How Deep is Your Talent Pool?

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With unemployment reaching new lows, many companies have been in reaction mode when it comes to filling positions. While this can get the job done, you quickly find yourself moving from one proverbial fire to the next, leaving you feeling as if you can’t get ahead. However, if you instead focus on creating a deep talent pool, you can get out of this perpetual cycle for something more favorable.

The depth of your talent pool is based on the number of job seekers or prospects that are actively interested in hearing about openings within your company. These individuals are typically eager to learn about opportunities, making them ideal for filling key positions quickly. But these pools of great talent don’t spring up out of nowhere; they have to be enticed and cultivated. To help you create a deep talent pool of potential candidates, here are some tips for managing the process.

Keep an Eye on Future Needs

One of the simplest ways to develop a strong talent pool is to anticipate your own needs. That way, you can begin reaching out for the right kind of skills before the need actually exists. This approach requires frequent talent assessments to determine any skill gaps and figure out if upcoming projects are well-staffed or need supplementation. Once you see a need on the horizon, it is time to actively recruit those professionals so that you have a strong selection when it comes time to hire.

Examine Prior Applicants

Job seekers who applied for a position previously may be interested in hearing about new opportunities. To keep these potential candidates interested, companies need to keep communication open and see if the relationship can be maintained. This can include providing feedback on their prior application or interview, helping them see what went right as well as what areas may need improvement. You can also get confirmation that they are interested in staying in the loop, making it easier to reach out directly if an opening comes along.

Reassess Current Candidates

Sometimes, a job seeker has a lot of potential, but they weren’t ideal for the position to which they applied. Taking a second look at current candidates who may be suitable in other jobs can give you access to great talent who are actively interested in finding a role with your organization. Whether they could be right for an opening that is coming up in the near future or an opportunity in a different department, consider reaching out to gauge their interest.

Connect with a Skilled Staffing Agency

If you want to add instant depth to your talent pool, one of the easiest methods is to work with a reputable staffing firm like Resolution Technologies. Often, they maintain contact with a wide range of active and passive job seekers, including professionals who may be ideal for your company’s current or future needs. If you are interested in learning more, contact us today.

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Have a Specific Job Available? Where Are All of the Candidates?

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It’s no secret that companies are struggling to find the tech pros they need to fill all of their vacant positions. Currently, the national unemployment rate among IT professionals reached 2.5 percent during the first quarter of 2017, showing exactly how few qualified individuals are actually seeking new employment opportunities.

The truth is there are talented people out there; they’re just working at other jobs. And those who are currently looking for new opportunities might not have the skills or experience you are looking for, leaving you short on qualified applicants.

However, it’s also possible the right candidates simply aren’t finding your job openings or that the information provided isn’t connecting in the right way. If your recruitment methods aren’t getting the information out to the right people, then the number of available candidates is irrelevant. To help you locate the right professionals for your job opening, here are some tips for managing the process in this highly competitive market.

Focus on High Priority Needs

If your job posting looks like a laundry list of requirements, then it’s possible candidates are screening themselves out of contention because they don’t possess every skill listed as a must-have. Instead of including everything you hope a person may have, scale the skills requirements down to only high priority competencies. This makes it easier to connect with job seekers who have those core skills and limits the chance of a person removing themselves from being a potential candidate because they think they aren’t qualified.

Keep your vacancy announcement concise by including only what you absolutely must find as this increases your chance of getting high-quality applicants that can fill skill gaps and perform key tasks. In most cases, talented candidates will bring additional skills with them, checking off many of the other boxes you would like to see anyway.

Use New Recruitment Tools

It wasn’t long ago when you could just post an opening on the company website and get all of the applicants you need. However, this approach isn’t as effective in an economy where IT professionals aren’t struggling to find opportunities. Even using large national job boards might not connect you with the right potential employees, as they aren’t as popular as they once were among job seekers.

Now, you need to cast a wider net if you want to reach top talent. This means using tools like social media to get the word out about openings, posting on industry specific job boards, and working with professional staffing firms to get access to the right job seekers.

Are you looking for IT talent?

The wider you cast your net, the more likely you’ll find the ideal candidate for your job. If you’re seeking top talent, the team at Resolution Technologies can help you connect with job seekers throughout the area. Contact us to discuss your specific job today and see how our services can work for you.

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Why Your Employees are Quitting (and How to Keep Your Best Talent)

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Some companies are surprised to hear that more Americans switch jobs around 12 times by the time they reach age 48. In fact, IT professionals only stay in a position for an average of 16.8 months. But what is it that actually causes an employee to stay or go? Here are a few of the reasons your staff may be heading out the door and what you can do about it.

Salary

Even though money isn’t everything, the opportunity to receive higher pay does encourage some workers to consider other employment options. This is especially true if they are being considered for new roles, as symbolic changes in job title alone aren’t sufficient for improving retention.

While raises don’t have to be awarded without justification, it is critical your company keeps salaries in line with what is being offered by the competition. Otherwise, your best talent may be lured away by promises of more money.

Culture

Employees today are putting more value on corporate culture. Having opportunities to learn and grow, the ability to stay engaged on the job, working for a mission they can get behind and ample recognition can all encourage workers to stay with their current business. Similarly, organizations that fall short in these areas may suffer from retention issues.

A company’s culture is often developed over time, and it can be hard to define. However, any business can improve with the proper effort. Begin by defining your core values and help workers see how their contributions help more than just the bottom line. Then, support professional development amongst your staff and make sure that appreciation for a job well done is part of the norm.

Stagnation

Just as it is important for your company’s culture to offer opportunities to develop professional, it is also vital to show a clear path for career progression. If a top employee feels like they have hit a dead end with your organization, they will look elsewhere to meet their goals.

Ideally, businesses should look for chances to promote from within, especially if the proper skill set is already represented in a member of your team. Additionally, help your staff understand what they need to do to be considered promotable and work with them to facilitate any skill building or experience-based opportunities that are required to help them move forward.

By supporting their career progression and defining what it takes to get ahead, your strongest workers will have a system to navigate to reach their career objectives. Not only will this help keep them engaged with your business, but it can also build your reputation as an ideal employer in the area, making future recruitment efforts easier.

Are you looking for top IT talent?

If you are looking for candidates to fill vacant positions, the professionals at Resolution Technologies can connect you with local job seekers with the right skills, education, and experience. Contact us to discuss your hiring needs today.

Corporate Training Strategies for Your IT Team

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Many corporate training programs are underwhelming at best. Often, the information is provided by outside organizations with little knowledge of the business, making it difficult for the programs to provide the value you need keep your IT team moving forward. At times, the material may be completely irrelevant, giving workers with knowledge they can’t apply, or redundant, covering information that the team already knows.

If you want to make the most of your corporate training programs for your IT team, then it is important to have a strong strategy in place. To help you make sure yours fits the bill, here are some tips for creating a corporate training strategy that provides value to your employees and your business.

Define the Goals

Training shouldn’t be offered unless it furthers an objective. This could be anything from familiarizing your team with new systems, helping them advance their skills, or improving overall operational efficiency. By understanding what you want the training to accomplish, you can help choose options that will make your goals a reality. Otherwise, you may be sending people out for classes that don’t provide any value, which is a waste of time and money.

It is also important to outline any priorities. For example, if a new system is being implemented and there isn’t an employee on staff with the right level of experience, then that training should be administered before less critical topics. Training that covers skill gaps and provides an immediate return on investment should take precedence in most cases as it will make your team more productive overall.

Consider the Methods

An employee or team can receive training through a range of mechanisms. Traditional classroom-based learning, online courses, or experiential options are all available and can be effective in their own right. However, not every method is ideal for every topic, timetable, or employee.

It is important to consider which approach best meets the needs of the organization and the worker. Classroom-based learning can convey a large amount of information, and may even include hands-on learning opportunities, but may require key employees to be out of the office during the duration.

Online courses let employees move at their own pace and can be worked around other priorities, but often offer less support should they need guidance. Experiential learning, such as mentorship cross training, may feel more organic and often contains the most crucial information, but the timetable can be vague and, when provided by another employee, actually takes two workers away from their core duties to complete.

No one mechanism is ideal for every situation, so it is important to consider the variables when creating training opportunities.

Are you looking to bring on top IT talent?

Creating a corporate training strategy requires planning. By reviewing the areas above, you can create a strong foundation for a program that can work for your business over the long-term. If you are looking for new staff members that can further your current goals or are looking for contractors to help provide training to your core staff, Resolution Technologies can assist you as you work towards your objectives. Contact us today to discuss your needs.

What IT Soft Skills to Look For in a Candidate

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Finding the best candidate for your tech position involves more than just the programming languages they know, the systems they have encountered and the software with which they are familiar. It includes their ability to use various soft skills in the workplace to promote team-oriented objectives and manage their duties. But identifying the soft skills to prioritize isn’t always obvious.

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Here are some of the most useful IT soft skills to pursue.

Adaptability

Few fields change and evolve like IT. Emerging technologies shake up the workplace on a regular basis, and best practices evolve as new products and services hit the market.

This means you need to select tech candidates who can roll with the changes instead of fighting against them, and that requires adaptability. Often, IT professionals who possess the right amount of agility to meet these changing needs are open to learning and thrive on new challenges.

Generally, you can gather pertinent information regarding their experiences doing just that during the interview by focusing on questions that ask for examples during the answer, such as, “Can you give me an example of a time you had to learn a new skill to manage your job duties?”

Collaboration

Being able to work as part of a team is a common requirement for IT employees. This requires a combination of communication and teamwork skills designed to help the group move forward towards a common goal.

If a candidate doesn’t have experience working with individuals from multiple teams to complete projects, their skills may be less developed than other professionals. Look for applicants who can provide examples of projects where several specialties had to work together to reach a successful outcome, and you may have a candidate with the collaboration skills you need.

Reliability

A tech pros skills are irrelevant if they can’t be counted on to complete their work in a timely manner and be present when they are needed. Employees need to manage their time in a way that allows them to meet their commitments, including everything from arriving to work on time to providing their deliverables by agreed upon due dates.

One of the easiest methods to gather this information is through thorough reference checks. You can also ask questions regarding attendance and timeliness, times when the candidate had to struggle to meet a deadline or instances where they feel behind and how they recovered.

Enthusiasm

Employees who are excited about what they do will typically outperform those who are less interested in the work. Additionally, they may be more open to learning new skills to meet challenges and have increased interest in exploring new possibilities and technologies within their field.

Passionate workers often have a strong drive to succeed and persevere, making them valuable assets during challenging times.

Find Top IT talent with Resolution today!

If you would like to know more about soft skills or are looking for a great IT candidate to fill a vacancy, the recruitment professionals at Resolution Technologies can help you get what you need. Contact us to discuss your IT needs today.

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Does Your Company Provide Internal Talent Room to Develop Their Careers?

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Many companies fail to prioritize training and career development for their current employees. Neglecting these areas can cost the business their best and brightest employees, especially when competition for IT professionals is as high as it is today.

Your company’s top talent likely has aspirations beyond their current positions, and by cultivating those interests, you can help them reach higher levels of job satisfaction and increase their value to the company. So, if your business isn’t providing internal talent room to develop their careers, you’ll likely see them heading for the door sooner rather than later.

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If you position your policies properly, both the employee and the business can benefit from career development. Here’s how.

1) Manage Skill Gaps

Skill gaps in IT teams seem to grow on a daily basis, but many businesses neglect to see how internal talent development can actually resolve these issues regardless of external hiring results. Top talent generally enjoys facing challenges and looks forward to opportunities to learn. If you identify your best performers and create mechanisms by which they can build the skills necessary to fill any gaps, you not only give them what they need to move forward, but also what the company needs to succeed.

Taking an active role in the development of your employees can increase productivity and improve retention. It demonstrates the business values their workers and wants to see them succeed, which improves engagement and builds loyalty.

2) Prepare for Change

Employees are hired based on their ability to do the job today. The trick is, the job they are doing today isn’t necessarily the job they will be doing tomorrow.

IT changes rapidly, affecting how employees complete their tasks on a regular basis. Failing to provide educational opportunities to help them meet the challenge ahead means you aren’t investing in the people who keep your business running daily.

By supporting their professional growth, you ensure they are properly prepared for what is on the horizon. If you don’t, they may become frustrated, productivity can slide and they may choose to find employment elsewhere than continuing to struggle.

3) Improve the Company’s Image

Being seen as a supportive employer that helps workers develop their careers can do wonders for the company’s reputation. In turn, a positive reputation makes it easier to secure new talent when needed while also keeping your current employees on staff.

With so many websites dedicated to giving potential employees glimpses into an organization’s operations, failing to properly manage your reputation can harm recruitment efforts. And in today’s competitive market, this could be the difference between finding the talent you need and being left without many options.

Are you looking for top talent?

If you are interested in more tips about internal employee development or are looking for new candidates to join your team, you can rely on Resolution Technologies. Contact us to see how our professional recruitment services can work for you.

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Tips for Managing a Remote Tech Team

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Many companies have opened their “doors” to remote tech workers to find the talent they need regardless of the employee’s physical location. But managing remote workers presents new challenges many managers haven’t encountered previously, and different skills are needed when leading a distributed workforce.

To help you manage your remote team effectively, here are some tips regarding methodologies and best practices.

Develop a Communication Plan

Since remote employees don’t work in the same location, it is critical to create a concrete communication plan from the beginning. This needs to include points regarding the tools that will be used as well as the frequency at which they must check in regardless of whether they need outside input.

Having all your remote tech workers use the same platforms and meet the same communications standards ensures operations can run smoothly whether the team predominately completes duties independently or cooperatively. It also simplifies progress tracking while ensuring everyone is available to assist other members of the team should the need arise.

Include Face Time

At times, meeting face to face is the best method. While getting together in person might not be feasible, video conferencing can serve as a reasonable substitute. This approach gives everyone the chance to see the person behind the other forms of communication and can create a stronger sense of belonging within the team.

While every communication doesn’t require video, it is wise to make it a regular occurrence. Consider coordinating all team meetings as video conferences, and definitely use the solution for tasks like employee evaluations.

Create and Track Goals

The lack of physical proximity means there won’t be casual conversations about progress and goals. This means you need to take an active role to make sure things are moving forward. Work with each employee to form goals and assign milestones for them to work toward. Then, follow up regularly to see how things are progressing, if they are on track, or if something is holding them back.

This allows you to stay on top of their activities while also staying informed should challenges arise. Then, if intervention is required, you can manage the issue early in the process to get things moving again.

Be Proactive With New Information

Another challenge with managing remote employees is the potential for a disconnect when new information is received. In an office, you can call a quick meeting to share details when something changes course but, with remote workers, you have to use other mechanisms. This could require connecting with each employee individually, depending on their work schedule, or arranging a virtual meeting with all remote workers in attendance. Additionally, you need to make sure any activities directly affected by the change cease immediately if the information requires a different approach or a change in priorities.

The Bottom Line

Managing a remote tech team doesn’t have to be difficult. Often, it simply requires the use of appropriate tools and additional planning to keep this running smoothly. Then, you can rest assured knowing your team is hard at work.

Are you looking to add top IT talent to your team?

If you are looking for new employees to join your remote tech team, the professionals at Resolution Technologies have the experience to help you find your ideal candidates. Contact us today to see how our services can help you reach your hiring goals.

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How Artificial Intelligence is Impacting the Workplace

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) isn’t a technology of the future; it’s here today. Workplaces have been adding solutions that contain AI functions, changing how many manage their work on a daily basis. But many of the fears about AI replacing human workers across the board are currently unfounded, especially in highly skilled positions. Instead, these technologies provide support to their human counterparts, allowing them to work smarter and focus on duties that actually require their input.

Automating Processes

One of the biggest impacts AI has in the workplace is the ability to automate processes that were previously seen as tedious and time-consuming by the employees tasked with the duties. Daily processing can be managed through the AI solution allowing tech pros to focus on more complex tasks that actually require their intervention.

Advanced Analytics

Similar to process automation, AI allows businesses to participate in more advanced analytics, managing unwieldy datasets that reside on multiple systems and exist in a range of formats. The solution can review the data to find meaning, relaying discoveries to employees who can examine the information further and apply it to business goals.

Again, this allows mundane tasks to be removed from the hands of workers, giving them more time to concentrate on duties that provide value.

Intelligent Assistants

The ability to create an AI assistant to provide support has increased significantly. Advanced algorithms can simulate human conversations with predefined parameters. This allows chatbots and other technologies to manage support duties that fall into standard conversations. Customer service can be adjusted to provide a conversational-style experience without having to interact with a person from the beginning. Even certain HR functions are being augmented by the technology, assisting in tasks like operations, recruiting, and training.

In 2016, an estimated $2 billion in online sales were completed directly through mobile digital assistants. And the rate of their involvement in 2017 is likely to outperform that metric significantly.

An Augmentation, Not a Replacement

AI is proving itself to be an augmentation and not a replacement for employees in the workplace today. This means companies can better use their employees as a resource, allowing for additional development and innovation. This has the ability to improve productivity and may even raise employee job satisfaction as less time is required to manage tasks that were less interesting.

However, it is important to recognize that AI is still a developing technology. Advances in the area could create new disruptive technologies that can impact the workplace in countless ways. As more time and attention is paid to the creation of these solutions, the possibilities are too vast to describe. Invest in AI is continuing to grow, so new developments could enter the workplace at almost any time.

Are you looking for talented IT professionals to join your team?

If you are looking for AI professionals to help you explore the full potential of the technology, Resolution Technologies has the expertise to find the candidates you need. Contact us to discuss your hiring goals today.

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Onboarding Doesn’t Have to Be Tough: What Are the Essentials?

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The concept of onboarding can include a large number of activities. And, the sheer volume of options can make the entire process seem cumbersome. However, failing to onboard employees properly can lead to issues down the road, so it is imperative to find a process that meets their needs without becoming a full-scale event.

Luckily, it is possible to create an onboarding program that covers the essentials while leaving out any unnecessary extras. Instead of avoiding the process entirely, here are some tips to narrow it down to just the essentials.

Getting Acclimated

Your mission when creating an onboarding program should be to decrease the learning curve associated with fitting into the work environment and associated position. This allows the employee to become more comfortable with their work while also increasing the rate at which they become a valuable, contributing member of the team.

Surprisingly, this doesn’t always involve telling them how to do their job. Instead, make sure they know where important resources, including other employees and equipment, are located within the facility. Make formal introductions to the people associated with their organizational hierarchy, including other team members, supervisors and managers. Then, familiarize them with the locations of commonly needed equipment, like scanners and copiers, as well as basic office supplies.

The intention is to get them comfortable with the people and the space. That way they don’t feel stuck just because they don’t know who to ask for help or where to find the basic tools they need.

Training and Mentoring

New employees often place more value on mentoring opportunities and on-the-job training than anything else during the onboarding process. This means focusing on providing relevant and organized information should be a priority for any company bringing in new personnel.

One approach that can help make both of these goals more accessible is to assign incoming employees a buddy who works in a similar position. They’ll have a specific individual who will help them understand the idiosyncrasies of the position, including how certain tasks are traditionally managed.

You should also cover any corporate policies and procedures that affect their position. This includes items like password policies, trouble ticket processes, email protocols, internet usage policies and standard communication methods. Additionally, review basic expectations associated with the position including anticipated workloads, goals and milestones, and any reporting requirements.

What You Can Drop

Some companies believe the onboarding process needs to involve more than sufficient training and familiarizing new employees with the workplace. This leads businesses to spend money on perks like free food, which are simply not a priority for the employees participating.

Anything that does not help employees become more comfortable with the environment or assist them in shifting into their position more efficiently can often be removed. Ultimately, new employees will appreciate the efforts directed towards functional knowledge rather than a superfluous perk hands down.

If you are looking for more tips about managing the onboarding process, or are looking to hire a new employee, Resolution Technologies can make your entire hiring process more efficient. Contact us and see how our expertise can work for you.

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What Personalities Make the Best Employees?

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Many businesses look for employees that possess specific hard skills. They may consider previous experience or education above all other available qualities. But these aren’t always the ideal traits on which to focus. Hard skills can be taught to the right candidate, but many personality traits are fairly ingrained. By choosing applicants based on their personalities first, and their ability to learn the right skills, you may find yourself with a better employee in the end.

But what personalities make the best employees? Those that possess the traits listed below.

Intelligence

Intelligence isn’t a measurement of what someone knows. Instead, it is an indication of their ability to learn. An intelligent individual will be able to pick up new skills quickly and can adapt to changing environments. Plus, they can take the knowledge they have today and apply it to situations in new ways, helping them solve problems even when they don’t inherently know all of the details.

Choosing an intelligent person means you are selecting a candidate based on capacity and potential. And, when intelligence is combined with the right attitude, it means the possibilities are almost limitless as to where they can go with the proper direction.

Ambition

A great employee is going to be a person who sees themselves moving towards something great. The thrive on new experiences and have a plan for their careers. Candidates who lack drive and direction likely won’t be easily inspired to give their all. However, an applicant who sees the potential the job holds for themselves will likely put in more effort, which will ultimately be a benefit to your company.

Confidence

When an employee is presented with a challenge, you want them to have the confidence to face it head on. They need to be secure in what they know as well as their ability to work through problems and deal with the unfamiliar. Often, confident employees are able to function with a level of autonomy, meaning they won’t need someone to hold their hand every step of the way. That, and they are going to be inclined to use their intelligence to find answers to their questions so that they can keep moving forward.

Cultural Fit

One key point that will vary for every business is choosing employees that fit the culture of your company. Different organizations have different methods and norms. Choosing employees that will thrive in your current environment will yield better results than hiring a rockstar talent who can’t work to their potential based on your company’s culture.

For example, a candidate who needs to work without distractions isn’t an ideal choice if your workplace has embraced the open office format. Similarly, someone who values high levels of collaboration might not be the best pick for a remote position that will be based from their home.

Modesty

Sometimes actions speak louder than words, and someone who is all words may not truly be a person of action. Those with modesty can feel confident without having to brag or showboat. And they often don’t need to defend their value, as it is clearly seen in all they do.

Are you looking for top talent to add to your current team?

While finding the ideal personality traits may seem like a challenge, it is certainly worth the effort. If you are looking for your next ideal employee, the recruitment professionals at Resolution Technologies have the expertise to help you find candidates with the ideal traits. Contact us and let our expertise work for you.

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