The most common HRM challenges an IT recruiter seems to face is limited knowledge of technology. Given that the candidates that an IT recruiter examines on a daily basis, with knowledge of current technological developments, it is not an easy walk. Especially for recruiters who have a background in communications or sales, which is the case with most recruiters. There are hardly those who choose to change their field of work after engineering or are curious about backend technology. For those of you who fall into the category above, here are 11 things the IT recruiter should know to improve your game in tech recruiting.
1) Ask for help
Yes, of course! And reading this article also implies that you are looking for help. But here, we mean that you should go out and talk to the experts in the field about a role that you might have almost zero understanding of. The idea is that you understand the concept of technology well enough not to forget it for a long time. And only experts can help you with that, understand the tech jargons in the form of stories, which will help you keep your memory strong on those concepts.
2) Learn from your candidates
When you speak to a candidate about technologies that you have little knowledge about, have the candidates applying for those positions explain them to you. If the candidate is able to explain his technical skills to someone who is tech-savvy, chances are good that this candidate also has the ability to take his hiring manager's socks off. But don't take our word for it, if he's really tech illiterate, he might end up getting duped and in that case, he always has our good wishes to become a great IT recruiter.
3) Join a social tech group
One of the easiest ways to learn from the best is to communicate with technicians online. Find your way into the right social tech groups that you can easily find on Facebook, LinkedIn, and other popular sites. There are also specific new technology groups that you can be a part of, before making those calls with your candidates.
4) Instruction Videos
In 2015, "how ..." was one of the most popular searches on Google. These searches took the user to YouTube, where he will find multiple how-to videos. This can be a valuable asset for recruiters, as you can learn and make a difference in understanding technologies in less than 5 minutes. So go ahead and Google those gruelling IT hiring terms and train how you can fill those empty chairs for your clients.
5) Expand your horizon
Once you've gained some experience recruiting IT candidates, most recruiters find your technology "niche" or position they want to specialize in. It is the technology they understand best or have strong control over in choosing the right candidates. But don't stop there and step out of your comfort zone! Continue to acquire knowledge about new technologies that you do not know in the best way, it will give you access to new opportunities for your candidates and for you. Basically, be an expert in all trades.
6) Strong sales skills
Ukraine recruitment requires selling. If you haven't figured it out yet or if you don't agree, you're not recruiting correctly. Recruiters must not only sell their clients (internal or external) to candidates, but they must also convince candidates that the position is the right opportunity for them. So in addition to working on tech skills, our advice is that you should also train yourself with some sales tactics. It will take you a long way in hiring IT and eventually with those closings.
7) Relationship building
Don't be one of those recruiters who calls up candidates from an old directory and repeats the same tone to candidate after candidate. If you're really interested in getting into the recruiting game, kick up your socks and strengthen your professional relationship game. Given the growing social media circuit, it's pretty easy to track your candidates and find out who they are and what they like. No, this is not stalking! This is knowing your candidates well enough to be sure which client would best fit your career goals. It's win-win when your candidate and client find the right match for each other and their goals hit that perfect mark. This is how you become an excellent IT recruiter.
8) hunter mentality
Most of the recruiters are nicknamed hunters as they are always looking for the right target that suits the needs of their clients. To be an ace IT recruiting Ukraine, you need to know your candidates well enough. Get out of the same routine Monster and Naukri searches and cold-call, social, Boolean, and other niche networks to find those gems that are above the norm. That is the only way to find candidates who are better than everyone else.
9) Strong tracking skills
This ability is life changing. Not only will a strong follow-up ensure that your candidates never forget you and your interview spaces, it will help you go a long way in your other aspects of life. Great follow-up comes with persistence, it's knowing that if you're constantly reaching out to your pool of candidates, there's no way they won't consider you important. This has been a problem with most of the recruiters that I know, that candidates do not seem to pay the kind of attention that a recruiter should. Strong follow-ups are the only way to build the required relationship with candidates and be an excellent IT recruiter in most cases for r&d recruitment agency.
10) Be a consultant
Recruitment discover this is an art that requires skills that can only be learned through experience. In your case, since you are reading this blog, you will be trained by the end of this article. However, my point is that you should bring more to the table for both your candidates and your clients. One of the ways to do this is by being your advisor and not a mediator. You are hired to do a job, the same job you do every day, and that should make you the right place for those who don't have a better understanding of today's hiring markets. He is not a basic recruiter, he is an expert in the field of IT recruiting. Use those skills to advise your candidates on what would be the right job for them, or your clients by consulting them on who would be a better choice among those shortlisted.
11) Think about the big picture
Just because the candidate you called is not the right candidate for the position in question, it does not mean that you will be unemployed for your entire life. You, as a recruiter, should always think about the big picture about hire team in Ukraine. If you have a good candidate, you will also have a relevant vacancy for him / her, if not now, maybe sometime in the future. To be a rockstar IT recruiter, you need to keep your own directory in place to put the right candidate in their right roles.
So here are all the tips you might need to know as you try to improve your recruiting game. It won't be easy or something you can do overnight. It is a process that should become a habit for you to call yourself a Rockstar IT Recruiter.