Over the years, technology has revolutionized our world. In the 1930s, televisions were still considered an emerging technology, and they were an extravagance that only wealthy households could afford. Now, the average American has access to ten or more technological devices within their home.
Technology is a part of almost everything we do - from how we communicate, to how we purchase groceries - and it is oftentimes considered a necessity rather than a luxury. Especially in recent years, it continues to advance and transform our lives.
Not only has technology transformed our personal lives, but it has become an integral and irreplaceable part of business. Industries worldwide rely heavily on technology to provide fast, efficient, reliable, and convenient ways of conducting their business. Technology and business today are almost inseparable.
More than likely, your business cannot function without some form of software, productivity tools, platforms, or online data storage. Having reliable technology and qualified development teams are crucial for the majority of businesses, both large and small. It can mean all the difference between the success and failure of your professional endeavors.
Finding the right technical talent can be a daunting challenge, especially if technology is not your strong suit. This is why a technical recruiter can be a perfect solution for anyone looking to fill technical positions. Technical recruiters take over the hiring process so that you can fill technical jobs with the best talent.
If you are in the process of building a technology team, or if you are considering hiring developers, then using a technical recruiter may be a favorable option for you. This article will explain the role of a technical recruiter, explore the benefits of working with one, and expound on all your options so that you can know with full certainty what is right for your business.
What is a Technical Recruiter?
In simple terms, a technical recruiter is someone who specializes in finding candidates to fill technical jobs. They have the ability of finding those with technical skills. A recruiter job description covers a wide range of responsibilities including, but not limited to advertising job openings, interviewing candidates, and finding the right fit for a technical position. They are experts in managing the hiring process from start to finish, and work closely with hiring managers to ensure expectations and priorities are clear.
There are two main methods of technical recruiting: having an in-house technical recruiter, or using a recruiting agency.
In-House Technical Recruiters
A technical recruiter that works internally is a full-time employee of a business or organization and falls under the umbrella of human resources. Their focus is to fill vacant technical positions within their place of employment. They are ingrained in the company culture and prioritize a good match for both the position and the team.
Depending on the size of the business, an in-house technical recruiter's job can vary. They can focus solely on recruiting developers, or they can take on more duties within an HR department such as compensation, onboarding, and professional development.
Recruitment Agencies
Technical recruiters can also be employed by a recruitment agency, which is an external firm that specializes in finding suitable candidates for businesses. They act as a bridge between employers and potential employees, and they're tasked to find and recommend the perfect fit for open technical positions.
Some recruitment agencies concentrate on only one industry, like technology. Others find candidates for jobs in every sector, so they have more than just technical recruiters on their staff.
Technical Recruiter vs. General Recruiter
A technical recruiter is a different and unique type of recruiter. While they have all of the traits and skills that a general recruiter has, they must meet certain qualifications to ensure they are eligible and equipped to identify top technical talent.
While it's possible to be a successful technical recruiter with just a high school degree, the majority have a bachelor's degree in a related field. Having formal education or training in development is a major factor in why a technical recruiter salary is higher than a general recruiter's. Without advanced technical knowledge, evaluating the skills of potential candidates would be unfeasible.
Tech recruiters are also required to have previous experience in the tech industry. On average, they are expected to have between 2-4 years of experience in the field. Many technical recruiters are developers themselves. Having knowledge is one thing, but having technical hard skills elevates credibility and ensures the capability to access candidates properly.
What Skills are Required of a Technical Recruiter?
Not only is a tech recruiter required to have hard skills, but there are soft skills that are necessary as well. Every technical recruiter job description lists similar core requirements:
Excellent Written and Verbal Communication Skills
To be a successful technical recruiter, strong communication skills are necessary. This is because the majority of the job is interacting with people. Technical recruiters are the middleman between employers and potential employees, so they are in constant contact with both. Whether they are making phone calls, attending job fairs, or conducting interviews, strong verbal communication is crucial. A major part of the recruitment process is writing job descriptions, which is also why it's important to be a skillful writer.
Critical Thinking Skills
Technical recruiters often need to make important decisions while balancing a lot of information. They need the ability to objectively analyze and evaluate a situation or candidate, consider all the pros and cons, and make a firm choice. The decisions they make affect people's careers and companies' successes, so they must be able to stand behind that decision with clear reasoning.
Strong Intuition Skills
While evaluating technical skills is an important part of the recruitment process, having good instincts about a developer is also essential. Candidates must not only be a good fit for the position, but they need to fit in with the company or the team, and it's up to the technical recruiter to determine if it's a solid match. A few phone conversations and an interview is not much time to fully get to know a person, therefore being able to trust their intuition is a helpful skill for technical recruiters.
Organizational Skills
A technical recruiter manages a significant amount of essential information at one time. For any one placement assignment, they are meeting with hiring managers, developing strategies, sorting through resumes and applications, scheduling interviews, and keeping detailed notes to review. They must be well organized, and the ability to multitask is a bonus as well.
What are the Responsibilities of a Technical Recruiter?
For every stage of the recruitment and hiring process, technical recruiter responsibilities are typically the same for every assignment and follow similar steps:
Strategizing
A large portion of a technical recruiter's time is spent developing the best ways to reach suitable candidates. Not all job positions require the same outreach, and technical recruitment constantly changes, especially since the rise of social media and digital marketing. Writing job descriptions and deciding how and where to post them is another important part of this step.
Sourcing
Developers are in high demand, and technical recruiters must always be building their network in order to source candidates and find top talent. Most times it's not as simple as posting job openings and waiting for applicants. Technical recruiters must actively seek to connect with candidates and encourage them to pursue the positions.
Screening
Once the technical recruiter has sourced a sufficient amount of candidates, they must sort through them and determine which ones meet the technical requirements and have the potential to be a good hire. This is where having technical knowledge can be beneficial. They will have a good understanding of what skills the candidates need for the job, and they can filter through the applications accordingly.
Scheduling
After the candidates are screened, technical recruiters then must move on to the interview process. They contact all qualified candidates to schedule an interview, and then prepare technical interview questions. Technical interviews are just like any other job interview, except there is oftentimes a technical skills assessment. This is to ensure that the candidates would be able to perform all the tasks expected of them. Since a technical recruiter has several years of experience in tech, they are capable of evaluating the results.
Selecting
The final stage of technical recruitment is selecting the most qualified candidate and offering the recommendation to the employer or the human resource specialist. Depending on the situation, sometimes the employer will reach out with a job offer, or it can be up to the technical recruiter to extend the offer.
How to Work with a Technical Recruiter
As mentioned before, the two main methods of working with a technical recruiter are having one in-house or working with a recruitment agency. There are pros and cons to either option.
In-House Technical Recruiters
Hiring an internal technical recruiter is convenient because it means your business will always have access to one. As permanent members of the team, they will best understand the type of candidates your business needs. However, it can be very costly. Having an in-house technical recruiter means that you will need to pay their salary, pay the hiring costs and salary of the new hire, and provide infrastructure, supplies, and equipment for both. It can also take a long time to find the right candidates because of a lack of resources for outreach.
In-house technical recruiters are mostly beneficial for a large company that can afford the high price of a full-time recruiter. It's also a great option if the core of a business is technology development, and if scaling technology teams is a constant endeavor.
Recruitment Agencies
Working with a technical recruiter through an agency is a more common and convenient method of technical recruitment. They have many resources and a far greater pool of candidates to select from.
However, it can cost a significant amount of money to find a successful placement. There is a fee for using their services, and the fees are even higher if it's a hard-to-fill role like a developer. Once a candidate is hired, you'll then need to pay them full-time, along with benefits, infrastructure, equipment, and supplies. In addition, it can take time to hire new developers, which could affect current projects and push back deadlines.
Talentcrowd: A Better Option
An alternative to working with a technical recruiter is establishing a partnership with Talentcrowd. Talentcrowd helps employers to build outsourced technology teams with trusted and talented developers.
With Talentcrowd, you receive access to hundreds of vetted and verified developers who have already been sourced and screened to ensure they are the most highly skilled professionals. They have already been tested extensively and trained in both hard and soft skills. Therefore, building your technology team is much faster and more efficient than hiring a permanently employed developer through a technical recruiter.
Talentcrowd is much more affordable than working with an in-house technical recruiter or a recruiting agency because their developers are outsourced and fully remote. Your business does not need to worry about providing equipment, benefits, or an office. In addition, you have the ability to scale projects up or down depending on your budget. Pricing is straightforward with no hidden fees, and you can choose to work with their developers full-time, part-time, or hourly.
Talentcrowd: the Perfect Solution
With an increasing dependence on technology in business, it is crucial to have a competent technology team. Technical recruiters are a reliable method for finding and hiring developers. While using a technical recruiter may be feasible and beneficial for some, Talentcrowd is a faster, easier, and more affordable option that doesn't sacrifice value or quality.
If you are considering the services of a technical recruiter for your business, but you are still hesitant because of factors like cost and time, Talentcrowd could be the perfect solution for your needs.
Get in touch with Talentcrowd today to recruit trusted, talented technology teams for your business.
