5 tech hiring tactics that break the mold

Did you know that recruiters spend 35% of their annual recruiting budget on external agencies to hire just 10 developers?

This is clearly a cost that can be avoided and sometimes you are not even sure of the quality of talent that comes in.

Here are 5 tech hiring tactics which will not only save money, but also help meet your tech recruitment targets:

1. Rope in talent from developer communities

Tech communities are full of potential hires waiting to be discovered. Here are 3 such communities from where you can source talent for free.

Hiring developers from GitHub

Did you know that Github is one of the world’s largest code hosts with close to 31 million developers? This is how you can find your next tech hire on it:

1. Create a profile on Github

2. Run a search using 3 parameters – language, location, and followers. For example, if you are looking to hire a java developer based in Texas with more than 5 followers, your search would look like this –

 

3. You will see a list of repositories by default. Change this to users from the left hand side menu. Now you have your list of developers to reach out to.

Hiring developers from StackOverflow

StackOverflow is a Q&A site for professional and enthusiast programmers. This is how you can use StackOverflow for hiring –

1. Look at candidates addressing specific tech related questions and see if they fit the bill.

2. Developers are segregated based on their user badges and reputation scores. An ideal candidate ranks high for both.

3. Every question which is posted has tags associated with it. You can use these tags to find developers.

Hiring developers from HackerNews

Hackernews is a social news website focusing on computer science. Here are some hacks on finding talent in this community:

1. Check out the threads and comments relevant to the jobs that you are hiring for and start a dialogue with the contributors.

2. Expand your outreach by asking influential developers at your company to post job listings on relevant threads.

2. Conduct virtual job fairs and online assessments

This is not exactly a cost free way of sourcing talent but it is comparatively cheaper than conventional hiring

Companies like VFairs offer an online platform to run your own virtual job fair. Here are 5 steps for a seamless virtual job fair:

1. Create an easy to navigate custom landing page for applicants

2. Make sure your vendor provides multi-platform compatibility

3. Incorporate audio, video, and text-based chat capabilities

4. Conduct a webinar on the do’s and don’ts before the job fair

5. Include online goodies like gift cards and vouchers for candidates to take home

Once you have shortlisted potential candidates, you can test their tech skills remotely by using a developer assessment platform like HackerEarth

3. Attend local meetups

You can find a lot of free events in your locality on Meetup. Shortlist for events that align with your recruiting goals.

There is no silver bullet for making meetups work for you. You need to dedicate time to build a presence in the developer community.

Here are a few things you SHOULD NOT do at a meetup:

1. Don’t be pushy

Developers attend these meetups to learn from other developers. Telling people upfront that you are only there to hire can be a buzzkill

2. No company presentations

Remember that it’s not about you, but about the community. Instead, ask how you could help them.

3. Finally, don’t be greedy

If someone doesn’t fit your requirement, introduce them to your contacts. The more you give to the community, the more you will get back from it

4. Leverage social media to build a developer brand

A great way to attract amazing developer talent is to show that developers love working for your brand, and what better way to declare this than through social media.

Did you know that 32% of developers are looking for innovative projects?

Attract GenZ developers through Instagram, Snapchat, and Pinterest

53% of young online adults aged 18–29 use Instagram actively! This is a powerhouse of talent if used the right way. Let’s take Reddit’s example for this –

Reddit keeps it personal and conversational. Some suggestions on what you can share to showcase your brand – people, events, company culture, and so on.

They’ve used the right hashtags. Here are some that you can use –

#vacancy #dreamjob #newjob #resume #video #culture #SanFrancisco #cv #tech #techjobs #developers #hiring #instajob #developerbranding #team #jobhunting #fun #interview #college #services #technology

Further, they haven’t shied away from showing their unique job perks. Find what your brand stands for and align your hiring strategies accordingly.

Company and individual status updates

According to LinkedIn, the following are certain practices that will help your hiring updates get views by the right candidates:

  1. A video in your update can increase your engagement by 74%
  2. A link in your update can increase engagement by 84%
  3. A photo in your update can increase engagement by 147%
  4. Keep it short. The top 50 status updates have an average count of 120 characters
Here is a recent hiring update by LinkedIn for more inspiration. The personalized messaging helps it stand out:
  • Once your status is ready, post it on your company page or on your individual networks.
  • Tag developers within your organization who have some great developer connects so more people notice your post.
  • Also, make sure all your employees like these updates so their connections notice them as well.

5. Make your tech team your brand advocate

Your tech team is a first-hand proof of what you stand for as a developer brand so it is very important that they are your strongest advocates.

Referrals

Every time you are looking to close a position, make sure you check internally for referrals. At HackerEarth, we run a really cool referral program for our employees. Perks include handsome referral bonuses and a chance to win some awesome tech gadgets.

Hackathons and programming challenges

Hackathons are a great way to bring together developers who can add value to your organization in the long run.

For example, we were looking to hire some Django developers and came up with an unconventional idea of hhosting a ‘Djangothon’. Our recruitment team spent time with every individual, made secret notes on their open source projects and what they liked, and handed out personalized notes with polaroid pictures at the end of the day. The developers loved it and we ended up making some great hires.

We hope we’ve helped you save some dollars and eased some hiring woes. Happy Hiring!