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How Top Tech Companies Build and Maintain a Strong Candidate Pipeline

How Top Tech Companies Build and Maintain a Strong Candidate Pipeline

To remain competitive in business and establish a reputation as a leader in innovation, you need to find the right people for the job. As you probably already know, this involves more than simply posting open positions and hiring whoever appears best.

You want to welcome the perfect prospect to the team, and we’re here to talk strategy. We’re breaking out the blueprint that top tech companies use to build and maintain a solid candidate pipeline.

Here are the secrets to creating a talent pool overflowing with top-tier prospects in your industry.

Know (and Share!) Your Company Culture

Google is well known for its reputation for creating a culture and environment that feeds creativity and play and encourages employee work-life balance. This is an excellent recruitment strategy since it attracts future talent.

HubSpot has earned a reputation for fostering and encouraging employee development and transparency within the company, emphasizing excellent customer service.  Their values are captured in the acronym HEART:

  • Humble
  • Empathetic
  • Adaptable
  • Remarkable
  • Transparent

These are a few of many examples of companies that have managed to create something incredible. They first defined their values and then weaved them into the inner workings of their operations in a way that aligned with execution.

Determining values and using them to inform protocol is a big-picture decision. Regarding culture, values should honor and encourage employees and prioritize customer service.

Of course, it’s also important to remain attentive and engaged in the ever-changing nature of the market, consumers, and community.

Establishing a well-defined company culture makes it much easier to source a candidate who shares your vision and values when it comes time to fill employment vacancies.

Being clear about who you are and what you stand for allows you to stand out. Branding through social media provides an excellent adjunct to traditional recruiting team efforts. Highlight elements of company culture on social platforms by sharing some of what makes your organization a desirable place to work.

For example, if serving the community is important, don’t be shy about showing how your company upholds those values. Perhaps it’s organizing a trash pick-up day or creating mentorship programs.

Or maybe it’s coming from your employees themselves, sharing five-star reviews on sites like Glassdoor and capturing the attention of job-seekers who like what they see on those reviews.

Having a clearly established vision and values — and then protocols in place to uphold them all — is the best way to remain aligned with company objectives.

The more you stay true to your values, the easier it is to make all sorts of business-related decisions.

Create an Applicant Tracking System

Your applicant tracking system should include prospects for both current roles and people who can potentially fill future positions that will come through growth and expansion.

Include metrics in your pipeline management system that rank more than just a prospective candidate’s skill set and resume.

It’s fine to require candidates to take a pre-employment assessment or evaluation. Or you can also ask specific questions during the interview that help inform whether or not they are a good fit.

Even if they’re not right for a current position, perhaps they possess skill and enthusiasm. That, coupled with a rich cultural background or unique life experience, leads you to believe they could really benefit and help round out the team sometime in the future.

Keep track of these passive candidates, and make sure you note what it is that you like about them, even beyond the typical job-related qualifications. These qualities may lead to more creativity and innovation — or whatever you’re looking for.

Use your company values here to help source candidates and inform which characteristics you’d like to track:

  • If your company is driven by eco-friendly principles, is that something they value too?
  • How does hiring them align with your values?
  • If you’re seeking diversity, do they meet that criteria?

You can create internal methods for tracking this information, such as a customized template. You could also integrate applicant tracking software into the recruiting and hiring process.

If you’re clear on what you’re tracking and what the goals are, software simplifies the selection and hiring process substantially.

Expand Your Outreach

Branching out and exploring avenues beyond your current recruitment go-to’s and general networking events is an excellent way of reaching new people who could be perfect fits for future roles. It’s also a smart way to remain competitive and cutting-edge.

Here are some ways of achieving that:

Attend Industry-Specific Conferences and Events

Audience shot with two smiling men in sports jackets up front.

There’s no shortage of tech-related industry events such as conferences and trainings. Be selective based on your goals and the type of people you’re looking to attract. Choose events that will yield the most promising results based on your current open roles within the company and projected future hiring needs.

Take a look at seminars and summits. For example, BFUTR is an annual event that allows you to enhance your network substantially. It connects you to thousands of Black tech professionals, and you get to attend talks given by some of the most influential people in tech.

BFUTR is an exciting place to boost brand visibility, reach a new audience through unique brand activation strategies, and increase the number of qualified candidates in your talent pipeline.

Get Your BFUTR Pass Now

Discover Where Candidates Are

When it comes to networking, a good rule of thumb is to think about the people you want to connect with and then find out where they are.

Use social media to seek them out with the ultimate goal of working to build relationships and connect. LinkedIn is one example of a social media site you can use.

But look into other social hubs. There are many places where people from different backgrounds unite over a shared tech obsession. People who thrive off of the enrichment that comes from exchanging ideas simply because they’re passionate about the topic.

If these are the type of people you’re looking for, discover where they gather and meet them there.

Create Employee Referral Programs

Implementing employee referral programs is another excellent way to bolster your talent acquisition pipeline. Some of your employees may be active participants or affiliated with industry-related groups, and may have a few friends who check all those boxes.

Post Job Opportunities on More Sites

Branch out: take advantage of job boards, job fairs, and places you may not typically go to post job openings.

Obsidi® Recruit, for example, is an excellent way to diversify your candidate profile. Partnering with Obsidi®  offers an incredible opportunity to reach thousands of highly qualified Black tech professionals—most with mid-career to executive-level experience in the industry.

This is an excellent way to uphold values that align with a DEI strategy and reap the rewards of diversifying. In addition, an Obsidi® partnership gives you early access to acquisition event opportunities and more.

Recruit at College Campuses

Visit and recruit at college campuses via professional associations that aim to target the interests of diverse cohorts. You can pick colleges that uphold a curriculum or values that are similar to yours.

Host Industry-Specific Events

Another excellent way to bring people together and meet potential new employees is to create and host the event yourself. This has the added benefit of increasing brand visibility and bringing potential candidates directly to you.

It doesn’t have to be anything slick or fancy. For example, a lunchtime meetup is a perfectly reasonable option. Alternatives could include:

Happy Hours or Similar Activities

Or, host a monthly after-work happy hour-type get-together. Perhaps it’s marketed as an all-things-tech-related think tank: a chance for people to network, share ideas, and get to know one another in a semi-casual environment.

Extend a welcome invitation for anyone interested in participating. Open the door to people passionate about discussing all the exciting new opportunities and future possibilities in tech.

Community Building

Compile a newsletter or use social media to engage with the community and help highlight your employer brand. It could be information-based, or you could use it to promote a monthly get-together, annual event, or both.

Training Programs

Consider hosting and offering tech-related training and other skill-development opportunities to employees and non-employees alike.

Mentorship Programs

Mentorship programs are another excellent way to both engage the community and perhaps help guide someone who goes on to become a highly influential player in your organization. They also attract professionals who see what you’re doing and want to be part of an organization committed to making a difference.

Attract Candidates to You: Offer Competitive Wages and Irresistible Incentives

A key component in creating a pipeline that never stops yielding the best candidates is establishing an atmosphere and environment that people are excited to be associated with and feel good about showing up for.

A huge part of this is treating employees well and prioritizing morale. Implement programs and initiatives that celebrate individual identities. Allow your employees to express themselves and their culture freely, and foster an environment that thrives based on:

  • Diversity
  • Meaningful connection
  • Intercultural exchange

Promote from within whenever possible. Encourage and nurture growth and curiosity. Provide incentives that appeal to tech-minded people. These could be things like tuition reimbursement or an all-expenses-paid opportunity to attend a popular conference.

Incentivise activities that boost employee well-being through health and wellness reimbursements and have a time-off policy that provides the ability to rest and spend time with family and loved ones.

Offer employee stakeholder opportunities within the company or a generous retirement plan.

Consider creating fully remote positions to eliminate commute time. Hiring employees who reside in other states is another way to attract more people and substantially increase your candidate pipeline.

Cultivate and Maintain Relationships With Potential Candidates

Part of maintaining a healthy candidate pipeline is to uphold relationships with potential applicants. Even if you didn’t hire them for a specific role, it’s critical that hiring managers keep candidate information on file if they think someone may be a good fit for future opportunities.

Be honest. Tell them what you like and appreciate about them. Let them know you’ll keep their resumes and may contact them in the future.

Maintain the relationship by checking in with them from time to time. Invite them to participate in any events or training opportunities hosted through your organization.

Conclusion

Building and maintaining a candidate pipeline of talented individuals is achieved through a multifaceted approach.

The best talent pipeline strategy involves clarifying your vision, values, and business goals first. Then, approach prospects in a way that aligns with each of those objectives.

This simplifies the process substantially. When it comes to hiring, you know exactly who you’re looking for and why.

And, if you follow the steps outlined here, you know who they are — you already have their number. The perfect candidates to fulfill your staffing needs are just a phone call away.

Often, they’re trained by the experts at Obsidi® Academy!

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