Engineering & IT Hiring Is Up – So How Can You Find Top Talent Before Your Competition?

By Jezabel Southard

Posted on November 11, 2014

IT jobs are up about 3.6 percent over last year in the U.S. for a total of about 4.7 million jobs, according to TechServe Alliance, an engineering and staffing trade association.

Of those jobs, the biggest increase came from management and technical consulting services with a 5.2 percent year-over-year increase and computer systems and design services at 4 percent. Engineering employment has grown to 2,506,900 jobs, an increase of about 1.5 percent.

With the ball in the job seekers court, how can you attract the best IT and engineering talent?

Woo them with interesting projects. Go public with what you’re working on. Technically minded people love a challenge, so give it to them. Not all of your projects will be sexy, but feature the most intriguing ones to catch the eye of those ready for a new challenge.

Differentiate yourself. Don’t try to compete head-to-head with others in your industry. Highlight your differences. Are you a startup where every day brings something new? An established brand that employees brag about working for? A niche player who’s staked out a particular corner of the market? Focusing on what sets you apart during your recruiting efforts can attract candidates who have the skills and experience you are looking for and a better chance of fitting into your corporate culture.

Create a strong referral program. Your current employees are your best source of talented new employees. But don’t let referrals remain just a line item in your employee manual. Take it seriously and promote it. Create a campaign with promotional materials throughout your building. Run contests. Publish success stories in your internal publications.

Network online and IRL. Attend networking events or meetups or have one of your own. Take a page out of Reddit’s book and host your own version of an AMA by creating a virtual job fair where candidates can ask questions about what it’s like to work at your company. Post on LinkedIn groups and Twitter. Regularly check into the talent communities on sites like Github, Stack Overflow or Quora.

Go back to school. Partner with local universities to identify talent early. Attend job fairs, recruit on campus and offer internships. Bring small groups to your company so they can see what it’s like to work there.

Work with a niche recruiter. With an industry expert as your partner, you can build a talent pipeline of IT and engineering professionals. Never face another talent shortage or miss a project deadline.

At TERRA Technical, we connect you with technical professionals with experience, skill and the ability to fit seamlessly into your corporate culture. For more advice about attracting top talent, talk to your TERRA recruiter. To learn more about our Pacific Northwest staffing services, contact us today.

Categories: HR and Management Advice, Staffing Tips & Recruiting Trends

Tags: How to Attract Top Talent, How to Compete for Top Talent, Pacific Northwest Engineering Recruiters, Pacific Northwest Technical Recruiters, Pacific Northwest Technical Recruiting Services, Pacific NW Niche Staffing Services, PNW Niche Recruiting Firms

Related Posts