Securing top-tier talent is more critical than ever. For companies looking to build a competitive edge, university hiring has become a vital strategy. Recent graduates bring fresh perspectives, up-to-date knowledge, and a hunger to innovate. 

However, finding the best and brightest among them isn’t always straightforward. This blog will explore the top four strategies that can help your company attract and hire the most promising developers straight out of university. Whether you’re a startup or a tech giant, these tactics will ensure you tap into the potential of the next generation of tech leaders.

1. Identify Your Needs and What Candidates Want

Understand Your Requirements

The first step in a successful university hiring strategy is to clearly define your organization’s needs while understanding what university graduates are looking for. 

HackerRank’s research reveals the top priorities for new software developers, which include opportunities for skill development, engaging projects, career growth, remote work flexibility, and competitive compensation.

Action Steps:

1. Collaborate with Engineering Teams: Work closely with engineering leaders and hiring managers to outline the specific skills and competencies required for each role. Identify the non-negotiable core skills and those that are desirable but not essential.
2. Tailor Your Messaging: Craft recruitment messaging highlighting how your company addresses these priorities. Emphasize learning opportunities, career advancement, and remote work options. Remember that nearly 70% of graduates have student loans, so compensation is a significant factor.

By aligning your company’s offerings with graduates’ top priorities, you can create a compelling narrative that resonates with candidates and makes your offers more attractive.

Resource: For a comprehensive guide on understanding what candidates value, see HackerRank’s 2024 University Hiring Guide.

2. Identify University Targets

With over 4,500 degree-granting institutions in the U.S. alone, selecting the right universities to target is crucial. This selection process requires a mix of data analysis and strategic insight to ensure your investment yields the best results.

Key Considerations:

1. Re-evaluate Historical Targets: Regularly assess whether your current list of target universities still meets your needs. Adjust your focus based on performance data and evolving organizational requirements. Don’t just stick to the same schools year after year—ensure they align with your current goals.
2. Analyze Performance Metrics: Track each university’s performance against your recruitment KPIs. Look for schools that consistently provide high-quality candidates and consider dropping those that don’t meet your standards. For example, if a school has a low offer acceptance rate, it might be time to reconsider its place in your recruiting strategy.
3. Explore New Institutions: If you’re dissatisfied with current targets, explore new schools or alternative channels like coding boot camps and online academies. Conduct virtual hackathons or other events to test the talent pool before making substantial commitments.

Resource: Read Best Practices to Amplify Your Recruitment Program. 

3. Build Relationships

Establishing and nurturing relationships with universities, particularly their career centers, can significantly enhance recruitment outcomes. These partnerships provide valuable access to top candidates and allow you to stay informed about each school’s recruiting processes and events.

Action Steps:

1. Engage with Career Centers: Contact career centers at your target universities to understand their recruiting timelines, event schedules, and student needs. Partnering with them for sponsorships, speaking engagements, and career fairs can make your company a top choice among students.
2. Connect with Faculty and Influencers: Build relationships with key faculty members and administrators who can recommend top students and facilitate internships or project collaborations. Some companies even coordinate with academic programs to set up internships, creating a pipeline of qualified candidates for the future.
3. Organize Collaborative Events: Hosting coding competitions or hackathons in partnership with target universities can be an effective way to both assess skills and build relationships. Events like these allow you to engage with students in a meaningful way, showcasing your company culture and providing students with a platform to demonstrate their abilities.
4. Utilize Online Platforms: Use platforms like Devpost or GitHub Education to manage and promote these events. These tools are designed to help you connect with the developer community and can facilitate smoother event execution while reaching a wider audience of potential hires.

4. Reflect, Recalibrate, & Iterate

The cyclical nature of university recruiting provides a unique opportunity for continuous improvement. The low candidate engagement seasons should be used to evaluate the previous season’s performance, and define strategies to improve success moving forward .

Action Steps:

1. Review and Analyze Data: At the end of each recruitment cycle, gather data on your key performance indicators. Evaluate the success of your strategies based on candidate quality, offer acceptance rates, and other relevant metrics. Use this data to identify areas for improvement.
2. Gather Feedback: Sync with your engineering and hiring managers to gauge the quality of the candidates considered and hired. Their insights will help you fine-tune your approach.
3. Develop a Revised Plan: Based on your analysis and feedback, update your recruitment strategies for the next cycle. Adjust your target universities, tweak your messaging, and explore new channels to ensure continued success.

Takeaway

You can build a robust university hiring strategy that attracts top developer talent by identifying your needs and understanding what candidates want, selecting and nurturing relationships with the right universities, and continuously refining your approach. 

Implementing these strategies will enhance your recruitment outcomes and strengthen your company’s reputation as a desirable place to work. Staying ahead of the curve with a strategic and data-driven hiring approach will ensure you secure the best talent to drive your organization forward.

The post The Top 4 Strategies for Developer University Hiring appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

Building a tech team that not only survives but thrives in the face of rapid technological changes and economic uncertainties is a game-changer. But doing so requires not just filling positions as they come up, but creating a strategic, forward-thinking talent acquisition plan. This article explores essential tactics for building a long-term talent acquisition strategy that drives innovation and growth.

Long-Term Talent Acquisition Strategies

#1. Build an Effective Talent Pipeline

​​Talent pipelines are essential for tech companies because they ensure a steady flow of skilled professionals ready to step into key roles as the company grows and evolves. By proactively building and nurturing a diverse pipeline of candidates, companies can reduce the time and cost associated with filling critical positions, maintain a competitive edge, and adapt quickly to new market demands. This forward-thinking approach not only supports immediate hiring needs but also future-proofs the company against talent shortages.

To build a successful talent pipeline, tech companies should consider the following steps:

• Identify Future Talent Needs: Assess upcoming technological trends and business objectives to determine the roles and skills required. Resources such as Gartner and Forrester can provide insights into future skill demands.
• Engage with Potential Candidates: Connect with potential hires through industry events, online communities, and social media. Tools like LinkedIn, HackerRank Engage and industry-specific forums can facilitate these connections.
• Utilize Technology: Implement tools such as applicant tracking systems (ATS), candidate relationship management (CRM) software, and coding test software to streamline your recruitment process.

#2. Consolidate Current Technologies

Integrate various tools to create a seamless recruitment experience. Evaluate your current tools like ATS, job boards, and LinkedIn Recruiter, and look for integration options to connect them. 

Platforms like Zapier can help automate data sharing and workflows, reducing manual entry and ensuring consistent candidate information across systems. This streamlining saves time, reduces errors, and enhances the recruitment process.

#3. Improve Employee Engagement and Retention

Implementing recognition programs and offering incentives for skill achievements are crucial for fostering a culture of growth and development in tech companies. Platforms like Bonusly and Kudos facilitate employee recognition, boosting morale and encouraging continuous learning. 

Engaged employees are more likely to stay, reducing turnover and ensuring retention of valuable talent. This supportive environment enhances productivity, performance, and innovation, contributing to long-term talent acquisition and retention.

#4. Build Your Employer Brand

Building a strong employer brand is crucial for attracting top tech talent in a competitive market. Start by showcasing your company’s innovation, culture, and career growth opportunities across your website, social media, and other platforms. Highlight employee success stories and achievements to provide real-life examples of the value and impact of working at your company. Engaging with online tech communities and maintaining an active social media presence also helps increase your brand visibility.

Leverage employee testimonials and video content to give prospective hires an authentic glimpse into your workplace culture. Encourage your team to become brand ambassadors through employee advocacy programs, and consider partnering with industry influencers to amplify your brand’s reach. Transparency about your company’s challenges and successes further builds trust and authenticity, making your company more appealing to potential hires.

Finally, continuously measure and refine your employer branding efforts by collecting feedback from employees and monitoring key metrics like application rates and employee retention. This data-driven approach ensures that your brand remains relevant and attractive as the tech landscape evolves, helping you secure top talent for the long term.

Platforms like HackerRank, Glassdoor, LinkedIn can also help highlight your employer brand to attract top talent.

Key Metrics

Measuring the success of your talent acquisition strategy is crucial. Key metrics to track include:

• Time-to-Hire: Monitor how quickly you fill positions. Shorter times generally reflect a more efficient process. To optimize time-to-hire, see LinkedIn’s guide on improving hiring speed.
• Candidate Engagement: Assess how well you’re engaging with potential candidates. High engagement levels often result in better hires. 
• Retention Rates: Track the percentage of new hires who stay long-term. Higher retention rates indicate successful onboarding and cultural fit. BambooHR’s guide on improving employee retention provides valuable insights.

Conclusion

Future-proofing your tech team involves more than just reactive hiring; it requires a proactive, strategic approach to talent acquisition. By building robust talent pipelines, leveraging diverse technologies, and focusing on long-term goals, you can ensure that your team remains agile, adaptable, and ready to meet the challenges of tomorrow’s tech landscape.

The post Future-Proofing Your Tech Team: 4 Long-Term Talent Acquisition Strategies appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

Creating a developer-friendly interview process is crucial for attracting top talent and building a strong engineering team. In an industry where skilled developers are in high demand, a well-designed interview process can make all the difference. This blog will guide you through the steps to create an interview experience that is both effective in assessing candidates’ technical abilities and respectful of their time and effort.

1. Understand the Developer Mindset

Technically Challenging and Relevant Tasks

Developers thrive on solving complex problems that mirror real-world scenarios they would encounter in the role. Avoid generic puzzles or abstract problems that do not reflect the actual work. Instead, design interview tasks that are challenging and directly relevant to the job. Use coding challenges and projects that demonstrate the kind of work they will be doing. This approach engages developers and provides a realistic preview of the job.

Respect for Time and Expertise

Demonstrate respect for candidates’ time and expertise by streamlining the interview process. Clearly define each stage, provide detailed instructions, and ensure interviews start and end on time. Recognize their expertise by asking insightful questions that reflect their experience and knowledge rather than trivial or overly simplistic problems. 

Remember, if a developer is interviewing with you, they are probably interviewing with other companies. Their time is valuable, and top talent won’t stick around if the interview process is confusing.

Motivations and Career Goals

Understanding developers’ common motivations and career goals is key to crafting an appealing interview process. Many developers prioritize learning opportunities, career growth, and work-life balance. Highlight how your company supports continuous learning and professional development. 

Showcase any mentorship programs, access to new technologies, and opportunities for career advancement. Additionally, emphasize your company’s commitment to work-life balance through flexible working hours, remote work options, and other relevant policies.

2. Craft Relevant Technical Assessments

Real-World Problems

To create a meaningful assessment, use coding challenges and projects that reflect the actual job responsibilities. This approach allows candidates to demonstrate their skills in a context that mirrors their day-to-day work. For example, if the role involves backend development, provide a task that requires designing and implementing a database solution.

Open-Ended Tasks

Open-ended problems enable candidates to showcase their creativity and problem-solving skills. These tasks should have multiple potential solutions, allowing candidates to choose their approach. This not only assesses their technical abilities but also their critical thinking and innovation.

Practical Tools and Environments

Using familiar tools and environments can significantly enhance candidate comfort and performance. If possible, allow candidates to use their preferred IDEs, programming languages, and frameworks during the assessment. This approach reduces unnecessary stress and enables them to perform at their best.

3. Incorporate Collaborative Elements

Pair Programming Sessions

Pair programming sessions are an excellent way to assess teamwork and problem-solving skills. During these sessions, a candidate works alongside a current team member to solve a coding problem. This setup not only evaluates their technical skills but also their ability to communicate and collaborate effectively.

Team-Based Challenges

Including team-based tasks in the interview process can provide insights into candidates’ collaboration and communication abilities. These challenges mimic real work scenarios where developers often need to work together to achieve a common goal. It also helps candidates experience team dynamics and work culture.

Peer Interviews

Involving current developers in the interview process can provide valuable perspectives. Peer interviews allow candidates to interact with potential colleagues and gain insights into the team’s work style and culture. This approach also helps current employees feel involved in the hiring process and ensures a good cultural fit.

4. Ensure Transparency and Clarity

Clear Expectations

Provide detailed information about what candidates can expect during each interview stage. This includes the types of questions, the format of technical assessments, and the overall process. Clear communication helps reduce anxiety and allows candidates to prepare adequately.

Structured Process

Outline a clear, structured interview process to minimize uncertainty. Each stage should have a specific purpose and flow logically into the next. A well-defined process not only makes the experience smoother for candidates but also reflects well on your company’s organization and professionalism.

Timely Feedback

Prompt and constructive feedback is crucial. Candidates invest significant time and effort in the interview process, and timely feedback shows respect for their investment. It also provides valuable insights for candidates to improve their skills, whether they get the job or not.

5. Create a Comfortable Environment

Friendly Atmosphere

A welcoming and non-intimidating interview environment can significantly impact candidate performance. Greet candidates warmly, offer refreshments, and ensure a comfortable setting. A positive first impression sets the tone for the rest of the interview.

Adequate Preparation

Offer resources and information to help candidates prepare for interviews. This could include practice coding challenges, an overview of the interview process, and tips for success. Providing this support demonstrates your commitment to helping candidates succeed.

Candidate Support

Throughout the interview process, promptly address any questions or concerns candidates may have. Assign a point of contact who can provide guidance and support. This level of attentiveness can make a significant difference in how candidates perceive your company.

6. Highlight Company Culture and Values

Cultural Fit

Demonstrating your company culture and values during the interview process is essential. Share stories and examples that reflect your workplace environment and ethos. This helps candidates determine if they would be a good fit and feel more connected to your company.

Interactive Sessions

Organize interactive sessions where candidates can meet potential colleagues and leadership. These interactions allow candidates to get a feel for the team dynamics and company culture firsthand. It also provides an opportunity for candidates to ask questions and learn more about the company.

Showcase Benefits and Opportunities

To attract candidates, highlight the growth opportunities, benefits, and work environment. Emphasize aspects such as career development programs, health benefits, flexible working conditions, and any unique perks your company offers. A comprehensive overview of the benefits can significantly influence a candidate’s decision to join your company.

Key Takeaway

Creating a developer-friendly interview process is a strategic investment that can yield substantial returns in attracting and retaining top talent. Implementing these strategies will help improve your hiring process and position your company as a leader in competitive tech hiring.

The post How to Create a Developer-Friendly Interview Process appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

In the ever-changing tech industry, the debate over the relevance of college degrees remains contentious. Companies like Dell, Google, and Bank of America lead the charge in hiring developers and interns without college degrees. However, some still argue degrees are indispensable and hold weight in today’s job market. 

This article will delve into both perspectives and examine the data to answer this pivotal question. So, whose argument holds true? Let’s find out.

The Argument Against Degrees

In recent years, the perceived value of a college education has shifted, and it’s no surprise why. Mastery of coding is within reach for anyone, courtesy of an abundance of free online resources, coding boot camps, and specialized IT schools. The rise of generative AI tools has also made it easier to start building software.

Here are some arguments for why degrees aren’t necessary for developers:

The Evolution of Tech Learning

Tech education has undergone a drastic shift. The rise of online courses and YouTube tutorials has democratized access to knowledge. In fact, 80% of developers used online resources in 2023 to learn new coding skills. 

This democratization of knowledge empowers individuals from diverse backgrounds to pursue careers in technology, regardless of their geographical location or financial means. Coding boot camps have emerged as an alternative to traditional education, offering immersive and intensive programs designed to fast-track individuals into tech roles. If you can learn everything you need to know about development outside the classroom, do you really need a degree?

Big Tech No Longer Requires A Degree

As the tech industry evolves, it’s becoming increasingly evident that traditional college routes are no longer the sole path to success. Major players in the industry, such as Meta (Facebook), Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google, collectively known as FAANG, are expanding their hiring practices. Beyond Silicon Valley, companies of every size benefit from a skills-based hiring approach.

Skills-First Hiring: Unlocking Talent Diversity

Over-reliance on degrees can inadvertently exclude talented individuals with alternative learning styles or those who lack the financial means to pursue higher education. In the fast-paced world of tech, where autonomous learning and problem-solving reign supreme, practical skills often hold more weight than an embossed piece of paper.

Companies that value practical skills and real-world experience over formal degrees open doors to a broader range of talented developers. These developers bring diverse skills across various industries, locations, and job roles. By focusing on skills-first hiring, a company can dramatically increase its talent pool, potentially by a whopping 20 times.

You Don’t Need a Degree for Networking or Soft Skills

College isn’t the only option for developers to hone their non-technical skills.

Networking isn’t confined to college campuses alone. Industry conferences, meetups, and online forums provide alternative avenues for developers to connect with peers, mentors, and potential collaborators. And platforms like LinkedIn have democratized professional networking, allowing developers to network regardless of their educational background.

Similarly, while college provides opportunities for developing soft skills through classes, extracurricular activities, and group projects, other avenues can also be effective. Soft skills are best learned through hands-on experiences and real-world challenges, where individuals learn to adapt, collaborate, and innovate in different situations.

In reality, attending college alone doesn’t guarantee mastery of soft skills. Instead, having a diverse portfolio that showcases collaborative projects and experiences and participating in immersive boot camps and workshops may provide a more accurate assessment of an individual’s soft skill proficiency.

Higher Education Can’t Keep Up With Innovation

The proliferation of AI tools has initiated a significant wave of innovation, and tech is changing at an unprecedented rate. With the help of tools like ChatGPT or GitHub Copilot, tasks that used to take hours to execute now take developers minutes. Seemingly every day a new language or machine learning model is being released that changes developers skills. 

And higher education isn’t exactly known for making quick changes. College curriculum aren’t getting updated on a weekly basis to keep up with the latest innovations. This has developers and higher ed professionals alike wondering: if computer science courses aren’t teaching developers the skills they need to succeed, is a degree even necessary anymore?

The Argument for Degrees

While some companies still prioritize traditional college degrees, the reasons behind this preference are multifaceted. Let’s examine some reasons why a developer may want a degree.

Regulatory Compliance

Specific sectors within the tech industry, such as finance and government contracting, often require degrees as part of regulatory compliance or contractual obligations. Larger corporations may use degrees as a screening mechanism to handle the high volume of applications.

Networking Opportunities in Higher Education

Many think networking is a critical benefit of college life. Students interact with professors, peers, and industry figures in college, fostering connections that can lead to valuable opportunities like internships, job offers, and collaborative ventures.

The Role of College in Soft Skill Development

College education often receives praise for its role in developing essential soft skills such as critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and time management. Employers value these skills as they complement technical expertise and can significantly enhance career opportunities in the tech industry. 

What Does The Data Say: Do Degrees Still Matter?

Opinions for and against degrees within the tech industry are skewed. To better understand the value of degrees for developers, we conducted an extensive survey as part of our 2024 Developer Skills Report, gathering insights from developers, recruiters, and executives.

While a college degree may look nice on your CV, we asked whether it actually prepares developers with the skills needed to excel in their workplace. In our 2024 survey, most respondents said no. 

Only 31% of students—less than a third — believe a college education prepares them to work as developers. Developers and executives also exhibit particularly low confidence in the preparedness conferred by college degrees.

Interestingly, recruiters felt different. About 38% felt that degrees were crucial for grads’ careers. But even in this group, there were doubts, with 30% saying degrees don’t help much with job opportunities. 

A Cenegate study agrees with our findings. In this study, around 21% said their degrees didn’t prepare them well for their careers, and 33% felt their degrees didn’t do much to help them find jobs. 

Future Outlook

As hiring practices evolve and developers’ perspectives shift, it’s becoming clear that a degree no longer serves as the sole gatekeeper to tech jobs. Nowadays, many tech companies prioritize developers with a robust portfolio over those solely relying on a degree.

This change is fueled by the accessibility of tech education through online resources, empowering individuals to learn and refine their skills independently. Forward-thinking companies acknowledge that skills can be acquired outside traditional academic settings, making a solid portfolio a more reliable indicator of capability than a degree.

Ultimately, what truly matters in the tech industry is the value you bring through your skills and expertise. The data indicates that degrees are increasingly becoming less of a barrier to entry for tech jobs, signaling a positive shift in the industry. It’s not about where you studied; it’s about your ability to deliver results and make meaningful contributions to projects. That’s what truly counts in tech today.

The post Does a College Degree Still Matter for Developers in 2024? appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

The tech hiring market is tight. While hiring cuts and layoffs have characterized the job market, the need for key roles and skills has risen rapidly. 

Roles like back-end and front-end developers were the most in demand for 2023. And AI skills came alive in the third quarter, seeing explosive growth in the rate at which employers assess these skills.

In this market, the challenge for tech recruiters and hiring managers is to strategically hire, retain, and upskill developers to meet demand for the important skills. And to do so, you’ll need to understand what motivates developers to accept an offer or stay in their current role.

So, what defines the ideal developer opportunity? What aspects drive developers to accept a new job, remain in their current position, or decline an offer? In short, why should a developer choose you?

In our 2024 Developer Skills Report, we asked developers these very questions. We also identified disparities between what recruiters think developers want and what developers actually want. Here’s what we found. 

Top 8 Reasons Developers Accept an Offer

#1. Higher Pay

Over 21% of developers rank higher pay as the number one motivator when accepting a new offer. Meanwhile, recruiters listed higher pay as the sixth most influential factor – demonstrating a significant disconnect. 

To attract top developers, your offer will need to meet or closely match their compensation expectations. During recruitment, aim to understand candidates’ overall compensation preferences, including benefits and flexible hours. Research local market standards to provide realistic yet competitive offers. 

Also, consider being transparent about the salary range in the job description. This could increase the number of applicants you receive.

#2. Opportunities for Career Growth

Opportunities for career growth came in a close second. Recruiters also listed this factor as the second motivator for developers – one of only two factors developers and recruiters agreed on in our survey. 

Despite the challenging market and the waves of tech layoffs, developers still value opportunity over security. Our survey showed that 44% of developers prioritize opportunity, compared to 27% prioritizing security. And 28% of developers did not strongly favor either option. In contrast, managers, leaders, and recruiters believe developers prioritize security over opportunity, with a margin of 40% to 33%.

The key takeaway? Use interviews to learn about candidates’ career goals and preferences. Recruiters who communicate upskilling and career growth opportunities with candidates avoid misalignment between candidate expectations and company offerings.

#3. Opportunities to Learn New Skills

Developers identified learning opportunities as the third most influential factor when accepting an offer. Recruiters weren’t too far off in identifying this factor as the fourth most influential. 

Tech is a competitive and ever-evolving industry. Developers know this and understand the need for continuous skill improvements. Learning new skills opens up career growth and advancement opportunities – supporting developers’ desire for career growth. Developers who continuously expand their skill set are better positioned to take on new challenges, handle more complex projects, and progress into leadership roles within their organizations. 

Employers can speak to this motivation by building and promoting upskilling and internal mobility programs. 

#4. Team & Culture

Team and culture came in fourth for developers. Meanwhile, recruiters thought it was developers’ number one motivator. Despite this disconnect, culture remains a key hiring factor that shouldn’t be overlooked.

Why do team and culture matter to developers? Team and culture directly impact problem-solving, creativity, and innovation. For opportunity-minded developers, driving innovation and overcoming challenges is fundamental. Developers could reject your offer if they think your company culture is lacking or it’s, even worse – hindering growth. 

Of particular importance is the presence of a strong engineering culture, which are the values and practices that foster engineering excellence.

#5. Remote-First Policy

Four years into its widespread adoption, remote work is more popular and desired than ever before. Remote work enables developers to work from anywhere, tailoring their work environment to their preferences and lifestyle. It also reduces commute time and costs. Developers who find an office setting distracting can customize their work setting to increase productivity.

But not every company has embraced this working style that developers love. Companies that terminate or walk back their remote first policies risk alienating developers.

#6. Interesting Projects to Work on

Developers do not like to be bored. They prioritize learning new skills in the context of work projects. Developers want interesting projects that challenge and take them out of their comfort zone. Why not highlight some exciting projects your team has worked on during the recruitment stages?

#7. Flexible Schedule

Along with location flexibility, developers want a flexible schedule. This factor is seventh for developers, yet recruiters rank it fifth. Flexible scheduling allows employees more control over their work-life balance priorities and personal pursuits. 

Implementing flexible schedules benefits developers and employers alike. They’ve been shown to increase employee job satisfaction, health, and work-life balance. And they also benefit employers by increasing productivity, reducing absenteeism, and decreasing turnover.

#8. Four-Day Work Week

Coming in eighth is the four-day work week. This is the only other factor developers and recruiters agreed on. This reinforces just how valuable work-life balance and schedule flexibility are to developers. If your company can offer this, it’s beneficial to highlight it in the recruitment process.

What Makes Developers Stay? 

We’ve reviewed what factors have the biggest impact on whether developers accept a job offer. But what factors motivate developers to stay in their current position? To answer this question, we asked developers what’s keeping them in their current role. Here’s what they said.

Surprisingly, compensation drops in rank from the first to the fifth strongest motivator. 

Instead, learning new skills and a flexible schedule rise on the list. Opportunities for career growth and skill development are still significant motivators.

Here we also see the team and company playing a bigger role in developer decision making, ranking as the second most important reason developers say. So while culture can affect hiring outcomes, its biggest impact is in retaining employees.

Remember, developers aren’t just sticking around out of habit. They’re constantly seeking out better prospects with an opportunity-first mindset. Keep them engaged by offering challenging projects that pique their interest. Stay in the loop with the latest industry skills and regularly assess your developers’ current skill sets to pinpoint areas where they might need support or additional training.

The post What Factors Actually Impact a Developer’s Decision to Accept an Offer? appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

   

In the realm of technology and recruitment, Ernst & Young (EY) stands as a beacon of innovation, pioneering strategies that address the ever-evolving challenges of tech hiring. EY is one of the world’s largest professional services networks and has over 350,000 employees! With employee strength as strong as this, EY faces unique challenges in terms of finding skilled talent, dealing with thousands of candidates for each open role, and more!

In a recent conversation with EY, we uncovered profound insights shared by two distinguished figures from EY, unveiling their approach to shaping the future of talent acquisition in the technology sector. 

We spoke with Tanu Garg, Executive Director at EY, who brings over 14 years of experience in risk and regulatory reporting across major banks and financial institutions. Her expertise spans both US and UK regulatory frameworks, with pivotal roles at Barclays and Genpact before her tenure at EY.

Joining her was Thiru Vengadam, Partner at EY and a vanguard in the tech and digital arena. Thiru’s impressive career includes significant tenures at Citigroup and Bank of America, where he was instrumental in driving digital transformations.

Optimizing Tech Hiring

The discussion centered on EY’s pioneering techniques in tech hiring, exploring the challenges of aligning talent with rapidly evolving technological demands, and the strategies EY employs to navigate these complexities effectively. This theme is particularly relevant as companies grapple with the dual challenge of meeting immediate project demands while also building a resilient and adaptable tech workforce for the future.

EY’s approach to this challenge is multifaceted, blending traditional recruitment strategies with innovative practices that recognize the unique demands of the tech sector. 

Navigating Demand Fulfillment Complexities

At the heart of EY’s recruitment strategy lies the challenge of aligning talent with the dynamic demands of technology. With a global team of over 75,000 technology professionals, EY’s growth in the tech space necessitates a nuanced approach to recruitment, balancing traditional consulting specialization with a burgeoning startup culture. This method ensures recruitment of individuals who are not just skilled but also adaptable to technological advancements.

Innovative Recruitment: The Hack to Hire Model

EY’s “Hack to Hire” model exemplifies their innovative approach to recruitment. By leveraging hackathons and similar competitions, EY identifies candidates who not only possess technical expertise but also exhibit creative problem-solving skills, ensuring a dynamic and effective match between candidates’ capabilities and project needs.

HackerRank’s platform enables EY to conduct these competitions at scale, offering a dynamic and engaging way to assess candidates’ real-world capabilities.

The Importance of Skillset Diversity

Skillset diversity is paramount in tech hiring, given the vast and varied field of technology. EY’s approach to mapping specific skills required for each project underscores the importance of understanding and addressing the diverse skill sets needed for successful recruitment and project implementation.

The HackerRank Effect

In the tech industry, where skillset diversity is crucial, HackerRank plays a pivotal role in EY’s recruitment strategy. The platform’s extensive skills directory and tailored assessments allow EY to map and evaluate the specific skills required for various tech roles. This capability is key to addressing the wide range of digital skills needed in today’s tech landscape, from data analytics to digital transformation initiatives, ensuring that EY’s talent pool is both diverse and proficient.

The implementation of HackerRank within EY’s recruitment process has yielded tangible benefits. HackerRank assessments were instrumental in processing and evaluating a vast influx of referrals, streamlining the selection process, and significantly reducing the time-to-hire. Moreover, HackerRank’s role in internal assessments and skill validations has been crucial for EY’s upskilling and reskilling initiatives, ensuring that the workforce remains at the cutting edge of technological advancements.

Personalizing the Recruitment Process

EY’s recruitment process is characterized by its personalized nature. Utilizing technology, EY tailors the recruitment experience to align with the strengths and aspirations of individual developers. This tailored approach ensures a mutually beneficial relationship between the candidate and the company, fostering a conducive environment for growth and innovation.

By leveraging HackerRank, EY can tailor the recruitment experience to individual candidates, aligning assessments and challenges with the candidates’ unique skills and career aspirations. This personalized approach not only enhances the candidate experience but also ensures a better fit between the new hires and EY’s project needs, fostering a productive and satisfying work environment.

Conclusion

EY’s insights into tech hiring illuminate the path forward for talent acquisition in the technology sector. By embracing agility, diversity, and personalization in their recruitment strategies, EY not only addresses the immediate needs of their projects but also sets the stage for the future of the tech industry. As the landscape of tech hiring continues to evolve, EY’s pioneering approaches offer valuable lessons for organizations striving to navigate the complexities of recruiting in the digital age, shaping a future where talent and technology converge to drive innovation and success.

To know more about EY’s strategic approaches to acing tech hiring, visit here.

The post Optimizing for Excellence: EY’s Modern Approaches to Streamlining Hiring Processes appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

Coding tests play a pivotal role in tech recruiting, shining a spotlight on the prowess of each developer. These assessments are tailored to mirror real-world challenges, ensuring that a candidate isn’t just versed in theory but can truly bring code to life in practical scenarios.

But those real-world scenarios are evolving. 

With the advent of AI tools like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot, we’re witnessing a profound shift in the development landscape. Just as developers once leaned heavily on StackOverflow or turned to Google for quick insights, they now frequently consult these AI companions for guidance and optimization. In fact, 82% of developers now use AI tools in their development process.

This transformation begs a pressing question for hiring managers and tech recruiters: If AI tools have become so intrinsic to modern development, shouldn’t our coding assessments adapt to this new standard? The debate on allowing access to Google during tests has been around for a while, but introducing AI into the mix adds a fresh, more nuanced dimension to the conversation.

Every company that hires developers will have to grapple with this question. And it’s not a “let’s-put-it-off-for-later” kind of issue. The answer could redefine tech hiring as we know it.

The Changing Nature of Development

Gone are the days when a developer’s world was limited to their integrated development environment (IDE), a few chosen frameworks, and perhaps a sprinkling of API documentation kept open in a browser tab. Today, software development is more expansive and dynamic, and AI tools are making a recognizable mark on it.

Consider GitHub Copilot, for instance. It’s not just an auto-suggest tool that helps developers complete a line of code. It’s a co-pilot in the truest sense, offering solutions, predicting the next line, and sometimes even educating developers on best practices. Imagine being mid-way through a tricky function and having a tool that doesn’t just help you complete it but suggests an optimized way to achieve the same outcome. It’s like having a seasoned developer whispering expert advice in your ear.

And then there’s ChatGPT. Let’s say a developer is grappling with a peculiar bug, and the usual forums don’t have the answer. ChatGPT is there, ready to brainstorm and debug with them, actively contributing to the problem-solving session.

These examples aren’t mere hypotheticals; they reflect the evolving day-to-day reality of developers. According to a recent Github survey, 70% of developers say AI coding tools will offer them an advantage at work and expect better code quality, completion time, and resolving incidents to be the greatest benefits. By seamlessly integrating AI tools into their workflow, they can be more efficient, explore multiple solutions, and even learn on the job. It’s not about replacing human skills or intuition; it’s about enhancing them.

Now, this doesn’t mean every line of code a developer writes will be assisted by AI. But it does indicate a shift in the ecosystem. As developers continue to integrate these tools into their repertoire, the boundary between human expertise and AI-enhanced skills becomes a bit fuzzy.

For hiring managers and tech recruiters, this raises an exciting yet challenging question. How do you discern a developer’s core skills from their proficiency in working with AI tools? And, more importantly, should there even be a distinction?

The Real Question for Hiring Teams

The crux of the matter isn’t just about the tools developers have at their disposal or how the art of coding is evolving. It boils down to two central questions: 

• What skills are we truly trying to assess?
• How do we ensure that our tests are still relevant in the face of innovation?

Let’s draw a parallel. A decade or so ago, a common debate in tech recruitment circles revolved around allowing candidates to use Google during coding assessments. The crux of that debate was clear: in the real world, developers wouldn’t be restricted from accessing resources. Why then create an artificial barrier in tests? Fast-forward to today, and we’re facing a similar predicament, albeit on a more sophisticated scale.

If we recognize that AI tools are not just auxiliary aids but integral parts of a developer’s toolkit, then the debate shifts. It’s no longer about whether candidates can use AI tools like ChatGPT during assessments; it’s about whether they should. 

To illuminate the point further: If a developer’s daily job involves collaborating with an AI tool to optimize workflows, debug more effectively, or generate parts of code, shouldn’t their proficiency in using these tools be part of what we assess? It’s akin to evaluating a carpenter not just on their ability to hammer a nail but also on their skill in using a modern nail gun.

This is the real dilemma facing hiring managers and tech recruiters. In an era where the tools of the trade are in flux, the challenge is to craft assessments that capture both the timeless essence of coding and the contemporary nuances brought about by AI.

Approaches to Integrating AI in Coding Tests: Pros and Cons

As hiring teams grapple with the evolving role of AI in development, they’re presented with a range of options on how to incorporate these tools into their assessment process. Each approach comes with its own set of advantages and challenges. The key thing to remember is that creating an AI strategy isn’t about finding the right answer. Rather, the goal is to embrace AI on your own terms with an approach that works for your organization. 

Let’s break down the primary strategies.

Prevent the Use of AI

In this approach, candidates are given a traditional coding environment without access to external AI tools. It’s the old-school method where one’s coding chops are tested in isolation. Proctoring tools are often employed to ensure the candidate isn’t accessing external resources, and plagiarism detection systems are on the lookout for copy-pasted solutions.

 Pros: 

• Clarity of Assessment: You’re certain that solutions stem from the candidate’s raw knowledge and skills.
• Standardization: All candidates face the same conditions, ensuring fairness.

Cons: 

• Unrealistic Scenario: It might not fully capture the nuances of a real-world coding job where all tools are accessible.
• Missed Skill Evaluation: The approach might overlook a developer’s proficiency in working with AI tools.

Allow Limited Use of AI 

In this scenario, you might have developers work in a controlled environment where the IDE comes with a built-in AI assistant, acting as a pair programmer. This assistant can suggest optimizations or guide the test-taker through complex problems. However, external AI tools or search engines remain off-limits. Proctoring tools monitor the test-taking process and how candidates work with the AI assistant. Meanwhile, plagiarism detection tools watch for instances where candidates receive unauthorized external help.

Pros:

• Relevant Skill Assessment: This mirrors a modern development workflow, assessing the synergy between the developer and AI.
• Controlled Environment: The built-in AI ensures candidates have a standardized AI experience.

Cons:

• Gray Areas: Defining “limited use” might pose challenges, leading to assessment discrepancies.
• Balancing Act: You could run the risk of candidates leaning too heavily on the AI, making it hard to evaluate their independent skills.

Allow Complete Use of AI

Here, candidates are let loose in a fully-equipped digital playground, complete with AI tools like GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT. The assessment evaluates not just the final solution but the process — how effectively a candidate collaborates with AI. To counter potential misuse, a variety of advanced plagiarism detection systems work in tandem.

Pros:

• Holistic Evaluation: Recognizes the full spectrum of modern coding, from raw skills to AI-enhanced development.
• Push for Innovation: With AI at their side, candidates might come up with out-of-the-box solutions.
• Real-World Environment: This is as practical as it gets, with developers solving problems the exact same way they would on the job.

Cons:

• Attribution Challenges: Discerning the candidate’s contribution versus AI’s could be tricky.
• Integrity Concerns: With more tools available, ensuring authentic solutions becomes paramount.

Each of these approaches brings forth a distinct vision of what coding assessments should look like in the age of AI. It’s worth noting that companies can use a combination or blend of these approaches in their hiring process. For example, a company could go with a more restrictive approach for initial screening assessments, and then allow for open use of AI for a smaller candidate pool in the interview process.

Upholding Assessment Integrity in the Age of AI

The integrity of coding assessments is a cornerstone of effective tech recruitment. In a world where AI tools can significantly influence the output, ensuring that a candidate’s work is genuine, original, and indicative of their skills becomes paramount — regardless of how you decide to assess their skills. However, the methods used to secure the integrity of assessments will look different for every company, depending on how they choose to embrace AI.

Leveraging Proctoring Tools

In scenarios where you either prevent or limit the use of AI, using proctoring tools becomes essential. These tools can monitor a candidate’s screen, browser tabs, and even their webcam to ensure that they aren’t accessing unauthorized resources. Modern proctoring software has grown sophisticated enough to detect suspicious behavior and flag it for review, ensuring a fair testing environment.

Investing in Plagiarism Detection

Monitoring for plagiarism has always been essential in coding tests. However, the introduction necessitates a greater focus on plagiarism detection.

Before the spread of AI, the industry standard for plagiarism detection relied heavily on MOSS code similarity. In addition to producing higher false positives rates, this approach also unreliably detects plagiarism originating from conversational agents like ChatGPT. That’s because ChatGPT can produce somewhat original code, which can circumvent similarity tests.

The new industry standard for securing tests is an AI-powered plagiarism detection system. HackerRank’s AI model – which is currently the only one in the market – can track dozens of signals across three categories — coding behavior features, attempt submission features, and question features. And it can analyze them to calculate the likelihood of suspicious activity. This upholds transparency, fairness, and equity, regardless of how integrated AI is into the testing process. 

Educating the Candidates

Finally, setting clear expectations is crucial. Before the assessment, candidates should be thoroughly briefed about the tools they can use, the expectations regarding collaboration with AI, and the consequences of unfair practices. An informed candidate is less likely to breach assessment integrity.

By combining technology with transparent communication, companies can navigate the challenges posed by AI in coding assessments. The goal remains unchanged: to accurately gauge a candidate’s skills in an environment that’s both fair and indicative of real-world scenarios.

Embracing the Future of Coding Assessments

As technical skills evolve, so too must our methods of evaluating technical talent. The rise of AI tools like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot isn’t merely a passing trend; it signifies a shift in how developers approach their craft. As such, the debate over their inclusion in coding tests is more than just a pedagogical question — it’s a reflection of the changing definition of what it means to be a developer.

For hiring managers and tech recruiters, the challenge lies in balancing tradition with innovation. The decision isn’t binary; as highlighted, there’s a spectrum of approaches, each with its merits.

Whatever path companies choose, the core principle remains the same: assessments should be a genuine reflection of on-the-job skills and scenarios. AI is undeniably a part of that picture now. But, as with all tools, it’s about how you use it. 

This article was written with the help of AI. Can you tell which parts?

The post Should Developers Be Able to Use AI Tools During Coding Tests? appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

Talent acquisition (TA) teams strive to build engagement at each phase of the recruiting process. The top of the funnel attracts candidates through media rich career pages and vibrant recruiting events. Candidate dropout is a risk at any phase, but some dropout occurs before a prospect even reaches your talent pool.

Overall, the chilling effect is described by the social sciences where a law, rule, or procedure deters a behavior. Specifically in TA, the chilling effect describes how a process like a pre-hire test might dissuade prospects from applying to a job or dropping out of the hiring process at the hurdle. Finding the chilling effect is a challenge when mapping the candidate journey because the dropout might occur before that prospect applies to the role. In technical recruitment, the chilling effect may impact diverse candidates in ways not captured by item bias and sensitivity reviews or adverse impact analysis.

5 Ways to Counter the Chilling Effect

But stay cool — there are methods to address the chilling effect for both technical and non-tech recruiting.

1. Extend Funnel Metrics

Extend your funnel metrics to include your career page traffic. GDPR introduced some challenges to collecting rich visitor statistics, but if all applicants enter your talent pool through your career page, make sure you know who is visiting and how they are engaging.

2. Look Into the Abyss

Most companies have some type of listening post or candidate survey to collect feedback, but prospects who abandon the process before they reach the survey still have useful insights. Like an exit interview, reach out to those candidates or prospects to better understand their actions and why they decided not to continue.

3. Take Your Own Candidate Journey End to End

The chilling effect may not be because of huge hurdle; it might be an inconvenience like having to re-enter data after uploading a resume. Pre-hire test length should be short to maintain engagement. Endless interview loops should not feel like “free consulting” to a candidate. Identify points of friction and work to reduce them.

4. Walk in Someone Else’s Shoes

Is your time-saving panel interview intimidating qualified candidates? Did your female software engineer candidate meet a female on your engineering team? DEI goals cannot be reached if diverse candidates abandon your talent pool.

5. Communicate Early and Often

Lack of communication creates a chilling effect on your talent pool. For high volume recruitment, automation makes communication nearly effortless, and AI makes personalized emails scalable. Tell candidates what to expect and when to expect it to avoid more costly dropout at later stages.

Need help with technical recruitment and selection? Visit hackerrank.com to learn more about our skills-based approach to hiring.

The post 5 Hot Tips to Address the ‘Chilling Effect’ With Your Talent Pool appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

The processes companies use to hire developers have huge implications for their ability to build high performing teams. But what do developers think of employers’ hiring processes? And are they happy with the current state of affairs?

To answer these questions, we took to our community of developers on LinkedIn to get their opinions, and created an ebook highlighting the key takeaways. 

From interview prep and employer communication to the factors that influence their decision to accept an offer, the developers shared their thoughts on all things technical hiring. And, if we’re being honest, their answers surprised us.

75% of Developers Think Technical Interviews Are Broken

One of the most shocking findings of our survey was the generally negative sentiment developers have about the current state of technical interviews. One of the polls we conducted asked developers whether or not they thought that technical interviews are broken.

It turns out that the answer is yes, overwhelmingly so. Some 57% of respondents agreed that technical interviews are broken, and 18% strongly agreed. The reasons for this sentiment are many, and include irrelevant interview questions, inadequate time limits, and the use of outdated interview tech.

If you’re an employer, this statistic might scare you. For every four candidates you interview, three will be frustrated with your hiring process. This is an urgent problem, because developer dissatisfaction with technical interviews has a direct impact on hiring outcomes. 

Unhappy Developers Lead to Unaccepted Offers

In another poll we conducted, 34% of developers reported that the quality of interview questions impacted their decision to accept a job offer. And another 26% of developers identified candidate experience as the main factor influencing their decision to accept a job offer. 

Indeed, a developer’s experience during the hiring process has a real impact on their decision to accept a job offer. Fortunately, developers identified a number of changes they’d like to see in how the tech industry interviews.

Key Takeaways

Embrace Shorter Interviews

92% of developers think technical interviews should be one hour or less. Of that 92%, half think interviews should be one hour. The other half (46% of total) think interviews should only be 30 minutes.

That’s far shorter than current industry standards. But when more than nine in 10 developers agree on something, it’s worth listening. 

Embrace shorter interviews. Your candidates—and likely your interviewers—will appreciate it.

More Real-World Questions

When it comes to improving technical interviews, 65% of developers said they wanted more real-world questions.

While algorithmic-style challenges have been a staple of technical interviews for some time, there is growing frustration with this format among candidates. 

Consider posing real-world technical challenges instead. Not only will you better deliver on developer preferences, but you’ll also enable your hiring team to evaluate the skills a candidate actually needs on the job. 

But asking the right questions doesn’t just help your team identify candidates with the right skills. 34% of developers said the quality of interview questions impacts their decision to accept a job offer. 

A Future Driven by Real-World Skills

Developers aren’t happy with the current way the tech industry conducts coding interviews. However, their responses also indicated strategies that employers can use to build more effective and equitable hiring processes.

To learn more about these developer-sourced interviewing strategies, check out our ebook: 5 Changes Developers Want to See in Your Hiring Process.

The post 5 Changes Developers Want to See in Your Interview Process appeared first on HackerRank Blog.

One of the unique challenges of technical recruiting is learning about developer skills. Software development is a complex, evolving discipline with its own set of technologies, terms, and jargon. As outsiders to the developer community, it can be hard for recruiters to know where to start. In this post, we break down the six concepts developers wish technical recruiters knew.

Front End, Back End, and Full Stack 

Web development consists of two environments: the front end and the back end. 

The front end is everything that a user sees and interacts with in their browser. Front-end developers create buttons, text, links, design, and the overall user experience.

In contrast, the back end is what you don’t see that underpins the digital experience. Back-end developers build server-side infrastructure, including servers, applications, and databases.

Full-stack developers have the unique ability to work with front-end design and interactivity, as well as back-end databases and architectures. Full-stack developers have a combination of front-end and back-end responsibilities, and their specific tasks vary depending on the company and role. 

Understanding the nuance between front-end, back-end, and full-stack developers is key for hiring the right technical talent. Technical recruiters hiring for web development roles should pay careful attention to the distinctions between these roles. 

Technical Interviews

Technical interviews are the process of evaluating developers through questions that place an emphasis on technical skills. Hiring teams use individual assignments such as coding questions, projects, or data structure problems to test and score a developer’s proficiency in key skills. These interviews gauge a developer’s problem-solving skills and technical proficiency in various programming languages and frameworks. And they also give a glimpse into soft skills — like collaboration or communication style. 

The reason this is helpful for recruiters to know is that developers are going to have questions about the screening and interview process. 34% of developers we polled reported that the quality of interview questions influences their decision to accept an offer. Being able to communicate the format and technologies of the interview demonstrate the efficacy of the interview early in the hiring process. It also gives developers more time to prepare for an interview, which is helpful, considering that 41% of developers we polled spend weeks preparing for technical interviews. 

A Basic Understanding of the Role

Job titles for technical roles can be confusing. For example, web developers, software developers, software engineers, and back-end developers use similar technologies and have overlapping job titles. However, each role comes with a different salary and set of responsibilities. Confusing these distinctions during a candidate search has consequences for the talent pipeline. Continuing with our example, if you submit a software developer for a software engineering role, they might not have experience in system design, a core requirement of software engineering.

Each job requirement comes with a general description of the role and the skills the role requires. However, in-depth research into technical skills is necessary to understand the unique technical requirements for your role. Recruiters who have fluency over technical concepts have a competitive advantage while recruiting for technical roles.

As a general rule, a technical recruiter should research the following for each role:

• The general discipline
• Key terminology
• Required programming languages (and what they’re used for)
• Required technologies (and what they’re used for)

Say, for example, you’re hiring a data scientist role. Start by researching the following information before beginning a candidate search:

• What is data science?
• What are the key terms for this discipline?
  • Big data
  • Relational database
  • Non-relational database
  • AI (artificial intelligence) 
  • ML (machine learning)
• What languages are important for this role?
  • SQL (Query language for relational databases)
  • Python (high-level, general purpose language)
  • C/C++ (General purpose programming languages)
• What frameworks are important for this role?
  • Apache Spark (data processing)
  • Apache Hadoop (big data processing)
  • TensorFlow (neural networks)
• What other technologies are important for this role?
  • Tableau (data visualization)
  • AWS (Cloud computing platform)
  • JavaScript (front-end programming language)
  • MySQL (Relational database management system)

Impossible Job Descriptions

In 2020, developer Sebastián Ramírez created a viral post about a job description that mentioned a framework he developed. The employer required four years of experience in FastAPI, which was only one-and-a-half years-old at the time. Posts like these are extremely popular in the developer community. (The post received 176,000 likes.) 

I saw a job post the other day.

It required 4+ years of experience in FastAPI.

I couldn’t apply as I only have 1.5+ years of experience since I created that thing.

Maybe it’s time to re-evaluate that “years of experience = skill level”.

— Sebastián Ramírez (@tiangolo) July 11, 2020

At first, it seems like a lack of due diligence is to blame for unrealistic job descriptions. But if we take a closer look, we can see that the underlying problem is that employers and developers measure skill in different ways.

Employers typically assess skill based on years of experience. The assumption behind this approach is that years of experience is a direct indicator of a developer’s skill level. For roles working with new technologies, this can lead to employers seeking an experience level that is quite literally impossible.

In contrast, developers recognize that the only indicator of skill level is, well, skill. A developer with two years of hands-on experience in a framework that’s two years old is an expert in that technology.

To be fair, hiring managers are responsible for setting correct experience ranges. But verifying the accuracy of this information before starting your search saves recruiters from wasting countless hours, and saves developers the frustration of having to explain why the qualifications for the role are impossible.

Java and JavaScript Aren’t Related

Java and JavaScript have extremely similar names, making it easy to think the two languages are related. But the reality is that the two technologies have nothing to do with each other. 

In 1995, Netscape created a scripting language and – inspired by Java – named it JavaScript. The reason for this is disputed, with developers stating that it was either a marketing tactic or a reference to Netscape’s technical support for Java.

Regardless of how the names came to be so similar, Java and JavaScript are distinct languages with unique characteristics and use cases.

Java is a high-level, back-end programming language used to create complete applications. Java is a fast and secure language with nearly endless use cases. Developers use Java to create applications, create video games, build back-end infrastructure, and even control Mars rovers. Java is the second most popular programming language in the world.

JavaScript is a dynamic scripting language used for adding interactive behavior to web pages and applications. Developers use JavaScript for creating web and mobile apps, building web servers, and designing interactivity. Technically, you can use JavaScript for back-end development, but it’s generally used and known as a front-end programming language. JavaScript is the most popular programming language in the world.

Why does this distinction matter for recruiters? The key to hiring the right candidate for a role is to identify developers with the necessary technical skills. A recruiter who understands the difference between Java and JavaScript is likely able to identify the wrong candidate for the role.

Skills-Based Hiring

81% of tech employers require developers to have college degrees. Unfortunately, focusing on pedigree unnecessarily limits the applicant pool. But competition for talent is driving employers to adopt a skills-based hiring approach, which prioritizes real-world skills to make strong hires and access a larger talent pool.

In addition to furthering DEI initiatives, skills-based hiring helps recruiters by significantly broadening the results in candidate searches. To demonstrate the relationship between skills, education, and talent pools, we studied data from LinkedIn Recruiter.

If you search LinkedIn Recruiter for professionals with a bachelor’s or master’s degree and a back-end developer job title, the search results in over 190K developers worldwide. If you try the same search but remove the education criteria, the talent pool expands to over 270k developers. That’s a 42.1% increase in the total talent market achieved by dropping a qualification that doesn’t necessarily equate to the ability to succeed in the role. 

So what happens when you conduct an even broader search? Instead of searching for job titles, try a skills-based candidate search. Searching for professionals with back-end development skills expands the talent pool to over 790k developers. Compared to the initial search, that’s an extreme 316% increase in the talent pool! 

Skills-based searches yield a larger talent pool because they include:

• Developers who have a different but related title
• Developers who don’t have a job title
• Professionals who have backend skills but aren’t back-end developers

This trend holds true for all major technical roles, including front-end developers, cloud engineers, and data scientists.

*Result is for cloud computing skills.

The tech industry loves to talk about the developer shortage crisis. But by looking at the data from a skills-based perspective, we can see that the problem is perception, not scarcity. If you’re a recruiter hiring for a technical role, the right developer is out there. You just need to look in the right place.

The post 6 Things Developers Wish Technical Recruiters Knew appeared first on HackerRank Blog.