IT companies need to shift their recruitment strategies as many trends are making a beeline for the work-life balance, remote work, and associated practices.
A study by FlexJobs reveals that 58% of tech workers prefer remote job options. Further, the study found that 77% are vying to prioritise their work-life balance. Undoubtedly, the indications of a changing work scenario are on the horizon, and tech recruiters must keep up with changing times. IT companies must evolve in their hiring as competition to hire and retain the best candidates intensifies by the day. While many reasons are causing this tectonic shift, given below are significant factors leading to the transformative change in the hiring process:
a) Talent Going Global: Hiring has gone global today simply because talent has gone to the places. Gone are the days when IT professionals were found in select cities and clusters. Today, the best coders can be sourced from California while competent programmers can be hired from Bangalore. This enables firms to tap into diversified talents and put them together on a project of strategic significance. Hiring candidates from varied countries and cultures also fosters workplace diversity, besides underscoring the inclusive approach of the firm.
b) Rising soft skills: Emotional quotient, client handling, and communication skills are rapidly gaining importance in the IT industry. The focus on team building and leadership has become equally relevant as the hard, technical skills required for the job. This change has mandated firms to broaden the pool of candidates and emphasise the importance of hiring people with a combination of both hard and soft skills. This adaptation is becoming even more crucial given the rising use of AI in coding, programming, and related works of repetitive nature.
c) Adopting Lifelong Learning: With innovations moving fast, professionals with a lifelong learning attitude are becoming the first choice of IT companies. Firms are tuning their recruitment to hire candidates who are adaptable and flexible. Aspirants who fit into a continuous learning and upskilling/reskilling culture are being preferred. The positive attitude for a learning-driven approach is also crucial for firms to stay ahead of the learning curve. Besides, the approach also helps ensure the all-round development of employees, equipping them with better career prospects in the long term.
d) Preferring DEI Approach: Diversity is becoming a catalyst for driving innovation. By changing hard skills, a place-centric approach to hiring on principles of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), IT firms position themselves better to realise both business and CSR objectives. Diversifying selection boards and offering mentorship programs can help in building a workforce that performs equally well on DEI parameters. DEI also helps firms in fulfilling their CSR initiatives and stregthen their brand image.
e) Contractual Work: With many employees taking to freelancing and contractual work, IT firms are revisiting their hiring strategies. Many firms are recognising that employees are ditching the full-time work model in favour of part-time or contractual work. Even many top performers are opting for freelancing, which is nudging IT firms to help recruiters consider part-time offering as an option to the aspirants. Consequently, many tech organisations are offering project-based, part-time work to aspirants.
f) Adopting Tech: Integrating cutting-edge technologies will help boost remote hiring and workforce management for enterprises. For hiring, the most common concerns for businesses right now are the vast number of resumes. The number of resumes received compared to the actual hires made is extremely low. Moreover, most struggle with the time-consuming process of shortlisting, recruiting, and onboarding due to a lack of the right technology.
AI-powered platforms can streamline recruitment by automating resume screening, identifying the best-fit candidates in seconds, and eliminating manual inefficiencies. In addition, with advanced search algorithms, machine learning, and natural language processing, recruiters can instantly find talent that matches their needs, reducing time-to-hire and improving hiring accuracy.
The scenario of recruiting top tech talent is rapidly changing, and companies must adapt to new realities to remain relevant in turbulent times. Tapping the global talent and attaching importance to soft skills are becoming important for IT recruiters. Further, hiring employees with a lifelong learning attitude can also play an important role in the growth and profitability of firms. Further, the need to accommodate part-time work aspirants by adopting a DEI perspective is also needed to perform well on innovation prospects. The shifts mentioned above are indicative, calling hirers to seize the opportunity and align with altering realities.
