In a hiring landscape where quality tech candidates have their pick of roles, your hiring strategy is as much a marketing exercise as anything else!
Including just the basic information on an advertised job description is not enough to make your opportunity the most desirable on offer.
The best tech job ads are those which make both the role and the company stand out from the rest.
In today’s market, skilled candidates do more than just scan for the basics. Here are 5 things to include in your next job advert to make sure you attract the top tech talent going.
Top 5 job ad tips.
Company Values.
Candidates are more likely to apply to roles with a company that shares their beliefs and values.
Candidates want to know that their employer has a high ethical stance and places importance on wider social obligations.
This is particularly true of millennial candidates. Research suggests that 62% of job seekers born between 1981 and 1996 want to work for a company with a positive social impact.
This means that companies must evolve in line with the younger generations. They must align their core ethos to match that of this demographic as this cohort of applicants and their skills enter and dominate the workforce.
By 2025, research by Allianz predicts that as much as 75% of the global workforce will be made up of this millennial generation. Therefore, companies need to make sure their organisation tailors its aims and values to echo that of the largest demographic in the modern workforce.
An attractive salary.
Although this may seem obvious, it is more important than just the take-home reward. The advertised salary allows a candidate to assess how suited they are for a role, and whether the career level they are working at is in line with your opportunity.
You may be tempted to simply advertise the salary as “competitive”. However, this is off-putting to most applicants. 66% of job seekers are more likely to apply for a role where there is a visible salary. By making sure you are transparent about the salary, you are ensuring that you are only attracting those candidates who are likely to accept your offer. You don’t want to find the ideal candidate only to find that they are expecting more than you are able to offer.
Training and development.
Candidate interest soars if they spot an opportunity to grow and improve in a role. Does your job advert indicate that there is room to learn and develop both knowledge and skills?
It is very rare for a candidate to accept a role where there is no space for progression. So savvy companies will not only invest in these things but advertise and market them to attract the top talent.
Not only this. Companies that have a development program manage to retain their A players for longer than those that don’t. Offering training and learning ensures that you not only attract the best, but you get to keep them too.
The benefits.
The benefits your company offers are important to showcase on your job advert. Attractive extras such as pension schemes, healthcare benefits, holiday allowance and even childcare are all benefits that can set you apart on a job advert.
Added extras are a desirable incentive for applicants looking for a new role. It is important to market these. Benefits of employment also indicate that yours is a company that takes care of its team. And who doesn’t want to work for an organisation like that??
Work / Life balance.
Job seekers want to know that their employer will understand the need for a work-life balance.
For candidates to show real interest in your advert, it needs to market that you respect the desire for flexibility, and that you offer the opportunity for your employees to work (in some way) around their personal lives.
The covid 19 pandemic has made balancing the work/life seesaw a priority for job seekers. So much so, it has become somewhat of a deal-breaker. Many post-pandemic survey data suggest companies that offer work from home and/or flexible working options are much more likely to attract candidates than those who don’t.
Takeaways.
Your job advert needs to both advertise the role you need filling and your organisation. The current shortage of skilled tech candidates means they have the option to cherry-pick their next role to some degree. They certainly don’t need to hedge their bets by applying to masses of roles.
Unless you are hiring for a very senior role, it is likely that your main cohort of applicants will be from the Millennial generation. To attract the best of these, your job advert will need to market to them; make sure you include your companies’ values, community work, and long-term aims within your advert.
Salary is of course important, but it is not the be-all and end-all. There is much more to inciting job applications than this. The benefits on offer, learning and development opportunities, and work/life balance are all critical in securing your job advert secures the responses you want from the talent you need.
Are you looking to expand your tech, digital, or data team? We can help. We’ll help write your job ad to ensure that it attracts the best talent. We’ll screen the applicants and send you a shortlist of candidates bursting with the skills you need to take your project to the next level.
