If you tried to approach a programmer with a job proposal at least once in your life, you probably know how sometimes psychologically unbearable and demanding this task can seem. It looks that the project you are headhunting for has all the key elements for an attractive offer, however for some reason you still struggle finding the RIGHT person. Or even catching the attention of (at the first glance) great candidates.
Introduction
Recently we had many open positions at Xplicity. This led us to prepare a thorough homework each time before contacting potential candidates. Not different from others hiring for the IT industry we were experimenting with message texts and analyzing what messages make software developers feel comfortable and encourage them to interact.
To shorten the path of experiments, we carried a survey and asked programmers what are the things they hate the most when HR people contact them. Also, what could be the icebreakers? And even more: how to encourage IT people to open up.
Find pieces of advice from developers in this article.
What annoys programmers the most, when they are approached by a headhunter?
Pretty often software developers are not the most talkative people. Well, they are happy to discuss technical topics all night long speaking about C#, Java, programming frameworks, etc. But they tend to answer a skimpy “OK” to your question “How are you” without including too many details about their weekend hiking.
So, when you are cold messaging a specialist like a software developer, you need to do some “homework”. Further, you will find the main things that you should avoid.
1. No upfront information
Software developers like precise and well-structured information. Why message like „Hi, are you interested in a new position in company X?” and no further explanation is wrong? That‘s what software developers say:
“I don’t want to wait until the 4th meeting to find out that you are willing to pay half as much as I make now, or that you are only shopping around and a position is not fully fleshed out. I am not unemployed. It‘s you who has approached me, so act like it!”
2. Chaotic message
Developers are super annoyed when a contacting them recruiter has no clue what he/she is talking about. The perfect example of a bad message would be no important details about the project/role, controversial technological facts, unedited text borrowed from some template, and similar things. Or, funny thing – sometimes they find out that a role description is so overwhelmed with “catchy buzzwords”, that position actually requires a whole IT department, but not a person with specific skills.
3. Lack of ACTUAL interest
One of the respondents says:
“You immediately understand that you’re not that ‘special one’ they mention in the text, but just another fish in the net the headhunter is trying to make a profit off.”
Also, another programmer mentions that sometimes
“It looks like they’re recruiting out of pure obligation and that I’m not very interesting at all.”
Each developer you are speaking to needs to feel that you approach him/her as a personality, but not just “another resource”. They know that they are smart and desired professionals in the market, so it would be really nice if recruiters treat them in a well-deserved manner. Besides, we all like to be a bit spoiled with personalized attention, don’t we?
How to gather important information in a
developer-friendly manner?
1. Use IT keywords properly
If you are not a beginner in IT recruiting, then you probably know all the basic software development keywords. However, there’s always extra value if you add the proper technical description for the open position.
And if you are new in this field – try to learn as many core things about programming and specific terms as you can, because this will have a crucial impact when you start talking to potential candidates. Especially if you need to hire senior programmers. One of the respondents suggest:
“Have a good knowledge of what you are looking for instead of talking about all fancy technologies you have heard of only because they are trending now.”
2. Prepare a concentrated position summary
Probably you already understood that it’s always important to present a brief job proposal summary. It should cover things like project technologies, working location, is it a full-time or a contract vacancy, duration, realistic salary range, and so on. Otherwise, people who usually prefer accuracy and well-structured logic will find your message cringy and wasting their time. As some respondents advice:
“Just be more prepared about your offer. Know details about the project. Send a detailed project description. If someone doesn’t reply to your message – don’t hesitate to write a reminder, because people usually just forget to reply.”
Because when your message
“actually contains minor details that show the headhunter did the research on the person he/she is contacting (not too much, don’t need the other extreme – feeling you’re being stalked) that actually makes a huge difference”
and defines whether you will be able to develop further communication.
3. Be honest
As some software developers advise:
“Just be honest. IT people are usually “more dry”. The more humbug you bake in the questions, the harder it is because if you are in a position of power, the applicant might want to match your style and will also give an ambiguous answer. If they have a better bargaining position than you do, they will feel like you are disrespecting their time and are not trying to woo them into it. If they give you an answer that is not clear – they are probably not trusting you that much, not interested in some certain position, or are thinking that this probably won’t lead anywhere, and you can skip them anyway.”
And
“[…] don’t bait with an unrealistically high-top financial range where even God wouldn’t be able to match the requirements.”
4. Be friendly
Write simple messages, state clearly what and why you want to know. Surprisingly (or not), in many cases it’s ok to be straightforward as long as questions are formulated in a friendly manner. And never forget that not only you but also the potential candidate is making co-working decisions at the end of the day.
Stop asking these questions when you headhunt for a programmer (unless your goal is to annoy )
to be continued…