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Recruiting
& Selection
Competitive Hiring: How to Win in Recruiting Technology
Workers
There's a war going on. It doesn't involve weapons or soldiers, but
it does require planning, strategy, and precise execution. It's the "employment
war" and those fighting the battle are organizations that require high-tech skill
sets.
Even the smallest companies need a webmaster and a network administrator.
Yet there are few good candidates - or at least not enough for the
demand-and companies are fighting to attract and keep them. The
result is an extremely competitive recruiting environment for companies
and a job hunter's dream for prospective technical employees.
Recruiting New Talent
Recruiting is as important to a business as the development of
a technology. Companies typically develop business plans but often
fail to develop a staffing plan and strategies to support it. Which
positions are most critical and in what order? Where are the pools
of candidates and what are the strategies to reach them? What qualifications
are musts, and which are wants? These factors are critical to recruiting
new talent. The strategies for recruiting have evolved with technology.
Information technology (IT) professionals generally use technology
in job hunting. That means they're not just searching for listings
in the newspaper but also on the Internet, with the Internet becoming
a larger presence in job searches of all kinds. The Internet is
a place where more and more companies are doing their recruiting.
Such standard recruiting methods often attract a large pool of potential
candidates.
To find the right employee, that often means looking at hundreds
to hire for one position. It is a sound strategy if you are selective
enough and have the time to sort through the candidates. If your
staffing function is set up correctly and using the technology tools
available it can quickly sort the thousands of resume postings.
But with good IT professionals in such high demand, companies also
are recruiting right from other companies. Such "stealing" is standard
practice in an age when company loyalty is virtually nonexistent.
The Corporate Culture
What is the secret to retaining good employees? The answer is
matching employees and corporate culture. Corporate culture refers
to the work atmosphere, which tends to reflect the company's values.
People work for a variety of reasons. One is to pay the bills and
collect benefits. Although a primary reason, it's not why someone
chooses one job over another. That often depends upon the corporate
culture.
Your task is to present and sell your company to prospective employees.
The best matches are those who fit your corporate culture. With
the employment wars pushing the salaries up, you can often compete
with smaller, more meaningful items.
Training is an extremely valued perk for technology professionals,
since technology changes so rapidly and there is a fear of obsolescence.
Just make sure that the perks reflect your corporate culture, or
they won't work. Recruit the best and brightest, they will grow
your company.
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