards a submersion in technology. Whether it’s business or news, maintaining connections, or –with the introduction of ChatGPT– ideas on meals, technology is how we behave now. This behavior has been brought about by some very talented developer minds of our generation. 

With the sudden introduction of ChatGPT into our everyday lives, we have come to realize the importance of the unique talent of coders and developers in building this new tech ecosystem we are becoming a part of. 

To put the new scenario in full plain sight: The tech advancement that was long coming has finally arrived and with it has increased the need for kickass developers. 

The new numbers of demand require leaders and HR managers to revisit their existing recruitment strategy and recast a people-oriented mindset that resonates deeper with the dynamic times we live in. And implementing this strategy is a slow dance, not a quick step. You will need to build a strong brand over time while continuing to keep the recruitment process relevant and responsive to the ever-constant changes in the industry. 

If you are one such manager or leader who is in the process of refining your sourcing strategy, this blog is for you. We bring you endorsed methods in the industry to supercharge your sourcing strategy for the most kickass coders/ developers. 

Let’s Dive Right in with 10 Tips to Supercharge Your Recruitment Strategy:

• Begin by Defining Your Criteria 

As far as plans go, it always helps to know at least the direction in which you’re headed even if the destination is constantly changing. Now even if it seems obvious, it requires assiduous study of your status quo in terms of technical expertise and core competencies. Bring out all the necessary data you need to understand these factors inside out or talk to your project managers. Talking to the existing team can help you identify the recurring problems in terms of process and people and you can arrive at a more wholesome strategy that helps not only the present but also the future. 

It also helps to know the chasm between your required strategy and the existing game plan. If you are beginning to wonder where to begin, here’s a comprehensive guide to having this gap down cold: How to Measure the Success of a Flexible Tech Hiring Model in 2023?

• Build a Strong Employer Brand

Your every single digital footprint has almost become indelible in today’s times. Considering this longevity, it only makes sense to invest in creating and managing a strong employer brand that reveals the excellent work culture your organization encourages. Internally, you action this brand by identifying and adopting your unique brand values and culture, and externally, you communicate these values with clarity and examples. More and more studies are showing the importance of a strong brand. Organizations with a robust employer brand have reported a 28% reduction in employee turnover while 69% of developers say that they wouldn’t consider joining an organization with a bad employer brand. 

Here’s a thorough guide to help you build a strong brand for yourselves!

• Utilize Employee Referrals

Guess who has a higher chance of hanging out with more kickass developers? Yes, your existing team of kickass developers. And it pays both in the short and long term to invest in your existing employees and turn them into your biggest ambassadors. Even with easy access to information in 2023, as human beings, we tend to rely more on first-hand recommendations. Invest a little more in new employees who show true potential, promote older employees into an exciting position/ challenge, or do both, or explore more ways to further augment the experience of existing employees, we guarantee that this investment will be worth it. Also don’t refrain from making your team an active part of the recruitment process: organize meetups or contests with their developer communities or friends. Even if you don’t hire them immediately, it’s a good tactic to get to know more people in your industry for new ideas or work. 

• Continue Communicating with Passive Candidates

The new advent in AI is teaching us that the only way to remain relevant in the industry today is to continue being creative in the ways we deploy existing resources. With a trend-driven industry, it certainly helps to experiment with different combinations and frequencies of sourcing and connecting channels. Most tech companies have upgraded LinkedIn as one of their prime sourcing channel but don’t stop there, go further. Check out Reddit,  Twitter, Workfall, Meetup, and HackerRank among others. While you’re at it, also use social media to communicate in a more humane way with the tech community and try to be as unique in your communication as your organization is. A reliable communication path with senior coders and developers of the industry will definitely translate into ideas, resources, or unprecedented solutions. It’s a long-term investment worth making. 

Again, your existing team might be a great resource in helping you vet which channel might be most appropriate for you. 

• Include Hiring Marketplaces as Sources

A hiring marketplace like Workfall might prove to be a neat source to find the creme de la creme of the developer’s world for the time and money you want to invest. When it comes to hiring kickass developers, whittling down the best from among the large pool of candidates (which is not so large anymore if you ask us) can be a tedious process. Workfall does the painstaking effort of filtering the best from among the best and all you need to do is hire them on our platform. 

Read on to find out why every hire at Workfall is a kickass hire and upgrade the quality of your hires in no time.  

• Engage with Developer Communities

‘Communities’ is becoming a favorite word across industries in our hyperconnected world. The recent pandemic has made its importance only more realized and this value of communities is not lost on the most proactive tech leaders in the hiring world either. You can get further creative on how to mobilize these communities. You can either organize tech workshops on foundations of coding or get the best developers to compete through hackathons, support the community through money or free resources, or just continue engaging with the community through a tech fest or participating in trending conversations. And we get it, it’s not a simple job. It’s a considerable size of investment of time, effort, and money, but investing in communities always pays on a large scale. 

• Become Active Offline

A cheaper alternative to building new communities for developers can be engaging in offline events/ communities to establish a presence amongst your prospective team of developers/ coders. Attend conferences and events or host your own meetups and assemble the best coders in the market. A simple advantage of these activities is that your business becomes a more local name in the minds of coders you admire and that can further open doors for more collaborations in the future. And just don’t do it alone, engage your existing team. Get everyone to participate make connections and earn social currency you can cash out at the time of need. 

• Invest in Upskilling Your Existing Team

Hiring an experienced developer with an impressive resume might be the goal but there is more than one obvious way of achieving it. One indirect way of building a strong team of developers is to upskill your dedicated although not the best current team. Sure, experience guarantees efficiency but investment in a team ensures loyalty in addition to an increase in efficiency. This enables you to create a learning culture within the organization and a sense of community between developers who learn together. Also with the dynamism in the tech industry, it’s of great benefit to your organization if you can create regular processes of upskilling. 

Try to create a comprehensive process consisting of both online and offline learning resources. And since your organization is unique, you’ll have to aim to devise your own distinct upskilling process catering to the learning styles of the people on your team. We also wrote a guide on how to approach upskilling in an informed and intentional way!

• Enhance Your Outreach Methods

With the number of tools you have available now to reach out to desired candidates, choosing the most appropriate can be a little overwhelming. Our advice is to keep it simple and basic. Deploy the use of online ads through Google, Meta, and Linkedin among others to take advantage of paid platforms to reach a bigger pool of candidates.

While it’s a dependable and easy approach, ensure at the same time that your messaging is highly optimized. When the whole process of SEO, SEM, ad algorithms, and systems finally reach the desired candidate, you want to also ensure that you are communicating effectively, and in simple terms with them. Try to help them picture what working with you looks and feels like, and what the team structures and brand values you stick to. Also don’t forget to mention the perks of working with you. 

• A Proactive Approach Goes a Long Way

Don’t leave the modification of your recruitment strategy to the last minute. Rather, it’s always advisable to remain on top of industry trends in addition to being aware of the changing needs of your own organization. The constraints of time tend to affect the efficiency of the process of hiring and the entire experience can turn unpleasant for candidates. Instead, try to forecast the demand for developers/ coders you will need in the coming days and approach the hiring process from a more proactive space. Take stock of the requirements of the company and at the same time, keep changing goals in mind so that you have a pool of candidates ready when the tides turn. We promise you the control will prove to be gratifying when you have a reliable and competent team while the trends might not be so favorable anymore. 

Conclusion

With the soaring competition amongst industries to hire the best developers as they become more scarce and in demand, it’s nice to have a few tactics up your sleeve to make you stand out. We hope you were able to zero down on some of these tactics from the blog. 

Also, remember that these methods are only helpful in increasing your recruitment numbers but your real job begins here. A sizable chunk of hiring the best coders depends on the work culture at your organization because only real-time experience determines the quality of the work you’ll be able to realize with their help. Your job is not only to hire kickass coders but also to retain them. 

If you are looking for more help with hiring, recruitment, and retention for developers and coders, we are here to do just that at Workfall. Hire the most kickass coders now with us!