When looking to fill vacancies in your IT department you no doubt begin your search by looking for that individual who can check off all the boxes on your wish list. There’s no harm in this. The problem, however, is that the speed of the tech game moves fast. If you see a candidate that looks good, but may lack a skill or two so you hold off on contacting them, they may be off the market by the time you swing back around to them. Overlooking candidates that have the potential to deliver on key projects is a real issue hiring managers within IT face. That’s why the number one question hiring managers need to be asking themselves is, “which skills are a necessity and which skills can we allocate the time to teach?”
Obviously, that’s a bit of a loaded question. All tech departments are different and all are staffed with varying levels of tech experts. What one company can afford to overlook (as it pertains to needed tech skills) another cannot. When trying to fill a short term need/contract there’s no question you’ll need someone who can come in and hit the ground running.
But for those more permanent roles, there a couple of options you really should consider:
- Use a Trusted Staffing Firm – Nobody has a better understanding of what tech talent is available than staffing firms. With companies like PSCI, our recruiters live on the job boards, day in and day out, pouring over hundreds of resumes and nurturing relationships with a talent pipeline that includes warm leads we know well and can match on short notice.
- Consider Contract-to-Hire – This is an excellent way to try before you buy. There are a lot of overhead costs associated with full-time hires and this, for all intents and purposes, eliminates that concern. You’re able to see firsthand if the consultant has the technical skills needed in order to succeed and complete your project(s). Plus, as an added bonus, you’re able to tell if their personality meshes well with your company culture.
However, even if you’re already using these two options, it’s important to remember that when trying to fill roles vacated by long-term employees, an individual with their exact skill set most likely does not exist. So, instead of using their most current job responsibilities as a job requirement, sit down with your team members and figure out which skills are most important and which can be learned and taught.
For even more food for thought, and for an even longer term solution, your organization may want to consider one of the hottest new trends sweeping the tech industry – the “Workforce Marketplace.”
The idea of a Workforce Marketplace is quite simple, eliminate the more traditional hierarchical models, with defined job roles, and instead replace them with labor platforms that allow opportunities for people to work on different things and in different ways. This means having a company with almost no organization chart. In theory, and as is playing out with early adopters of this model, this change is unlocking a whole new level of productivity and creativity for both the employees and organizations alike.
By taking advantage of this more on-demand workforce, companies are finding it easier to look internally as well as to the external labor market to meet the demand for their skills. No longer are hiring managers passing over candidates who don’t perfectly align with their current needs. Instead, such a model is allowing for managers to take more chances in who they hire and the results, so far, have been promising. Organizations have become more efficient in their talent search and are more rapidly able to innovate in ways that were not possible before.
In conclusion, whether or not you decide to use a staffing firm, turn your roles into temp-to-perm positions, or move towards a more innovative approach – such as a Workforce Marketplace – the tech talent you’re looking for is out there, you just need to broaden your horizons.
