It’s obvious: you want the right talent for the job. Yet if you’re not careful, hiring costs related to the recruitment process can spiral out of control.
Here are 22 cost-effective recruitment strategies tech companies can use to attract top talent at a fraction of the price.
Maximize Your Internal Resources
The best recruitment strategies are those that look everywhere — including inside your organization.
From an employee perspective, knowing that your company encourages and supports individual growth within makes it a desirable place to work.
1. Hire From Within
Keep an eye on your own staff when a new position arises. Chances are, you already have a talent pool of current employees within your organization.
More than likely, there is someone perfect for the job who would be thrilled to apply.
2. Implement An Employee Referral Program
Employee referral programs are a smart way to leverage your employees’ network.
The gist of an employee referral program initiative is this:
If a current employee recommends someone for the job and they get hired, both the employee and the new hire will be rewarded (typically in the form of financial compensation) six months to a year after the person is hired.
No one gets compensated if the person quits or is terminated before the established time frame.
This added incentive keeps your employees engaged in helping you find the best candidates.
3. Maintain A List Of Passive Candidates
Another great hiring strategy is to hang on to resumes from qualified candidates who weren’t right for a particular position, but could be promising for other open roles as they become available.
Create a Digital Buzz
When used correctly, social media is a powerful tool for attracting customers and quality candidates. Having a strategy and being consistent pays off.
Also, depending on what you choose to do, using social media to post job ads often doesn’t cost much, either. Be creative and have fun when detailing the job description.
4. Establish A Strong Employer Brand
Use social media and professional networking sites to highlight your employer brand and draw attention to your killer company culture. Spreading the word about who you are and what makes you a great place to work is an important step in talent acquisition.
5. Maintain A Current Careers Page
Use your website to draw skilled employee prospects to you. Keep your careers page up to date. Make sure it accurately reflects:
- Benefits
- Growth opportunities
- Current job openings
- Other perks jobseekers find irresistible
6. Let People Know Who You Are
Leverage content marketing and SEO best practices to showcase your work environment and company values.
It can come from an employee’s perspective and cover a new project you’re working on, perhaps highlighting some of the exciting things happening within the company.
It could also focus on how you’re choosing to give back — maybe through collaboration with other organizations or by reaching out and lending your services to support the community.
7. Contribute To Relevant Open-Source Projects Related To Your Tech Stack
This is an excellent way to connect with developers in those communities and get your company’s name on their radar.
Be Intentional: Target the Right Candidates
While it’s always great to create a buzz around your company that draws in a crowd of folks who want to work for you, it’s even better when you’re proactive in attracting the right people with the right skill set.
8. Use Niche Job Boards To Post Open Positions
If you keep using the same resources to list job vacancies, you will always get the same result. Therefore, it’s crucial you continuously expand your recruitment methods.
Be specific about who you’re looking for, their skills, and what elements they can bring to the team that are currently missing.
9. Use Social Media Sites
Professional social media platforms like LinkedIn and others can be great for sharing more about your company and expanding your network.
Facebook groups and Reddit communities centered around the topic and skills you’re looking for are all strong resources. Depending on how you choose to use them, they’re often free.
10. Review Code Contributions On GitHub Recruitment
This is an excellent way to engage with and connect with potential candidates whom you could recruit in the future.
Establish a Community Presence
Engaging with the community is an excellent way to drum up some attention. Really, there’s no need to break the bank in the process.
11. Host Meetups Or Webinars
This could be something like a monthly happy hour that you hold for professionals in the area. Keep it low-key and fun. You could have a topic or theme you discuss each month, or you could just go with the flow.
This gets your name out there and lets you meet other professionals in the area who are just as passionate about tech as you.
12. Host An Open House
Let your company culture shine! An open house doesn’t have to be dull.
Hire a band (Chances are, some of your team members may be in one and be willing to play.), round up some food trucks, and highlight what makes your tech company stand out.
13. Participate In Hackathons
Hackathons are fantastic ways to foster collaboration within the community while simultaneously learning and expanding your network.
14. Explore Partnership Opportunities With Your Tech Cohorts
Look for companies you can partner with to establish a mutually beneficial relationship.
Perhaps you can sponsor or co-sponsor coding bootcamps. As previously mentioned, partnering with Obsidi® is an excellent way to expand your reach: get your name out there and gain access to thousands of skilled professionals.
Think about which companies can help you get to where you want to go, and what you can offer them in return.
Fine-Tune Your Recruitment Process
The most cost-effective recruitment strategies are well thought out and seek to find the perfect candidate in the first round.
Hiring the wrong person wastes everyone’s time and lands you back at square one. It’s vital you use best practices when recruiting and hiring.
Here are some ways to fine-tune your recruiting and hiring process:
15. Include Technical Assessments
Technical assessments are great for gaining insight into a potential candidate’s tech prowess. These tests should be relevant to the position they’re applying for and can include a variety of questions — including issues that the team may have recently experienced.
There are many resources online you can use to administer the tech assessment, or you can create your own using their templates.
16. Streamline And Refine Your Interview Process
Do not use a one-size-fits-all approach to interviewing.
Choose a panel of people who will be working with the new employee in some capacity.
Make sure that the structured list of questions you ask each candidate is relevant to the position and asks about any skills necessary for success in the role.
17. Host Virtual Recruitment Events To Garner Interest In Your Organization
Creating virtual recruiting events (especially if you’re open to hiring out-of-state remote workers) is an excellent way to connect with job seekers.
Participate in virtual career fairs. Host virtual networking events, webinars, and online workshops.
These are excellent, cost-effective methods of expanding your reach and getting to know people who are interested in your organization.
Expand Your Talent Acquisition Opportunities
It’s obvious: the wider you search, the more likely you are to find the candidate who checks all the right boxes.
These ideas help you reach a wider range of tech professionals, increasing your odds of finding the person you need.
18. Consider Fully Remote Positions To Expand Your Geographic Limits
At this point, the choice is yours whether or not to allow employees to work from home.
There are definite pros to having your employees work in the office, but there are also cons. A big downside to an office-only policy is that when you’re looking to hire, you’re limited to the people within your geographic region.
This may not be an issue if you’re in a tech hub. But if you’re operating a small startup off the beaten path, it may be harder to access the talent you need.
Fully remote positions expand your geographic reach and make landing the professional you’re looking for easier to achieve.
19. Partner With Groups Showcasing Underrepresented Populations In Tech, Such As Obsidi®
This is especially important for businesses looking to boost ingenuity by diversifying their team.
Make sure your job posting is reaching the people you need. Obsidi® partners have access to our network of highly skilled and engaged members, many of whom are excited for their next big opportunity.
20. Initiate Community Involvement
Establish a relationship with local universities to offer mentorship opportunities or even summer internships. Ask universities if they allow guest lectures or project sponsorships.
If there are no colleges in the area, seek other organizations to build relationships with.
Consider the value you can offer communities through uplifting and educating people who are interested in tech but may not have the support to educate themselves further.
Enhance the Candidate Experience
Haphazard recruitment, interview, and onboarding experiences are discouraging and off-putting.
It’s crucial to maximize efficiency. This is both cost-effective and sets the right impression from the get-go.
The more time you spend streamlining each aspect of the process, the better it is for everyone involved. Here are a couple of great ways to achieve that:
21. Be Transparent
Include salary ranges in job postings and other relevant information that candidates care about, such as benefits packages, vacation policies, growth opportunities, and more.
Keep track of frequently asked questions and add them to the information on the job posting.
Make sure potential employees are made aware of what the hiring process entails.
Be proactive: answer FAQs from the beginning to eliminate unnecessary and time-consuming back-and-forth correspondence. Try to be efficient with follow-up.
22. Be Personable And Pay Attention
Work to cultivate a thriving network. Seek to establish a toehold in the community by offering mentorship opportunities or getting involved in some other meaningful way.
Treat everyone with respect and genuinely seek to connect with others and forge relationships, even with the candidates you don’t end up hiring.
Reputation and word of mouth are incredibly powerful. Treating people with care and respect turns you into a magnet. It draws people into your orbit and, when there are vacancies to fill, you’ll have people there, waiting to jump at the chance to be part of something incredible.
Pay attention to important metrics like:
- Average cost per hire
- Time to hire
- Which recruitment efforts pay off
Use data-driven applicant tracking systems that address your needs. Strive for automation when it’s cost-effective and doesn’t result in losing that personal touch.
Conclusion
Take these tips and continuously refine your process. Keep an eye out for bottlenecks and other areas that waste time and money and don’t lead to the results you need.
Cost-effective recruitment strategies are organized and intentional. The clearer you are, the more efficient you’ll be at getting there.
Start recruiting diverse professionals today —
