Tech hiring is a nightmare.
Every company is after the same pool of top talent, making it hard to attract the right candidates. And the timeline pressure just adds another layer of headache because most companies only start hiring when there's an urgent need.
To top it off, HRs don't have a tech background at all. So the tech jargon that's second nature to the talent is their alien territory. Of course, it is hard to assess candidates when you need clarification on what half their resume means.
How HR gets set up to fail
Tech hiring isn't just "challenging" for HR, but a rigged process from the start. See, this is how it looks for them:
→ A tech lead drops by HR and spends two minutes talking about requirements.
→ HRs create tech JD based on this, to attract top developers
→ HRs are expected to shortlist based on a hell lot of subjectivity
→ HRs shortlist based on a hell lot of subjectivity
→ Your tech team members have conversations not worth having
→ HR is held accountable for poor shortlisting
See, an HR’s job is to check for the cultural fit, not evaluate a candidate on tech. They fail at screening because they are doing a job that they were never trained for - worse, they're doing it WITHOUT help.
5 steps to change this
This hurts everyone - the team, HR, candidates, and your product. Having seen this same exact problem play out too many times, we created a 5-step solution to change this. If you are an HR or have one who could use help, follow these:
Step 1: Get that JD right
JD is the guiding document. So, make sure it is guided by a tech team member with the attention it deserves. Don't settle for a drive-by conversation. Schedule a proper 15-minute call and get jot down everything. Nothing should be lost in translation.
A good JD means "what the tech lead said" = "what the HR understood".
Step 2: Create an "Ideal Talent Persona"
Now that you're clear on the role's responsibilities, it's time to define what makes a candidate a GREAT fit. Break down your JD into 10 "must-have" parameters. We call this an "Ideal Talent Persona". The intention here is to figure out what the best person for this role would look like. Answer questions like:
- What tech skills should they have?
- What soft skills are demanded in the role?
- What kind of experience would help the role?
- What do you want their ideal CTC range to be?
- How long of a notice period would be ideal?
- And so on.
Step 3: Check - Is your persona on point?
Just as you need to align on the job description, you need to align on the ideal candidate profile. So, get your persona validated by a tech team member. Then test it out with few profiles. Use it to screen a few real candidates and present them to the tech team. If it's not catching the right people, adjust it.
Step 4: Screen objectively, no guesswork.
Now that you have a finalized persona, use it to screen candidates for the role. Score candidates against your 10 "must-haves". This gives you a solid direction, eliminating subjective calls you're not comfortable making.
Step 5: Follow the 8+ Rule
Each name you suggest to your tech team must score between 8-10 during your screening. If there's a mismatch between who you shortlisted and who the team likes, don't beat yourself up. Instead, revisit and tweak that talent persona.
When good HR meets good tech hiring
Approaching tech hiring this way has better results. Your engineers' time is optimized because they can finally have worthwhile conversations with the right candidates. Once you set up the process, and test and tweak it for a role or two, you are set. This initial time-effort investment eventually makes your process move faster.
Most importantly, you can focus on what you do best - assessing cultural fit.