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Vibe Coding: Shaping the Future of Software

A New Era of Code Vibe coding is a new method of using natural language prompts and AI tools to generate code. I have seen firsthand that this change Discover how vibe coding is reshaping software development. Learn about its benefits, challenges, and what it means for developers in the AI era.

Author

Vishwastam Shukla

June 25, 2025

3 min read

A New Era of Code

Vibe coding is a new method of using natural language prompts and AI tools to generate code. I have seen firsthand that this change makes software more accessible to everyone. In the past, being able to produce functional code was a strong advantage for developers. Today, when code is produced quickly through AI, the true value lies in designing, refining, and optimizing systems. Our role now goes beyond writing code; we must also ensure that our systems remain efficient and reliable.

From Machine Language to Natural Language

I recall the early days when every line of code was written manually. We progressed from machine language to high-level programming, and now we are beginning to interact with our tools using natural language. This development does not only increase speed but also changes how we approach problem solving. Product managers can now create working demos in hours instead of weeks, and founders have a clearer way of pitching their ideas with functional prototypes. It is important for us to rethink our role as developers and focus on architecture and system design rather than simply on typing c

The Promise and the Pitfalls

I have experienced both sides of vibe coding. In cases where the goal was to build a quick prototype or a simple internal tool, AI-generated code provided impressive results. Teams have been able to test new ideas and validate concepts much faster. However, when it comes to more complex systems that require careful planning and attention to detail, the output from AI can be problematic. I have seen situations where AI produces large volumes of code that become difficult to manage without significant human intervention.

AI-powered coding tools like GitHub Copilot and AWS’s Q Developer have demonstrated significant productivity gains. For instance, at the National Australia Bank, it’s reported that half of the production code is generated by Q Developer, allowing developers to focus on higher-level problem-solving . Similarly, platforms like Lovable enable non-coders to build viable tech businesses using natural language prompts, contributing to a shift where AI-generated code reduces the need for large engineering teams. However, there are challenges. AI-generated code can sometimes be verbose or lack the architectural discipline required for complex systems. While AI can rapidly produce prototypes or simple utilities, building large-scale systems still necessitates experienced engineers to refine and optimize the code.

The Economic Impact

The democratization of code generation is altering the economic landscape of software development. As AI tools become more prevalent, the value of average coding skills may diminish, potentially affecting salaries for entry-level positions. Conversely, developers who excel in system design, architecture, and optimization are likely to see increased demand and compensation.
Seizing the Opportunity

Vibe coding is most beneficial in areas such as rapid prototyping and building simple applications or internal tools. It frees up valuable time that we can then invest in higher-level tasks such as system architecture, security, and user experience. When used in the right context, AI becomes a helpful partner that accelerates the development process without replacing the need for skilled engineers.

This is revolutionizing our craft, much like the shift from machine language to assembly to high-level languages did in the past. AI can churn out code at lightning speed, but remember, “Any fool can write code that a computer can understand. Good programmers write code that humans can understand.” Use AI for rapid prototyping, but it’s your expertise that transforms raw output into robust, scalable software. By honing our skills in design and architecture, we ensure our work remains impactful and enduring. Let’s continue to learn, adapt, and build software that stands the test of time.

Ready to streamline your recruitment process? Get a free demo to explore cutting-edge solutions and resources for your hiring needs.

How Candidates Use Technology to Cheat in Online Technical Assessments

Discover common technologies used by candidates for cheating in online assessments. Explore effective prevention methods like proctoring, AI monitoring, and smart test formats.

Author

Nischal V Chadaga

June 25, 2025

3 min read

Impact of Online Assessments in Technical Hiring

In a digitally-native hiring landscape, online assessments have proven to be both a boon and a bane for recruiters and employers.

The ease and efficiency of virtual interviews, take home programming tests and remote coding challenges is transformative. Around 82% of companies use pre-employment assessments as reliable indicators of a candidate's skills and potential.

Online skill assessment tests have been proven to streamline technical hiring and enable recruiters to significantly reduce the time and cost to identify and hire top talent.

In the realm of online assessments, remote assessments have transformed the hiring landscape, boosting the speed and efficiency of screening and evaluating talent. On the flip side, candidates have learned how to use creative methods and AI tools to cheat in tests.

As it turns out, technology that makes hiring easier for recruiters and managers - is also their Achilles' heel.

Cheating in Online Assessments is a High Stakes Problem

With the proliferation of AI in recruitment, the conversation around cheating has come to the forefront, putting recruiters and hiring managers in a bit of a flux.

According to research, nearly 30 to 50 percent of candidates cheat in online assessments for entry level jobs. Even 10% of senior candidates have been reportedly caught cheating.

The problem becomes twofold - if finding the right talent can be a competitive advantage, the consequences of hiring the wrong one can be equally damaging and counter-productive.

As per Forbes, a wrong hire can cost a company around 30% of an employee's salary - not to mention, loss of precious productive hours and morale disruption.

The question that arises is - "Can organizations continue to leverage AI-driven tools for online assessments without compromising on the integrity of their hiring process? "

This article will discuss the common methods candidates use to outsmart online assessments. We will also dive deep into actionable steps that you can take to prevent cheating while delivering a positive candidate experience.

Common Cheating Tactics and How You Can Combat Them

Using ChatGPT and other AI tools to write code
Copy-pasting code using AI-based platforms and online code generators is one of common cheat codes in candidates' books. For tackling technical assessments, candidates conveniently use readily available tools like ChatGPT and GitHub. Using these tools, candidates can easily generate solutions to solve common programming challenges such as:
- Debugging code
- Optimizing existing code
- Writing problem-specific code from scratch
Ways to prevent it
- Enable full-screen mode
- Disable copy-and-paste functionality
- Restrict tab switching outside of code editors
- Use AI to detect code that has been copied and pasted
Enlist external help to complete the assessment

Candidates often seek out someone else to take the assessment on their behalf. In many cases, they also use screen sharing and remote collaboration tools for real-time assistance.

In extreme cases, some candidates might have an off-camera individual present in the same environment for help.

Ways to prevent it
- Verify a candidate using video authentication
- Restrict test access from specific IP addresses
- Use online proctoring by taking snapshots of the candidate periodically
- Use a 360 degree environment scan to ensure no unauthorized individual is present
Using multiple devices at the same time

Candidates attempting to cheat often rely on secondary devices such as a computer, tablet, notebook or a mobile phone hidden from the line of sight of their webcam.

By using multiple devices, candidates can look up information, search for solutions or simply augment their answers.

Ways to prevent it
- Track mouse exit count to detect irregularities
- Detect when a new device or peripheral is connected
- Use network monitoring and scanning to detect any smart devices in proximity
- Conduct a virtual whiteboard interview to monitor movements and gestures
Using remote desktop software and virtual machines

Tech-savvy candidates go to great lengths to cheat. Using virtual machines, candidates can search for answers using a secondary OS while their primary OS is being monitored.

Remote desktop software is another cheating technique which lets candidates give access to a third-person, allowing them to control their device.

With remote desktops, candidates can screen share the test window and use external help.

Ways to prevent it
- Restrict access to virtual machines
- AI-based proctoring for identifying malicious keystrokes
- Use smart browsers to block candidates from using VMs

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Talent Acquisition Strategies For Rehiring Former Employees

Discover effective talent acquisition strategies for rehiring former employees. Learn how to attract, evaluate, and retain top boomerang talent to strengthen your workforce.

Author

Nischal V Chadaga

June 25, 2025

3 min read

Former employees who return to work with the same organisation are essential assets. In talent acquisition, such employees are also termed as ‘Boomerang employees’. Former employees are valuable because they require the least training and onboarding because of their familiarity with the organization’s policies. Rehiring former employees by offering them more perks is a mark of a successful hiring process. This article will elaborate on the talent acquisition strategies for rehiring former employees, supported by a few real-life examples and best practices.

Why Should Organizations Consider Rehiring?

One of the best ways of ensuring quality hire with a low candidate turnover is to deploy employee retention programs like rehiring female professionals who wish to return to work after a career break. This gives former employees a chance to prove their expertise while ensuring them the organization’s faith in their skills and abilities. Besides, seeing former employees return to their old organizations encourages newly appointed employees to be more productive and contribute to the overall success of the organization they are working for. A few other benefits of rehiring old employees are listed below.

Reduced Hiring Costs

Hiring new talent incurs a few additional costs. For example, tasks such as sourcing resumes of potential candidates, reaching out to them, conducting interviews and screenings costs money to the HR department. Hiring former employees cuts down these costs and aids a seamless transition process for them.

Faster Onboarding

Since boomerang employees are well acquainted with the company’s onboarding process, they don’t have to undergo the entire exercise. A quick, one-day session informing them of any recent changes in the company’s work policies is sufficient to onboard them.

Retention of Knowledge

As a former employee, rehired executives have knowledge of the previous workflows and insights from working on former projects. This can be valuable in optimizing a current project. They bring immense knowledge and experience with them which can be instrumental in driving new projects to success.Starbucks is a prime example of a company that has successfully leveraged boomerang employees. Howard Schultz, the company's CEO, left in 2000 but returned in 2008 during a critical time for the firm. His leadership was instrumental in revitalizing the brand amid financial challenges.

Best Practices for Rehiring Former Employees

Implementing best practices is the safest way to go about any operation. Hiring former employees can be a daunting task especially if it involves someone who was fired previously. It is important to draft certain policies around rehiring former employees. Here are a few of them that can help you to get started.

1. Create a Clear Rehire Policy

While considering rehiring a former employee, it is essential to go through data indicating the reason why they had to leave in the first place. Any offer being offered must supersede their previous offer while marking clear boundaries to maintain work ethics. Offer a fair compensation that justifies their skills and abilities which can be major contributors to the success of the organization. A well-defined policy not only streamlines the rehiring process but also promotes fairness within the organization.

2. Conduct Thorough Exit Interviews

Exit interviews provide valuable insights into why employees leave and can help maintain relationships for potential future rehires. Key aspects to cover include:

Reasons for departure.
Conditions under which they might consider returning.
Feedback on organizational practices.

Keeping lines of communication open during these discussions can foster goodwill and encourage former employees to consider returning when the time is right.

3. Maintain Connections with Alumni

Creating and maintaining an alumni association must be an integral part of HR strategies. This exercise ensures that the HR department can find former employees in times of dire need and indicates to former employees how the organization is vested in their lives even after they have left them. This gesture fosters a feeling of goodwill and gratitude among former hires. Alumni networks and social media groups help former employees stay in touch with each other, thus improving their interpersonal communication.Research indicates that about 15% of rehired employees return because they maintained connections with their former employers.

4. Assess Current Needs Before Reaching Out

Before reaching out to former employees, assess all viable options and list out the reasons why rehiring is inevitable. Consider:

Changes in job responsibilities since their departure.
Skills or experiences gained by other team members during their absence.

It is essential to understand how the presence of a boomerang employee can be instrumental in solving professional crises before contacting them. It is also important to consider their present circumstances.

5. Initiate an Honest Conversation

When you get in touch with a former employee, it is important to understand their perspective on the job being offered. Make them feel heard and empathize with any difficult situations they may have had to face during their time in the organization. Understand why they would consider rejoining the company. These steps indicate that you truly care about them and fosters a certain level of trust between them and the organization which can motivate them to rejoin with a positive attitude.

6. Implement a Reboarding Program

When a former employee rejoins, HR departments must ensure a robust reboarding exercise is conducted to update them about any changes within the organization regarding the work policies and culture changes, training them about any new tools or systems that were deployed during their absence and allowing them time to reconnect with old team members or acquaint with new ones.

7. Make Them Feel Welcome

Creating a welcoming environment is essential for helping returning employees adjust smoothly. Consider:

Organizing team lunches or social events during their first week.
Assigning a mentor or buddy from their previous team to help them reacclimate.
Providing resources that facilitate learning about any organizational changes.

A positive onboarding experience reinforces their decision to return and fosters loyalty.

Real-Life Examples of Successful Rehiring

Several companies have successfully implemented these strategies:

IBM: The tech giant has embraced boomerang hiring by actively reaching out to former employees who possess critical skills in emerging technologies. IBM has found that these individuals often bring fresh perspectives that contribute significantly to innovation7.

Zappos: Known for its strong company culture, Zappos maintains an alumni network that keeps former employees engaged with the brand. This connection has led to numerous successful rehiring instances, enhancing both morale and productivity within teams6.

Conclusion

Rehiring former employees can provide organizations with unique advantages, including reduced costs, quicker onboarding, and retained knowledge. By implementing strategic practices—such as creating clear policies, maintaining connections, assessing current needs, and fostering welcoming environments—companies can effectively tap into this valuable talent pool.

As organizations continue navigating an ever-changing workforce landscape, embracing boomerang employees may be key to building resilient teams equipped for future challenges. By recognizing the potential benefits and following best practices outlined above, businesses can create a robust strategy for rehiring that enhances both employee satisfaction and organizational performance.

Tech Hiring Insights

HackerEarth Blogs

Gain insights to optimize your developer recruitment process.

Developer Insights

20 Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence Influencers To Follow In 2024

Currently employed as the Director of Machine Learning in the Special Projects Group at Apple Inc., Ian Goodfellow has majorly contributed to the Deep Learning space. He is the inventor of generative adversarial networks, an ML technique that is being used by Facebook. Earlier in his career, he worked with Google, playing a key role in Street Smart (Google Maps) and Google Brain (AI Research) teams. Besides that, he has also co-authored a comprehensive book, Deep Learning, alongside Yoshua Beng and Aaron Courville.

11. Jason Brownlee
Follow @TeachTheMachine
With the aim of ‘making developers awesome at Machine Learning’, Jason Brownlee founded the Machine Learning Mastery—a community offering various collaterals to help developers enhance their skills of applied Machine Learning.

12. Jess Hamrick
Follow @jhamrick
Currently employed as a research scientist at DeepMind, Jess Hamrick is a cognitive science enthusiast. Her key research area lies in human cognition by combining ML models with cognitive science. She is also one of the key maintainers of Jupyter/nbgrader—an open-source tool used to creating and grading assignments in the Jupyter notebook.

13. Dr. Kirk Borne
Follow @KirkDBorne
Dr. Kirk Borne, a data scientist and astrophysicist, is one of the leading influencers in the Big Data/Data Science/AI space. He is currently employed as the Principal Data Scientist and Executive Advisor at Booz Allen Hamilton. He has also been a professor of astrophysics and computational science at George Mason University for over twelve years. His work has majorly contributed to various projects including NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.

14. Martin Ford
Follow @MFordFuture
Martin Ford is a well-acclaimed futurist and a keynote speaker, elaborating on topics such as AI and robotics, and their possible impacts on the market, economy, and society. He is also an author of three books, including the New York Times bestseller, Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future. He is also the Consulting Artificial Intelligence Expert for the Rise of the Robots Index project for Societe Generale Corporate and Investment Banking.

15. Mike Tamir
Follow @MikeTamir
Mike Tamir is currently the Chief Machine Learning Scientist and head of ML/AI at Susquehanna International Group, LLP (SIG). He is also a Data Science faculty member at UC Berkeley. Prior to this, he served as the Head of Data Science at Uber Advanced Technologies Group, and as the Chief Science Officer at Galvanize Inc. Earlier in his career, he was a faculty member at the University of Pittsburgh and Columbia University.

16. Oriol Vinyals
Follow @OriolVinyalsML
Oriol Vinyals is employed as a Principal Research Scientist at Google DeepMind, leading the Deep Learning team there. He has also led the AlphaStar team that developed the first AI that defeats the top professional players of the game, StarCraft. In the past, he was a Senior Research Scientist in the Google Brain team.

17. Peter Skomoroch
Follow @peteskomoroch
Presently serving as a senior executive and investor for numerous ML-driven startups and venture capital funds, Peter Skomoroch has over twenty years of experience in the Data Science industry. Over the years, he has worked as a Senior Research Engineer at the AOL Search Analytics team, Director of Analytics at Juice Analytics, Principal Data Scientist at LinkedIn, CEO and Co-founder of SkipFlag, and Head of AI Automation & Data Products at Workday, among various other roles. At LinkedIn, he played a key role in ideating, creating, and deploying LinkedIn Skills and Endorsements.

18. Soumith Chintala
Follow @soumithchintala
Soumith Chintala has co-created and led PyTorch, an open-source Machine Learning library developed by the Facebook AI Research lab for Computer Vision and Natural Language Processing applications. Having worked in the past on projects such as Google Street View House Numbers, pedestrian detection, sentiment analysis, and at New York University, he is also an extensive researcher in the ML space.

19. Yann LeCun
Follow @ylecun
Yann LeCun is the VP and Chief AI Scientist at Facebook, leading the scientific and technical AI research and development for the organization. In addition, he is a professor at New York University. Early on in his career, he headed the Image Processing Research Department at AT&T Labs Research. Being one of the Godfathers of AI, he has made a huge contribution in the field of Computer Vision and Optical Character Recognition. He is also one of the 2018 ACM A.M. Turing Award laureates for his contribution to the AI domain.

20. Yoshua Bengio

Yoshua Bengio is one of the pioneers in the ML space, owing to his work on artificial neural networks and Deep Learning. He has been a professor in the Department of Computer Science and Operations Research at the Université de Montréal for over twenty-five years. He also heads the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms. Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton, and Yann LeCun are considered as the Godfathers of AI and have been awarded the 2018 ACM A.M. Turing Award for achieving major breakthroughs in deep neural networks.

DEI Hiring

Episode 1: How to drive inclusive hiring in tech ft. Orange Is the New Black

Welcome to #NetflixandHire where we learn some great tech hiring lessons from popular TV shows. This episode is focused on inclusive hiring. Over the course of the next 4 episodes, you’ll learn 4 ways in which you can successfully screen and hire developers in 2020. Buckle up, here we go!

2018 and 2019 brought about a surge of revelations in workplace equality with the #MeToo movement, the gender pay gap disclosure, Silicon Valley’s struggle with diversity and unconscious bias, among others. Things seem to be gearing up in 2020. Companies are now working toward drastically driving inclusive hiring in the workplace.

We thought this would be a great topic to cover in our maiden episode of #NetflixandHire and what better show to learn about inclusion than Orange is the New Black!

This comedy-drama takes place in a women’s prison, and thanks to its plots, it puts a diverse set of women at the forefront. The show ended up being one of the most-watched original series on Netflix. No wonder it won an Emmy, a Golden Globe, the GLAAD awards, and the Peabody awards.

Img source

Diversity in tech is not just about gender. It is your responsibility to ensure that hiring takes place regardless of age, gender, race, religion, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Here are 3 lessons we can learn from Orange Is the New Black to make this happen:

1. Strength lies in differences and not in similarities

The show embraces ethnicity like no other. Remember the fiery Russian Red, the entire Black cast ..Poussey, Taystee, etc., and the Hispanic gang of Maritza, Daya, and the others? The beauty of the series is it never overshadows one story over the other. Each character is given the screen space they deserve and issues of race and caste are discussed head-on.

Img source

Inclusive hiring is no different! As a recruiter, you hold the onus of promoting diversity by ensuring a fair hiring process. You need to reassure future employees that you have their best interests at heart. Also, at an organizational level, you prepare your current employees on how to appropriately interact with different people. Overall, you need to create a welcoming workplace.

Here are some initiatives by companies we absolutely admire for being flag bearers of tech inclusion:

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Since 2015, the company has proactively sought out candidates from outside traditional developer pipelines such as Stanford and MIT. It has also focused on recruiting tech talent from all women’s coding camps such as Hackbright and programs that focus on training black and Latino programmers such as Code2040.

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Intel has made the largest-ever commitment to invest in technology companies led by women, underrepresented minorities (African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans), startups led by entrepreneurs with disabilities, US-based entrepreneurs from the LGBTQ community, and US military veterans. Through September 2019, the Intel Capital Diversity Initiative has invested $381 million in companies led by diverse teams.

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Buffer uses its blog as a medium to explore issues in tech which affect underrepresented groups. The company also regularly modifies its job descriptions to include language and images that support inclusive hiring. They also sponsor awesome initiatives such as POCIT‘s Beer and Boardgames event and #wocintech‘s awesome photos.

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2. Freedom of expression

The first character that comes to our mind when we talk about freedom of expression with respect to the show is Suzanne, aka ‘Crazy Eyes’. Suzanne is portrayed as an intelligent woman, but someone who lacks social skills and is prone to spiral into emotional outbursts when agitated due to mental illness. The show is special because it never takes away from a character’s uniqueness, even if it’s someone like Suzanne. It lets her express emotions the way she wants to, be it in the form of writing a book or reciting Shakespeare’s sonnets.

Img source

Isn’t that the whole essence of inclusive hiring? Letting candidates express their skills the way they want to help both ways —you get to see the most genuine side of candidates without putting the candidate under pressure.

But are we actually providing candidates with the means to give it their all in the tech hiring process? We think not. Take the example of a whiteboard interview in which candidates are asked to solve a coding problem in real-time. The important thing to consider is that a whiteboard is not a code editor. Candidates can’t actually run the code to see if it works, let alone benchmark it.

We suggest you opt for an anonymous coding assessment instead. This is a take-home coding test that candidates can take in an environment of their choice. It also gives candidates a chance to take the test by masking all personal identifiers. This helps eliminate bias and assures that candidates will be judged fairly. Also, since all candidates face the same set of questions, it is less likely to introduce biases that could filter out good candidates.

Create a take-home coding test for free

3. Inclusive hiring is more than just a checkbox

Are you hiring just to complete a mandate? Or does your definition of diversity hiring only mean hiring more women? It’s about time we understood that diversity is much more than that. It is the range of differences that make people unique, both seen and unseen, and this is where we get to the third lesson that we’ve learned from Orange Is the New Black—Sophia Burset’s story.

Img source

Though the show is about women inmates, it never leaves out people based on how they identify themselves. Sophia, a transgender inmate, is given equal screen presence as anyone else and delivers a moving and hilarious performance. In fact, after the show aired, she became the first transgender person on the cover of the TIME magazine in 2014 and has used her story to empower others.

Sophia is not the only one. The show served as a platform for several people from the LGBTQ+ community to share their stories and bring more visibility to the group.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could do something similar in tech hiring?

Here are some initiatives we can all be inspired by:

‍Lesbians Who Tech is a community of over 15,000 queer women, with a mission to increase visibility in tech. It has partnered with the White House LGBT Tech and Innovation Summit to empower participants by connecting them with the Federal government information, resources, and opportunities. Additionally, it conducts three annual conferences, facilitating coding scholarships and hiring opportunities. It runs a cool new mentorship initiative called ‘Bring a Lesbian to Work Day’, a one-day shadow program with a mission to match a queer woman with a mentor.

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Out in Tech encourages underprivileged LGBTQ+ to pursue tech internships and post-secondary training by giving access to careers held by their heterosexual counterparts. The community actively works with companies to change workplace dynamics by helping evaluate diversity and inclusion.

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Microsoft Pride is Microsoft’s initiative for pushing the LGBTQ+ inclusion forward. It was one of the first corporations to include “sexual orientation in their corporate nondiscrimination policy” and “offer employee benefits to same-sex domestic partners.” It also urges employees to be more vocal about the actions that they are taking. By the way, you can download some cool LGBTQ+ buttons from their website.

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Started by Angelica Ross after being shut out of the professional world, TransTech Social Enterprises seeks to empower, educate, and employ transgender and non-gender conforming people in tech. It offers tech workshops, peer coach training, study buddies, and graphic design and web development apprenticeships. It also offers job placements through its in-house design studio and remote learning opportunities.

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We hope 2020 kicks off a culture-first decade with inclusivity being at the center of it all. Here’s to a vibrant and diversity-fuelled hiring process in the months to come. See you soon in the next episode!

Tech Assessment

Top 10 cities to hire developers

According to StackOverflow, the demand for software developers still outpaces the supply. Research reveals that in the US alone, tech talent shortage is predicted to cost the country USD 435.7 billion.

Unfortunately, businesses in major tech countries such as the US and the UK have long been suffering because of the rapid growth of tech industries and the shortage of talented developers. Hence, several firms across the globe have started to look beyond their local talent pool and hire software developers online or offshore.

Between hiring freelancers online and dedicated development teams offshore, offshoring has long been a popular choice for tech firms. According to Deloitte’s 2016 Global Outsourcing Survey, 59% of the respondents outsource talent because of the affordability factor. Other reasons stated in the survey were:

It Outsourcing services enables a business to focus on its core functions
Outsourcing solves capacity issues
Outsourcing improves the quality of services, and more

In 2016, Tholons released a report—Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations. The list featured popular cities from across the globe where you can find and hire developers.

Most cities in the top 10 were from India. Hence, to give a wider representation of all the popular outsourcing regions, we listed down one city per country according to rank.

With that said, here are the top 10 cities across the globe where you can find and hire developers.

Top 10 cities to hire developers

1. Bangalore, India

Tholons 2016 Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations ranked Bangalore, India as the number one destination to hire software developers/programmers. The city is popularly known for its low-cost developer rates.

According to PayScale, an average software engineer in Bangalore gets paid INR 799.50 per hour. That’s USD 11 per hour, which is quite affordable for businesses, especially early-stage startups.

Bangalore boasts of its large pool of software engineers. In fact, it’s estimated that around 175,000 developers out of 500,000 software engineers in India can be found in Bangalore.

Because of these factors as well as the city’s booming IT industry, global startups and big tech companies flock to Bangalore to set up their businesses or hire developers offshore.

2. Manila, Philippines

Just like Bangalore, Manila is a good place to look for developers, with competitive rates. The low salary rates are due to the low cost of living in the country.

Second to Bangalore, Manila is a popular destination to hire developers. Even though Manila is popularly known as the BPO capital of the world, it also has a thriving IT outsourcing industry.

One of Manila’s main advantages is its English-fluent developers. In fact, 70% of Filipinos are fluent in English, according to the Philippine Board of Investments.

It’s also officially the country’s second language. Hence, many global companies choose to work with Filipino developers owing to the ease of communication in terms of language and culture.

3. Krakow, Poland

Krakow’s rapid growth in producing tech professionals stems from its high number of universities and employment opportunities in the country.

According to The Fight for the Future: How People Defeated Hollywood and Saved the Internet—For Now by Edward Lee, the city has a total estimate of 170,000 students, making it an ideal destination for hiring young developers.

In addition, the 2019 A.T. Kearney Global Services Location Index ranked Poland as one of the best outsourcing locations because of the country’s availability of tech talent and financial attractiveness.

Also, it is one of the nearest locations for European businesses to hire software developers from. Krakow is around 1.5 kilometers away from the UK, making it one of the most accessible and easiest places for remote cooperation for UK firms.

Because of the city’s quality and quantity of tech talent, Krakow has become one of the best IT outsourcing cities in the world.

4. Dublin, Ireland

In addition to Krakow, Dublin has risen to become one of the best cities to hire developers in Eastern Europe.

Besides the affordable developer rates, Dublin takes pride in its repository of tech talent. According to Stack Overflow, out of all the cities in the British Isles, Dublin has the highest number of programmers, totaling more than 60,000 people. The most dominant programming languages in the city are Java, Python, and Ruby.

Major tech brands such as Amazon Web Services, HubSpot, and MongoDB have also set up businesses in Dublin due to the growing tech industry and tech talent pool in the city.

5. San Jose, Costa Rica

The capital city of Costa Rica has emerged to become an attractive destination to hire remote developers, especially for US tech firms.

One of the reasons for its popularity is its central time zone. When offshoring, most countries have an overlapping time of at least 4 business hours. In Costa Rica, the country is 2 hours ahead in the West Coast and 1 hour behind in the East Coast.

This means that remote teams can almost have a full working day of overlapping times. This allows for a longer and smoother real-time collaboration between businesses and remote teams.

Additionally, the country boasts of a highly educated workforce. According to The Global Competitiveness Report of 2017, Costa Rica was ranked as a leader in quality education in Latin America.

Businesses that are looking to hire tech talent in San Jose can be assured of developers who are experts in their fields and have good English speaking skills.

These factors have made San José a global hub for tech talents.

6. Shanghai, China

Over the past two decades, China’s IT industry has significantly grown and has become an innovative leader in the global IT industry. Among its cities, Shanghai has evolved to become one of the country’s biggest and most popular tech hubs.

Despite the high-level skills of Chinese developers, they are not as expensive. In an article by Nova Software, President of BearingPoint Bryan Huang said that an engineer with a $4,000 per month salary in the US would cost an equivalent of $500 in Shanghai.

The country’s huge population, inexpensive rates, and its booming tech industry have made it an ideal destination for global tech companies for hiring top tech talent.

7. Prague, Czech Republic

Among the cities in Central Europe, Prague has become a center for finding and hiring software developers/programmers, researchers, bookkeepers, and candidates for various other white-collar jobs.

Tech giants such as Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Oracle have invested and outsourced in the country because of its promising tech talent. In fact, according to the World Population Review, businesses across Europe come to the city to establish their headquarters, which now accounts for 25% of the country’s GDP.

Apart from its workforce and location, another advantage of looking for a developer in Central Europe is the region’s knowledge in a variety of languages.

Developers can effectively communicate in English, German, French, and other local languages. Overall, convenience in location, communication, and culture make Prague a good destination to hire tech talent.

8. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Even though Malaysia has a smaller pool of tech talent, businesses flock to the country’s capital to hire offshore dedicated developers because of its political and financial stability and multilingual workforce.

In fact, in 2015, Malaysia was ranked 4th in financial market development globally by the World Economic Forum.In addition, the Government of Malaysia has a number of long-term initiatives for IT products and services such as building fast broadband infrastructure and attracting companies to look at the country as a global information and communications technology (ICT) industry.

According to Electrica Technology, the high level of internet penetration and digital adoption in the country make it an attractive market for Australian FinTech solutions.

Malaysia couldn’t compete with the nearby countries in terms of BPO, so they ventured into offering value-added services such as skills in IT.

9. Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh has recently emerged as an attractive destination to find and hire developers because of its low-cost rates but quality output.

In addition to attracting western businesses, Vietnam has also piqued the interest of Japanese businesses. In an Asian Review article, one of the things that draws Japanese businesses to the country is that more than 100,000 Vietnamese are learning the Japanese language.

Also, the government supports the country’s IT sector and provides legal and financial incentive packages, making it an ideal destination for global businesses.

10. Johannesburg, South Africa

The Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations report identified three cities from South Africa. Johannesburg ranked at 20, which was one notch above its 2015 ranking.

Johannesburg performed better in ranking than other South African cities due to its quality outsourcing services in areas of IT, CRM, KPO, finance, among others. The region’s cost-competitiveness, neutral accent, and cultural alignment have made it an inviting destination for businesses, especially small startups.

In 2030, the country’s outsourcing outlook is expected to account for 4% of global revenues, according to a report by Deloitte.

When hiring developers, keep this in mind…

When choosing where to hire a software developer from, keep in mind that there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. Each destination has its own strengths and weaknesses in services, rates, and cultural and political compatibility.

Fortunately, there are thousands of offshore providers that cater to tech firms and startups across the globe. Partnering and working with an offshore provider allows businesses to source the right talent and to securely work with their offshore team.

If you’re looking for tech talent, you can find and hire developers at Cloud Employee, HackerEarth, People Per Hour, Upwork, among others.

Developer Insights

Top 9 Hottest Tech Skills to Hire for in the Industry

The benefits of honing technical skills go far beyond the Information Technology industry. Strong tech skills are essential in today’s changing world, and if your employees consistently and proactively enhance their IT skills, you will help them improve both personally and professionally. This, in turn, will help your business grow.

Yes, it may feel overwhelming. However, with the right attitude and flexibility of mind, it can also be a tremendous opportunity for your employees to learn and grow. Here are some of the hottest tech skills (a mix of programming languages, tools, and frameworks; in random order) to hire which will help you thrive in the workplace of tomorrow.

1. JavaScript

JavaScript has been the fastest-growing and the most sought-after programming language for years. It is considered as one of the smartest choices for building interactive web interfaces as all modern browsers support JavaScript.

Hottest tech skills to hire - Javascript

Source: Twitter

The Stack Overflow developer survey results show that about 69.7% of 90,000 professional developers stated JavaScript is the most commonly used programming language. The same survey reveals that JavaScript is one of the most desired languages. This means that 17.8% of respondents have not yet used it but want to learn it.

The language is at the heart of several prominent tech companies, such as Netflix, PayPal, Groupon, LinkedIn, and Walmart. Additionally, studies reveal that JavaScript is among the most in-demand programming language used in the top privately-held startups valued at over $1 billion in the US. Hence, JavaScript will remain one of the hottest tech skills and it is unlikely that it will go off the grid in the near future.

Common job roles requiring JavaScript

Some of the common job roles requiring JavaScript as a skill are:

Frontend web development
Full-stack web development
Information security software developers
WordPress developers
PHP and JS developers

2. Python

Released in 1991 and created by Guido van Rossum, Python was and is still extremely relevant for all developers to learn and grow. It is interactive, dynamic, versatile, and remains one of the most relevant languages.

Source: Coding Dojo

Also, it is one of the most popular programming languages used by the top 25 unicorn companies in the US.

It is an all-time favorite of beginners and experienced developers alike, mainly for its ease of use and simple syntax. Right from programming projects such as data mining and Machine Learning, Python is the most favored programming language.

Also, read The complete guide to hiring a Python developer.

Common job roles requiring Python

Some of the common job roles requiring Python as a skill are:

Data scientists
Data analyst
Software engineer
Machine Learning engineer
Research analyst
Python developer

3. Java

It is no surprise to see Java as one of the hottest tech skills. Introduced in 1991 by James Gosling, Mike Sheridan, and Patrick Naughton, it is a robust, general-purpose programming language that is object-oriented and class-based. It was designed in such a way that it is easy to use, write, compile, debug, and learn, and have as few implementation dependencies as possible.

Studies reveal that Java is one of the most popular programming languages used by developers.

This can be attributed to the fact that Java is widely used in industries such as financial services, Big Data, stock market, banking, retail, and Android. It is present everywhere! Whichever domain a developer works in, he/she will surely come across Java Programming.

An article by the Dev Community speaks about how Java is unarguably one of the most popular programming languages in the world today and how tech giants are using the language to build large portions of their infrastructure and backend services.

Also, read The complete guide to hiring a Java developer.

Common job roles requiring Java

Some of the common job roles requiring Java as a skill are:

Java developers
Java architects
Backend developers
Fullstack developers

Conduct accurate coding assessments to hire the right developers. Request a demo.

4. Rust

For the fourth year in a row, Rust has been voted as the most loved programming language in a StackOverflow report, followed by Python. This meant that more developers want to continue working with Rust than other languages.

Also, as shown by Google Trends, Rust has been gaining tremendous popularity over the years and its adoption is expected to grow.

Tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have invested in Rust as a long term system programming language because it is expected to replace a lot of C and C++ development. In fact, PyPl has ranked Rust 18th in the Popularity of Programming Language Index, with an upward trend.

It makes a little more sense when you find out that the language was created at Mozilla, giving web developers a chance to write code that’s more performant than Ruby, PHP, JavaScript, or Python.

Common job roles requiring Rust

Some of the common jobs requiring Rust as a tech skill are:

Backend developers
Embedded system engineers
Network engineers

5. ReactJS

Released in 2013, ReactJS is essentially a front-end library created by Facebook for building user interfaces. It serves as an excellent tool for the development of full-scale, dynamic applications.

As per a Stack Overflow report, ReactJS is the most wanted and most loved web framework.

A great performance benefit of ReactJS is its ability to update virtual DOM. As Virtual DOM is rendered from the server-side as well as the client-side, it offers a high-performance rendering of complex user interfaces. This is why ReactJS is fast. Other than Facebook and Instagram, ReactJS is adopted by the BBC, Netflix, and PayPal.

Common job roles requiring ReactJS

Some of the common job roles requiring ReactJS as a skill are:

Frontend developers
Full-stack developers

Looking to hire ReactJS developers? Identify top candidates with HackerEarth Assessments.

6. Docker

Docker is a tool that creates, deploys, and runs applications within containers.

Containers store up code and all its dependencies so that an application runs fast and reliably on any other Linux machine. The prevalence of Docker in the job market is incredible. In a Stack Overflow survey, developers ranked Docker number 2 in the “Most Loved Platform” category and number 1 in the “Most Wanted Platform” category.

With cloud and Docker becoming significantly linked every day, the demand is only expected to grow. Therefore, if your employees want a wonderful future in DevOps, they need to have a strong understanding of Docker tools.

Common job roles requiring Docker

Some of the common job roles requiring Docker as a skill are:

Software developers
Backend engineers
DevOps engineers
Python developers
Site reliability engineers
Database administrators

7. NumPy and Pandas

There would be no Data Science in Python without NumPy and Pandas (this is also one of the reasons why Python has become widely popular in Data Science.) As per GitHub, among the most popular public repositories labeled with topics like “Deep Learning,” “Natural Language Processing,” and “Machine Learning,” over half of them are built on NumPy. Pandas is a widely used tool, particularly in data munging and wrangling. It is available for everyone as an open-source, free-to-use project. Hence, NumPy and Pandas are expected to be in the race of tech skills to hire for.

Common job roles requiring NumPy and Pandas

Some of the common job roles requiring NumPy and Pandas as skills are:

Data scientists
Python developers
Machine Learning developers
Software engineers
Algorithm developers
Tech leads

8. Kotlin

Kotlin is a general-purpose programming language that effortlessly combines object-oriented and functional programming features within it. In a Stack Overflow report, Kotlin made its way into one of the most loved and most wanted programming languages.

Kotlin was designed to be interoperable with Java which makes Android development faster and enjoyable. Also, Kotlin addresses the major issues that surface in Java. Hence, several Java apps are rewritten in Kotlin. Brands like Pinterest and Coursera have already moved to Kotlin due to its strong tooling support. It receives a lot of interest from developers and companies alike. The job postings for Kotlin increased over 15X, from the second quarter of 2016 to the second quarter of 2018, and the trend is only expected to grow.

Source: Dice

Hence, Kotlin is a hot tech skill that programmers and Android app developers should learn.

Common job roles requiring Kotlin

Some of the common job roles requiring Kotlin as a skill are:

Android developers (junior, mid, senior)
Kotlin developers
Software engineers—Android platform

9. Django

Django is one of the most versatile and popular Python web frameworks that encourages rapid development and pragmatic, clean design of web applications. This can be attributed to Django’s open-source nature—the community is constantly releasing new code and plug-ins to simplify the process and keep up with the demand. It grabbed eyeballs right from the start when it was positioned as Python’s answer to Rails.

Many Python development services, as well as major companies such as Spotify and YouTube, use Django. Developers describe it as “batteries included”, which means that it comes with a variety of third-party libraries.

Django’s user base is expected to grow as more developers embrace Python for emerging technologies such as Machine Learning and Big Data. It is ridiculously fast, reassuringly secure, and exceedingly scalable.

Note: We recommend using the latest version of Django, which is currently 3.0.2.

Common job roles requiring Django

Some of the common job roles requiring Django as a skill are:

Python-Django developers
Python software engineers
Full-stack Django developers
DevOps engineers
Frontend Django developers
Django software engineers

Summing up…

All developers have a thirst for learning new skills. However, knowing which skills are gaining popularity can ensure better career growth and help developers prioritize learning them first. Recruiters and developers can use the information shared in this post to make informed decisions in this matter.

As a recruiter, you need to keep yourself abreast of the above-mentioned skills to stay ahead of your competitors in hiring stellar talent.

Not sure about how to assess technical skills? HackerEarth provides accurate technical screening and helps you hire the best. Start your 14-day free trial today.

Hiring Tools

A big bang of new features on HackerEarth Assessments

Over the past few months, our team has been working tirelessly on amazing features to optimize the user experience and make test creation more fun using HackerEarth. We’re now ready to unveil them.

Everything in one place

Earlier, before publishing a test, users had to navigate to different tabs for adding questions, modifying test settings, adding admins, and more. This involved a lot of back and forth and figuring out what to change and where. With the new test overview feature on HackerEarth Assessments, you can get a snapshot of the questions, the language used, proctoring type, candidate information, and admin management, all in a single place.

The test overview page lists the recommended settings for the following:

Test: Name, description, instructions, type, link, and start and end dates
Questions: Number, difficulty level, and type. Additionally, you get the option to enable question shuffling and display error messages
Language: The choice of test language
Proctoring: Default proctoring type enabled
Candidate: Information collected from candidates
Email: Auto-reminder email feature
Test admins: List of admins managing the test

You can view or modify them before inviting candidates to take the test.

Test overview snapshot

2. Just skill-based tests? Not anymore.

That’s right. Now you can choose a job role or simply upload a job description and the HackerEarth platform will create a test for you.

Here’s how this works

Job description to test

In addition to the prebuilt skill-based tests or custom tests available, recruiters can now create a test by uploading or pasting a job description. Built on NLP, the platform extracts the skills and experience from the description and creates an assessment best suited to evaluate a candidate.

Job description to test feature

Job role to test

Now, users can create a test for 11 different developer roles. These pre-built, role-based tests can be readily used for assessing candidates for a particular role. The platform will suggest the skills relevant for the selected job role and you can add/modify the skills and experience to create the test.

Test creation based on job role

3. It’s easy on the eye

HackerEarth's feature on question listing has a more attractive interface. Adding sections and pooling questions is now a lot easier. By selecting the topic and the difficulty level, you can add questions either automatically or manually. What’s more? There’s a new drag and drop functionality, making it easier to add/reorder questions while creating a test.

Question listing feature

4. More visibility, more reports

We’ve several clients who use HackerEarth to manage their tech screening process on a global scale, using it across different business units or accounts. Earlier, there was no way for decision makers to track the screening process across different units. The new admin reports feature gives them visibility into the screening process across all their business units.

Using a real-time dashboard, you can get an overview of the assessment funnel for the entire organization. You can view the number of published tests and compare the count of invited and attempted candidates. You’ll also be able to know the count of candidates who’ve cleared the cutoff score and finally been shortlisted.

Get an overall view of all these metrics as well as a segregated view based on sections for tests and admins. What’s more? You can filter them based on accounts and export the data for collaboration.

Assessment funnel - HackerEarth reports

5. Practice made perfect

While you might already be aware of the practice tests that are available on HackerEarth, now we’ve made them more dynamic. The practice tests will be automatically aligned to the actual tests created. Whenever a new test is published, the platform will also generate a practice test based on the same skill type and question format.

This will drastically improve candidate experience as they’ll be more familiar with the test environment and know what to expect during the test.

Dynamic practice tests on HackerEarth

6. Get biweekly updates

Receive biweekly reports via email with account updates regarding invite usage, test-level insights and other admin details.

That’s it for now. But stay tuned for more exciting updates. Until then, try using these new features and let us know what you think. If you’re new and want to create intelligent tech assessments using HackerEarth, sign up for our 14-day free trial. And if you need help, write to us at support@hackerearth.com.

Hiring Tools

6 things business owners should do before interviewing potential employees

Taking a small business from a startup to a success story is a challenging difficult task. To turn your dream of becoming a successful business owner into reality, you must hire the right employees. While most entrepreneurs handle all aspects of running a business single-handedly in the beginning, this eventually becomes problematic.

Before hiring employees, you will need to invest time and energy into interviewing each candidate. The average interview/hiring process takes around 23 days. Trying to rush through this process can create several problems in the long run.

Luckily, there are a variety of things you can do to make the employee interview process easier and more efficient. Read below to find out how business owners can ace the employee interview process.

Putting the right technology in place is crucial
Tasks such as manually uploading job listings on various online message boards can be time-consuming and frustrating. Instead of letting these mundane tasks take your focus off of your business, you need to use an applicant tracking system (ATS) during the hiring process. Not only can this software help you reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks, but you can also narrow down the vast number of resumes you receive for a particular position.

An ATS uses a complex algorithm to scan resumes. Business owners can pick from a list of keywords and indicators before the scanning process begins. With these variables, the ATS can pick out the best resumes for a business owner. If you are looking for a way to speed up the recruitment cycle and ensure a quality hire, then an ATS is a great investment. You can learn more about how an ATS work before choosing the right one.
Brainstorm with your existing employees before hiring new employees
One of the most important aspects of the hiring process is creating a detailed and accurate job listing. It should adequately describe the requirements for the position you need to fill. Instead of trying to come up with this job listing on your own, consult with other members of your team.

Often, team members can offer a fresh perspective on what is required of an employee. A brainstorming session will help you get the information regarding the role a new employee needs to fill and what skills are required to excel in a new position.

Also, before interviewing a potential candidate, you need to figure out what type of pre-employment screenings are required. Generally, businesses in the US use medical physicals and drug screenings for their new employees. This helps you avoid potentially bad hires.
Choosing the right interview time and method
Once you start to narrow down the list of applicants, it will be time to start the interview process. Some business owners fail to realize that there are a number of ways they can conduct these meetings. If the applicant lives in the same area where your business is located, having a face to face meeting is a good option. However, this will not be possible if you are using a remote worker to fill a position.

Using tools such as a video chatting software is essential when trying to connect with a remote applicant. Before conducting interviews, you need to figure out what you have on your schedule. Ideally, you want to schedule the meeting during a time when you don’t have many tasks to do. You will also need to offer the candidate a high degree of flexibility. Doing this will show them that your company is willing to go the extra mile to work with them.
Prepare for the interview
Going into the interview process without a list of questions for an applicant is a huge mistake. Taking the time to adequately prepare for an interview can help you get all the information you need to make the right hire. Asking questions regarding a person’s previous experience and what they view as their strengths and weaknesses is vital.

Once you get this information, you can figure out whether a particular person is the right fit for your needs. Many business owners use personality tests to get more information about potential employees. The more you know about a potential employee, the easier it will be to hire them with confidence.

If you feel like you don’t have the time or the skills needed to handle the interview and hiring process alone, outsourcing these responsibilities may be a good idea. Luckily, there are a number of staffing agencies that will be more than happy to lend a hand. Typically, these agencies will have a large pool of talent they can pull from to fill your vacancies. However, before hiring an agency to help with this important work, take a look at their reputation and track record.
Evaluate each candidate beforehand
In most cases, business owners receive several resumes when they post about a job listing on the Internet. Rather than getting overwhelmed with the hiring process, taking the time to evaluate each candidate should be your main goal. Just because you receive tons of applications doesn’t mean you have to slack when it comes to checking for references or contacting the candidate’s former employers.

Following such practices can give you an idea of how well they performed for others in the past. You need to make sure that the potential candidate left their last job on good terms. If you are confronted with a slew of bad reviews for a particular candidate, you may need to avoid hiring them.
Work on assessing candidates’ long-term potential
Hiring new employees can be a very stressful and time-consuming process. This is why choosing employees that want a long-term career within your organization is of utmost importance. During the interview process, you need to ask questions regarding where a person sees himself/herself in the next five or ten years. The answer to this question can provide you with valuable insights into how long a person will be with your company.

Also, be sure to give the candidate some information on opportunities such as salary increase and other benefits. Creating a team of loyal employees will require you to put a lot of energy into enhancing your team’s skills and utilizing the strengths they have. The money and time you invest in developing the talent you have in place will pay off in the long run.

Great employees are the backbone of a successful business

While finding and hiring the right employees can be difficult, it is well worth the effort you invest. With the right employees, you can grow and expand your business with ease.

Read - Top tips to prepare for software engineering interviews

Authors

Meet our Authors

Get to know the experts behind our content. From industry leaders to tech enthusiasts, our authors share valuable insights, trends, and expertise to keep you informed and inspired.

Ruehie Jaiya Karri

Kumari Trishya

AI Recruiting

AI In Recruitment: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has permeated virtually every industry, transforming operations and interactions. The tech recruitment sector is no exception, and AI’s influence shapes the hiring processes in revolutionary ways. From leveraging AI-powered chatbots for preliminary candidate screenings to deploying machine learning algorithms for efficient resume parsing, AI leaves an indelible mark on tech hiring practices.

Yet, amidst these promising advancements, we must acknowledge the other side of the coin: AI’s potential malpractices, including the likelihood of cheating on assessments, issues around data privacy, and the risk of bias against minority groups.

The dark side of AI in tech recruitment

The introduction of AI in recruitment, while presenting significant opportunities, also brings with it certain drawbacks and vulnerabilities. Sophisticated technologies could enable candidates to cheat on assessments, misrepresent abilities and potential hiring mistakes. This could lead to hiring candidates with falsifying skills or qualifications, which can cause a series of negative effects like:

Reduced work quality: The work output might be sub-par if a candidate doesn’t genuinely possess the abilities they claimed to have.
Team disruptions: Other team members may have to pick up the slack, leading to resentment and decreased morale.
Rehiring costs: You might have to let go of such hires, resulting in additional costs for replacement.

Data privacy is another critical concern

Your company could be left exposed to significant risks if your AI recruiting software is not robust enough to protect sensitive employee information. The implications for an organization with insufficient data security could be severe such as:

Reputational damage: Breaches of sensitive employee data can damage your company’s reputation, making it harder to attract clients and talented employees in the future.
Legal consequences: Depending on the jurisdiction, you could face legal penalties, including hefty fines, for failing to protect sensitive data adequately.
Loss of trust: A data breach could undermine employee trust in your organization, leading to decreased morale and productivity.
Financial costs: Besides potential legal penalties, companies could also face direct financial losses from a data breach, including the costs of investigation, recovery, and measures to prevent future breaches.
Operational disruption: Depending on the extent of the breach, normal business operations could be disrupted, causing additional financial losses and damage to the organization’s reputation.

Let’s talk about the potential for bias in AI recruiting software

Perhaps the most critical issue of all is the potential for unconscious bias. The potential for bias in AI recruiting software stems from the fact that these systems learn from the data they are trained on. If the training data contains biases – for example, if it reflects a history of preferentially hiring individuals of a certain age, gender, or ethnicity – the AI system can learn and replicate these biases.

Even with unbiased data, if the AI’s algorithms are not designed to account for bias, they can inadvertently create it. For instance, a hiring algorithm that prioritizes candidates with more years of experience may inadvertently discriminate against younger candidates or those who have taken career breaks, such as for child-rearing or health reasons.

This replication and possible amplification of human prejudices can result in discriminatory hiring practices. If your organization’s AI-enabled hiring system is found to be biased, you could face legal action, fines, and penalties. Diversity is proven to enhance creativity, problem-solving, and decision-making. In contrast, bias in hiring can lead to a homogenous workforce, so its absence would likely result in a less innovative and less competitive organization.

Also read: What We Learnt From Target’s Diversity And Inclusion Strategy

When used correctly, AI in recruitment can take your hiring to the next level

How do you evaluate the appropriateness of using AI in hiring for your organization? Here are some strategies for navigating the AI revolution in HR. These steps include building support for AI adoption, identifying HR functions that can be integrated with AI, avoiding potential pitfalls of AI use in HR, collaborating with IT leaders, and so on.

Despite certain challenges, AI can significantly enhance tech recruitment processes when used effectively. AI-based recruitment tools can automate many manual recruiting tasks, such as resume screening and interview scheduling, freeing up time for recruiters to focus on more complex tasks. Furthermore, AI can improve the candidate’s experience by providing quick responses and personalized communications. The outcome is a more efficient, candidate-friendly process, which could lead to higher-quality hires.

Let’s look at several transformational possibilities chatbots can bring to human capital management for candidates and hiring teams. This includes automation and simplifying various tasks across domains such as recruiting, onboarding, core HR, absence management, benefits, performance management, and employee self-service resulting in the following:

For recruiters:

Improved efficiency and productivity: Chatbots can handle routine tasks like responding to common inquiries or arranging interviews. Thereby, providing you with more time to concentrate on tasks of strategic importance.
Enhanced candidate experience: With their ability to provide immediate responses, chatbots can make the application process more engaging and user-friendly.
Data and insights: Chatbots can collect and analyze data from your interactions with candidates. And provide valuable insights into candidate preferences and behavior.
Improved compliance: By consistently following predefined rules and guidelines, chatbots can help ensure that hiring processes are fair and compliant with relevant laws and regulations.
Cost saving: By automating routine tasks for recruiters, chatbots can help reduce the labor costs associated with hiring.

Also read: 5 Steps To Create A Remote-First Candidate Experience In Recruitment

How FaceCode Can Help Improve Your Candidate Experience | AI in recruitment

For candidates:

Additionally, candidates can leverage these AI-powered chatbots in a dialog flow manner to carry out various tasks. These tasks include the following:

Personalized greetings: By using a candidate’s name and other personal information, chatbots can create a friendly, personalized experience.
Job search: They can help candidates search for jobs based on specific criteria.
Create a candidate profile: These AI-powered chatbots can guide candidates through the process of creating a profile. Thus, making it easier for them to apply for jobs.
Upload resume: Chatbots can instruct candidates on uploading their resume, eliminating potential confusion.
Apply for a job: They can streamline the application process, making it easier and faster for candidates to apply for jobs.
Check application status: Chatbots can provide real-time updates on a candidate’s application status.
Schedule interviews: They can match candidate and interviewer availability to schedule interviews, simplifying the process.

For hiring managers:

These can also be utilized by your tech hiring teams for various purposes, such as:

Create requisition: Chatbots can guide hiring managers through the process of creating a job requisition.
Create offers: They can assist in generating job offers, ensuring all necessary information is included.
Access requisition and offers: Using chatbots can provide hiring managers with easy access to job requisitions and offers.
Check on onboarding tasks: Chatbots can help track onboarding tasks, ensuring nothing is missed.

Other AI recruiting technologies can also enhance the hiring process for candidates and hiring teams in the following ways:

For candidates:

Tailor-made resumes and cover letters using generative AI: Generative AI can help candidates create custom resumes and cover letters, increasing their chances of standing out.
Simplifying the application process: AI-powered recruiting tools can simplify the application process, allowing candidates to apply for jobs with just a few clicks.
Provide similar job recommendations: AI can analyze candidates’ skills, experiences, and preferences to recommend similar jobs they might be interested in.

For recruiters:

Find the best candidate: AI algorithms can analyze large amounts of data to help you identify the candidates most likely to succeed in a given role.
Extract key skills from candidate job applications: Save a significant amount of time and effort by using AI-based recruiting software to quickly analyze job applications to identify key skills, thereby, speeding up the screening process.
Take feedback from rejected candidates & share similar job recommendations: AI can collect feedback from rejected candidates for you to improve future hiring processes and recommend other suitable roles to the candidate.

These enhancements not only streamline the hiring process but also improve the quality of hires, reduce hiring biases, and improve the experience for everyone involved. The use of AI in hiring can indeed take it to the next level.

Where is AI in recruitment headed?

AI can dramatically reshape the recruitment landscape with the following key advancements:

1. Blockchain-based background verification:

Blockchain technology, renowned for its secure, transparent, and immutable nature, can revolutionize background checks. This process which can take anywhere from between a day to several weeks today for a single recruiter to do can be completed within a few clicks resulting in:

Streamlined screening process: Blockchain can store, manage, and share candidates’ credentials and work histories. Thereby speeding up the verification and screening process. This approach eliminates the need for manual background checks. And leads to freeing up a good amount of time for you to focus on more important tasks.
Enhanced trust and transparency: With blockchain, candidates, and employers can trust the validity of the information shared due to the nature of the technology. The cryptographic protection of blockchain ensures the data is tamper-proof, and decentralization provides transparency.
Improved data accuracy and reliability: Since the blockchain ledger is immutable, it enhances the accuracy and reliability of the data stored. This can minimize the risks associated with false information on candidates’ resumes.
Faster onboarding: A swift and reliable verification process means candidates can be onboarded more quickly. Thereby, improving the candidate experience and reducing the time-to-hire.
Expanded talent pool: With blockchain, it’s easier and quicker to verify the credentials of candidates globally, thereby widening the potential talent pool.

2. Immersive experiences using virtual reality (VR):

VR can provide immersive experiences that enhance various aspects of the tech recruitment process:

Interactive job previews: VR can allow potential candidates to virtually “experience” a day i.e., life at your company. This provides a more accurate and engaging job preview than traditional job descriptions.
Virtual interviews and assessments: You can use VR to conduct virtual interviews or assessments. You can also evaluate candidates in a more interactive and immersive setting. This can be particularly useful for roles that require specific spatial or technical skills.
Virtual onboarding programs: New hires can take a virtual tour of the office, meet their colleagues, and get acquainted with their tasks, all before their first day. This can significantly enhance the onboarding experience and help new hires feel more prepared.
Immersive learning experiences: VR can provide realistic, immersive learning experiences for job-specific training or to enhance soft skills. These could be used during the recruitment process or for ongoing employee development.

Also read: 6 Strategies To Enhance Candidate Engagement In Tech Hiring (+ 3 Unique Examples)

AI + Recruiters: It’s all about the balance!

To summarize, AI in recruitment is a double-edged sword, carrying both promise and potential problems. The key lies in how recruiters use this technology, leveraging its benefits while vigilantly managing its risks. AI isn’t likely to replace recruiters or HR teams in the near future. Instead, you should leverage this tool to positively impact the entire hiring lifecycle.

With the right balance and careful management, AI can streamline hiring processes. It can create better candidate experiences, and ultimately lead to better recruitment decisions. Recruiters should continually experiment with and explore generative AI. To devise creative solutions, resulting in more successful hiring and the perfect fit for every open role.

Hiring Tools

Looking For A Mettl Alternative? Let’s Talk About HackerEarth

“Every hire is an investment for a company. A good hire will give you a higher ROI; if it is a bad hire, it will cost you a lot of time and money.”

Especially in tech hiring!

An effective tech recruitment process helps you attract the best talents, reduce hiring costs, and enhance company culture and reputation.

Businesses increasingly depend on technical knowledge to compete in today’s fast-paced, technologically driven world. Online platforms that provide technical recruiting solutions have popped up to assist companies in finding and employing top talent in response to this demand.

The two most well-known platforms in this field are HackerEarth and Mettl. To help businesses make wise choices for their technical employment requirements, we will compare these two platforms’ features, benefits, and limitations in this article.

This comparison of Mettl alternative, HackerEarth and Mettl itself, will offer helpful information to help you make the best decision, whether you’re a small company trying to expand your tech staff or a massive organization needing a simplified recruiting process.

HackerEarth

HackerEarth is based in San Francisco, USA, and offers enterprise software to aid companies with technical recruitment. Its services include remote video interviewing and technical skill assessments that are commonly used by organizations.

HackerEarth also provides a platform for developers to participate in coding challenges and hackathons. In addition, it provides tools for technical hiring such as coding tests, online interviews, and applicant management features. The hiring solutions provided by HackerEarth aid companies assess potential employees’ technical aptitude and select the best applicants for their specialized positions.

Mettl

Mettl, on the other hand, offers a range of assessment solutions for various industries, including IT, banking, healthcare, and retail. It provides online tests for coding, linguistic ability, and cognitive skills. The tests offered by Mettl assist employers find the best applicants for open positions and make data-driven recruiting choices. Additionally, Mettl provides solutions for personnel management and staff training and development.

Why should you go for HackerEarth over Mercer Mettl?

Here's why HackerEarth is a great Mettl Alternative!

Because HackerEarth makes technical recruiting easy and fast, you must consider HackerEarth for technical competence evaluations and remote video interviews. It goes above and beyond to provide you with a full range of functions and guarantee the effectiveness of the questions in the database. Moreover, it is user-friendly and offers fantastic testing opportunities.

The coding assessments by HackerEarth guarantee the lowest time consumption and maximum efficiency. It provides a question bank of more than 17,000 coding-related questions and automated test development so that you can choose test questions as per the job role.

As a tech recruiter, you may need a clear understanding of a candidate’s skills. With HackerEarth’s code replay capability and insight-rich reporting on a developer’s performance, you can hire the right resource for your company.

Additionally, HackerEarth provides a more in-depth examination of your recruiting process so you can continuously enhance your coding exams and develop a hiring procedure that leads the industry.

HackerEarth and Mercer Mettl are the two well-known online tech assessment platforms that provide tools for managing and performing online examinations. We will examine the major areas where HackerEarth outperforms Mettl, thereby proving to be a great alternative to Mettl, in this comparison.

Also read: What Makes HackerEarth The Tech Behind Great Tech Teams

HackerEarth Vs Mettl

Features and functionality

HackerEarth believes in upgrading itself and providing the most effortless navigation and solutions to recruiters and candidates.

HackerEarth provides various tools and capabilities to create and administer online tests, such as programming tests, multiple-choice questions, coding challenges, and more. The software also has remote proctoring, automatic evaluation, and plagiarism detection tools (like detecting the use of ChatGPT in coding assessments). On the other side, Mettl offers comparable functionality but has restricted capabilities for coding challenges and evaluations.

Test creation and administration

HackerEarth: It has a user-friendly interface that is simple to use and navigate. It makes it easy for recruiters to handle evaluations without zero technical know-how. The HackerEarth coding platform is also quite flexible and offers a variety of pre-built exams, including coding tests, aptitude tests, and domain-specific examinations. It has a rich library of 17,000+ questions across 900+ skills, which is fully accessible by the hiring team. Additionally, it allows you to create custom questions yourself or use the available question libraries.

Also read: How To Create An Automated Assessment With HackerEarth

Mettl: It can be challenging for a hiring manager to use Mettl efficiently since Mettl provides limited assessment and question libraries. Also, their team creates the test for them rather than giving access to hiring managers. This results in a higher turnaround time and reduces test customization possibilities since the request has to go back to the team, they have to make the changes, and so forth.

Reporting and analytics

HackerEarth: You may assess applicant performance and pinpoint areas for improvement with the help of HackerEarth’s full reporting and analytics tools. Its personalized dashboards, visualizations, and data exports simplify evaluating assessment results and real-time insights.

Most importantly, HackerEarth includes code quality scores in candidate performance reports, which lets you get a deeper insight into a candidate’s capabilities and make the correct hiring decision. Additionally, HackerEarth provides a health score index for each question in the library to help you add more accuracy to your assessments. The health score is based on parameters like degree of difficulty, choice of the programming language used, number of attempts over the past year, and so on.

Mettl: Mettl online assessment tool provides reporting and analytics. However, there may be only a few customization choices available. Also, Mettle does not provide code quality assurance which means hiring managers have to check the whole code manually. There is no option to leverage question-based analytics and Mettl does not include a health score index for its question library.

Adopting this platform may be challenging if you want highly customized reporting and analytics solutions.

Also read: HackerEarth Assessments + The Smart Browser: Formula For Bulletproof Tech Hiring

Security and data privacy

HackerEarth: The security and privacy of user data are top priorities at HackerEarth. The platform protects data in transit and at rest using industry-standard encryption. Additionally, all user data is kept in secure, constantly monitored data centers with stringent access controls.

Along with these security measures, HackerEarth also provides IP limitations, role-based access controls, and multi-factor authentication. These features ensure that all activity is recorded and audited and that only authorized users can access sensitive data.

HackerEarth complies with several data privacy laws, such as GDPR and CCPA. The protection of candidate data is ensured by this compliance, which also enables businesses to fulfill their legal and regulatory responsibilities.

Mettl: The security and data privacy features of Mettl might not be as strong as those of HackerEarth. The platform does not provide the same selection of security measures, such as IP limitations or multi-factor authentication. Although the business asserts that it complies with GDPR and other laws, it cannot offer the same amount of accountability and transparency as other platforms.

Even though both HackerEarth and Mettl include security and data privacy measures, the Mettle alternative, HackerEarth’s platform is made to be more thorough, open, and legal. By doing this, businesses can better guarantee candidate data’s security and ability to fulfill legal and regulatory requirements.

Pricing and support

HackerEarth: To meet the demands of businesses of all sizes, HackerEarth offers a variety of customizable pricing options. The platform provides yearly and multi-year contracts in addition to a pay-as-you-go basis. You can select the price plan that best suits their demands regarding employment and budget.

HackerEarth offers chat customer support around the clock. The platform also provides a thorough knowledge base and documentation to assist users in getting started and troubleshooting problems.

Mettl: The lack of price information on Mettl’s website might make it challenging for businesses to decide whether the platform fits their budget. The organization also does not have a pay-as-you-go option, which might be problematic.

Mettl offers phone and emails customer assistance. However, the business website lacks information on support availability or response times. This lack of transparency may be an issue if you need prompt and efficient help.

User experience

HackerEarth: The interface on HackerEarth is designed to be simple for both recruiters and job seekers. As a result of the platform’s numerous adjustable choices for test creation and administration, you may design exams specifically suited to a job role. Additionally, the platform provides a selection of question types and test templates, making it simple to build and take exams effectively.

In terms of the candidate experience, HackerEarth provides a user-friendly interface that makes navigating the testing procedure straightforward and intuitive for applicants. As a result of the platform’s real-time feedback and scoring, applicants may feel more motivated and engaged during the testing process. The platform also provides several customization choices, like branding and message, which may assist recruiters in giving prospects a more exciting and tailored experience.

Mettl: The platform is intended to have a steeper learning curve than others and be more technical. It makes it challenging to rapidly and effectively construct exams and can be difficult for applicants unfamiliar with the platform due to its complex interface.

Additionally, Mettl does not provide real-time feedback or scoring, which might deter applicants from participating and being motivated by the testing process.

Also read: 6 Strategies To Enhance Candidate Engagement In Tech Hiring (+ 3 Unique Examples)

User reviews and feedback

According to G2, HackerEarth and Mettl have 4.4 reviews out of 5. Users have also applauded HackerEarth’s customer service. Many agree that the staff members are friendly and quick to respond to any problems or queries. Overall, customer evaluations and feedback for HackerEarth point to the platform as simple to use. Both recruiters and applicants find it efficient.

Mettl has received mixed reviews from users, with some praising the platform for its features and functionality and others expressing frustration with its complex and technical interface.

Free ebook to help you choose between Mettl and Mettle alternative, HackerEarth

May the best “brand” win!

Recruiting and selecting the ideal candidate demands a significant investment of time, attention, and effort.

This is where tech recruiting platforms like HackerEarth and Mettl have got you covered. They help streamline the whole process.Both HackerEarth and Mettl provide a wide variety of advanced features and capabilities for tech hiring.

We think HackerEarth is the superior choice. Especially, when contrasting the two platforms in terms of their salient characteristics and functioning. But, we may be biased!

So don’t take our word for it. Sign up for a free trial and check out HackerEarth’s offerings for yourself!

AI Recruiting

HackerEarth Assessments + The Smart Browser: Formula For Bulletproof Tech Hiring

Let’s face it—cheating on tests is quite common. While technology has made a lot of things easier in tech recruiting, it has also left the field wide open to malpractice. A 2020 report by ICAI shows that 32% of undergraduate students have cheated in some form on an online test.

It’s human nature to want to bend the rules a little bit. Which begs the question, how do you stay on top of cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of malpractice during the assessment process?

How do you ensure that take-home assessments and remote interviews stay authentic and credible? By relying on enhanced virtual supervision, of course!

HackerEarth Assessments has always been one step ahead when it comes to remote proctoring which is able to capture the nuances of candidate plagiarism. The recent advancements in technology (think generative AI) needed more robust proctoring features, so we went ahead and built The HackerEarth Smart Browser to ensure our assessments remain as foolproof as ever.

Presenting to you, the latest HackerEarth proctoring fix - The Smart Browser

Our Smart Browser is the chocolatey version of a plain donut when compared to a regular web browser. It is extra effective and comes packed with additional remote proctoring capabilities to increase the quality of your screening assessments.

The chances of a candidate cheating on a HackerEarth technical assessment are virtually zero with the latest features! Spilling all our secrets to show you why -

1. Sealed-off testing environment makes proctoring simpler

To get started with using the Smart Browser, enable the Smart Browser setting as shown above. This setting is available under the test proctoring section on the test overview page.

As you can see, several other proctoring settings such as disabling copy-paste, restricting candidates to full-screen mode, and logout on leaving the test interface are selected automatically.Now, every candidate you invite to take the assessment will only be able to do so through the Smart Browser. Candidates are prompted to download the Smart Browser from the link shared in the test invite mail.When the candidate needs to click on the ‘start test’ button on the launch test screen, it opens in the Smart Browser. The browser also prompts the candidate to switch to full-screen mode. Now, all candidates need to do is sign in and attempt the test, as usual.

Also read: 6 Ways Candidates Try To Outsmart A Remote Proctored Assessment

2. Eagle-eyed online test monitoring leaves no room for error

Eagle-eyed online test monitoring with the smart browser leaves no room for error

Our AI-enabled Smart Browser takes frequent snapshots via the webcam, throughout the assessment. Consequently, it is impossible to copy-paste code or impersonate a candidate.The browser prevents the following candidate actions and facilitates thorough monitoring of the assessment:

Screensharing the test window
Keeping other applications open during the test
Resizing the test window
Taking screenshots of the test window
Recording the test window
Using malicious keystrokes
Viewing OS notifications
Running the test window within a virtual machine
Operating browser developer tools

Any candidate actions attempting to switch tabs with the intent to copy-paste or use a generative AI like ChatGPT are shown a warning and captured in the candidate report.HackerEarth’s latest proctoring fixes bulletproof our assessment platform, making it one of the most reliable and accurate sources of candidate hiring in the market today.

Also read: 4 Ways HackerEarth Flags The Use Of ChatGPT In Tech Hiring Assessments

Experience reliable assessments with the Smart Browser!

There you have it - our newest offering that preserves the integrity of coding assessments and enables skill-first hiring, all in one go. Recruiters and hiring managers, this is one feature that you can easily rely on and can be sure that every candidate’s test score is a result of their ability alone.Curious to try out the Smart Browser? Well, don’t take our word for it. Head over here to check it out for yourself!

We also love hearing from our customers so don’t hesitate to leave us any feedback you might have.

Until then, happy hiring!

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Hiring Tools

What is Headhunting In Recruitment?: Types & How Does It Work?

In today’s fast-paced world, recruiting talent has become increasingly complicated. Technological advancements, high workforce expectations and a highly competitive market have pushed recruitment agencies to adopt innovative strategies for recruiting various types of talent. This article aims to explore one such recruitment strategy – headhunting.

What is Headhunting in recruitment?

In headhunting, companies or recruitment agencies identify, engage and hire highly skilled professionals to fill top positions in the respective companies. It is different from the traditional process in which candidates looking for job opportunities approach companies or recruitment agencies. In headhunting, executive headhunters, as recruiters are referred to, approach prospective candidates with the hiring company’s requirements and wait for them to respond. Executive headhunters generally look for passive candidates, those who work at crucial positions and are not on the lookout for new work opportunities. Besides, executive headhunters focus on filling critical, senior-level positions indispensable to companies. Depending on the nature of the operation, headhunting has three types. They are described later in this article. Before we move on to understand the types of headhunting, here is how the traditional recruitment process and headhunting are different.

How do headhunting and traditional recruitment differ from each other?

Headhunting is a type of recruitment process in which top-level managers and executives in similar positions are hired. Since these professionals are not on the lookout for jobs, headhunters have to thoroughly understand the hiring companies’ requirements and study the work profiles of potential candidates before creating a list.

In the traditional approach, there is a long list of candidates applying for jobs online and offline. Candidates approach recruiters for jobs. Apart from this primary difference, there are other factors that define the difference between these two schools of recruitment.

AspectHeadhuntingTraditional RecruitmentCandidate TypePrimarily passive candidateActive job seekersApproachFocused on specific high-level rolesBroader; includes various levelsScopeproactive outreachReactive: candidates applyCostGenerally more expensive due to expertise requiredTypically lower costsControlManaged by headhuntersManaged internally by HR teams

All the above parameters will help you to understand how headhunting differs from traditional recruitment methods, better.

Types of headhunting in recruitment

Direct headhunting: In direct recruitment, hiring teams reach out to potential candidates through personal communication. Companies conduct direct headhunting in-house, without outsourcing the process to hiring recruitment agencies. Very few businesses conduct this type of recruitment for top jobs as it involves extensive screening across networks outside the company’s expanse.

Indirect headhunting: This method involves recruiters getting in touch with their prospective candidates through indirect modes of communication such as email and phone calls. Indirect headhunting is less intrusive and allows candidates to respond at their convenience.Third-party recruitment: Companies approach external recruitment agencies or executive headhunters to recruit highly skilled professionals for top positions. This method often leverages the company’s extensive contact network and expertise in niche industries.

How does headhunting work?

Finding highly skilled professionals to fill critical positions can be tricky if there is no system for it. Expert executive headhunters employ recruitment software to conduct headhunting efficiently as it facilitates a seamless recruitment process for executive headhunters. Most software is AI-powered and expedites processes like candidate sourcing, interactions with prospective professionals and upkeep of communication history. This makes the process of executive search in recruitment a little bit easier. Apart from using software to recruit executives, here are the various stages of finding high-calibre executives through headhunting.

Identifying the role

Once there is a vacancy for a top job, one of the top executives like a CEO, director or the head of the company, reach out to the concerned personnel with their requirements. Depending on how large a company is, they may choose to headhunt with the help of an external recruiting agency or conduct it in-house. Generally, the task is assigned to external recruitment agencies specializing in headhunting. Executive headhunters possess a database of highly qualified professionals who work in crucial positions in some of the best companies. This makes them the top choice of conglomerates looking to hire some of the best talents in the industry.

Defining the job

Once an executive headhunter or a recruiting agency is finalized, companies conduct meetings to discuss the nature of the role, how the company works, the management hierarchy among other important aspects of the job. Headhunters are expected to understand these points thoroughly and establish a clear understanding of their expectations and goals.

Candidate identification and sourcing

Headhunters analyse and understand the requirements of their clients and begin creating a pool of suitable candidates from their database. The professionals are shortlisted after conducting extensive research of job profiles, number of years of industry experience, professional networks and online platforms.

Approaching candidates

Once the potential candidates have been identified and shortlisted, headhunters move on to get in touch with them discreetly through various communication channels. As such candidates are already working at top level positions at other companies, executive headhunters have to be low-key while doing so.

Assessment and Evaluation

In this next step, extensive screening and evaluation of candidates is conducted to determine their suitability for the advertised position.

Interviews and negotiations

Compensation is a major topic of discussion among recruiters and prospective candidates. A lot of deliberation and negotiation goes on between the hiring organization and the selected executives which is facilitated by the headhunters.

Finalizing the hire

Things come to a close once the suitable candidates accept the job offer. On accepting the offer letter, headhunters help finalize the hiring process to ensure a smooth transition.

The steps listed above form the blueprint for a typical headhunting process. Headhunting has been crucial in helping companies hire the right people for crucial positions that come with great responsibility. However, all systems have a set of challenges no matter how perfect their working algorithm is. Here are a few challenges that talent acquisition agencies face while headhunting.

Common challenges in headhunting

Despite its advantages, headhunting also presents certain challenges:

Cost Implications: Engaging headhunters can be more expensive than traditional recruitment methods due to their specialized skills and services.

Time-Consuming Process: While headhunting can be efficient, finding the right candidate for senior positions may still take time due to thorough evaluation processes.

Market Competition: The competition for top talent is fierce; organizations must present compelling offers to attract passive candidates away from their current roles.

Although the above mentioned factors can pose challenges in the headhunting process, there are more upsides than there are downsides to it. Here is how headhunting has helped revolutionize the recruitment of high-profile candidates.

Advantages of Headhunting

Headhunting offers several advantages over traditional recruitment methods:

Access to Passive Candidates: By targeting individuals who are not actively seeking new employment, organisations can access a broader pool of highly skilled professionals.

Confidentiality: The discreet nature of headhunting protects both candidates’ current employment situations and the hiring organisation’s strategic interests.

Customized Search: Headhunters tailor their search based on the specific needs of the organization, ensuring a better fit between candidates and company culture.

Industry Expertise: Many headhunters specialise in particular sectors, providing valuable insights into market dynamics and candidate qualifications.

Conclusion

Although headhunting can be costly and time-consuming, it is one of the most effective ways of finding good candidates for top jobs. Executive headhunters face several challenges maintaining the g discreetness while getting in touch with prospective clients. As organizations navigate increasingly competitive markets, understanding the nuances of headhunting becomes vital for effective recruitment strategies. To keep up with the technological advancements, it is better to optimise your hiring process by employing online recruitment software like HackerEarth, which enables companies to conduct multiple interviews and evaluation tests online, thus improving candidate experience. By collaborating with skilled headhunters who possess industry expertise and insights into market trends, companies can enhance their chances of securing high-caliber professionals who drive success in their respective fields.

Hiring Tools

A Comprehensive Guide to External Sources of Recruitment

The job industry is not the same as it was 30 years ago. Progresses in AI and automation have created a new work culture that demands highly skilled professionals who drive innovation and work efficiently. This has led to an increase in the number of companies reaching out to external sources of recruitment for hiring talent. Over the years, we have seen several job aggregators optimise their algorithms to suit the rising demand for talent in the market and new players entering the talent acquisition industry. This article will tell you all about how external sources of recruitment help companies scout some of the best candidates in the industry, the importance of external recruitment in organizations across the globe and how it can be leveraged to find talent effectively.

Understanding external sources of recruitment

External sources refer to recruitment agencies, online job portals, job fairs, professional associations and any other organizations that facilitate seamless recruitment. When companies employ external recruitment sources, they access a wider pool of talent which helps them find the right candidates much faster than hiring people in-house. They save both time and effort in the recruitment process.

Online job portals

Online resume aggregators like LinkedIn, Naukri, Indeed, Shine, etc. contain a large database of prospective candidates. With the advent of AI, online external sources of recruitment have optimised their algorithms to show the right jobs to the right candidates. Once companies figure out how to utilise job portals for recruitment, they can expedite their hiring process efficiently.

Social Media

Ours is a generation that thrives on social media. To boost my IG presence, I have explored various strategies, from getting paid Instagram users to optimizing post timing and engaging with my audience consistently. Platforms like FB an IG have been optimized to serve job seekers and recruiters alike. The algorithms of social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram have been optimised to serve job seekers and recruiters alike. Leveraging them to post well-placed ads for job listings is another way to implement external sources of recruitment strategies.

Employee Referrals

Referrals are another great external source of recruitment for hiring teams. Encouraging employees to refer their friends and acquaintances for vacancies enables companies to access highly skilled candidates faster.

Campus Recruitment

Hiring freshers from campus allows companies to train and harness new talent. Campus recruitment drives are a great external recruitment resource where hiring managers can expedite the hiring process by conducting screening processes in short periods.

Recruitment Agencies

Companies who are looking to fill specific positions with highly skilled and experienced candidates approach external recruitment agencies or executive headhunters to do so. These agencies are well-equipped to look for suitable candidates and they also undertake the task of identifying, screening and recruiting such people.

Job Fairs

This is a win-win situation for job seekers and hiring teams. Job fairs allow potential candidates to understand how specific companies work while allowing hiring managers to scout for potential candidates and proceed with the hiring process if possible.

Importance of External Recruitment

The role of recruitment agencies in talent acquisition is of paramount importance. They possess the necessary resources to help companies find the right candidates and facilitate a seamless hiring process through their internal system. Here is how external sources of recruitment benefit companies.

Diversity of Skill Sets

External recruitment resources are a great way for companies to hire candidates with diverse professional backgrounds. They possess industry-relevant skills which can be put to good use in this highly competitive market.

Fresh Perspectives

Candidates hired through external recruitment resources come from varied backgrounds. This helps them drive innovation and run things a little differently, thus bringing in a fresh approach to any project they undertake.

Access to Specialized Talent

Companies cannot hire anyone to fill critical roles that require highly qualified executives. This task is assigned to executive headhunters who specialize in identifying and screening high-calibre candidates with the right amount of industry experience. Huge conglomerates and companies seek special talent through external recruiters who have carved a niche for themselves.

Now that you have learnt the different ways in which leveraging external sources of recruitment benefits companies, let’s take a look at some of the best practices of external recruitment to understand how to effectively use their resources.

Best Practices for Effective External Recruitment

Identifying, reaching out to and screening the right candidates requires a robust working system. Every system works efficiently if a few best practices are implemented. For example, hiring through social media platforms requires companies to provide details about their working environment, how the job is relevant to their audience and well-positioned advertisements. The same applies to the other external sources of recruitment. Here is how you can optimise the system to ensure an effective recruitment process.

Craft Clear and Compelling Job Descriptions

Detail Responsibilities: Clearly outline the key responsibilities and expectations for the role.

Highlight Company Culture: Include information about the company’s mission, values, and growth opportunities to attract candidates who align with your organizational culture.

Leverage Multiple Recruitment Channels

Diversify Sources: Use a mix of job boards, social media platforms, recruitment agencies, and networking events to maximize reach. Relying on a single source can limit your candidate pool.

Utilize Industry-Specific Platforms: In addition to general job boards, consider niche job sites that cater to specific industries or skill sets

Streamline the Application Process

Simplify Applications: Ensure that the application process is user-friendly. Lengthy or complicated forms can deter potential candidates from applying.

Mobile Optimization: Many candidates use mobile devices to apply for jobs, so ensure your application process is mobile-friendly.

Engage in Proactive Sourcing

Reach Out to Passive Candidates: Actively seek out candidates who may not be actively looking for a job but could be a great fit for your organization. Use LinkedIn and other professional networks for this purpose.

Maintain a Talent Pool: Keep a database of previous applicants and strong candidates for future openings, allowing you to reach out when new roles become available.

Utilize Social Media Effectively

Promote Job Openings: Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to share job postings and engage with potential candidates. This approach can also enhance your employer brand

Conduct Background Checks: There are several ways of learning about potential candidates. Checking out candidate profiles on job boards like LinkedIn or social media platforms can give companies a better understanding of their potential candidates, thus confirming whether they are the right fit for the organization.

Implement Data-Driven Recruitment

Analyze Recruitment Metrics: Track key metrics such as time-to-hire, cost-per-hire, and source effectiveness. This data can help refine your recruitment strategies over time. Using external hiring software like HackeEarth can streamline the recruitment process, thus ensuring quality hires without having to indulge internal resources for the same.

Use Predictive Analytics: In this age of fast paced internet, everybody makes data-driven decisions. Using predictive analytics to study employee data will help companies predict future trends, thus facilitating a productive hiring process.

Conclusion

External sources of recruitment play a very important role in an organization’s talent acquisition strategy. By employing various channels of recruitment such as social media, employee referrals and campus recruitment drives, companies can effectively carry out their hiring processes. AI-based recruitment management systems also help in the process. Implementing best practices in external recruitment will enable organizations to enhance their hiring processes effectively while meeting their strategic goals.

AI Recruiting

Progressive Pre-Employment Assessment - A Complete Guide

The Progressive Pre-Employment Assessment is a crucial step in the hiring process, as it evaluates candidates through various dimensions including cognitive abilities, personality traits, and role-specific skills.

While employers and recruiters have this in the palm of their hand, candidates who master it will successfully navigate the assessment and have a higher chance of landing that dream job. But what does it entail in the first place?

Candidates can expect to undergo tests that assess verbal, numerical, and work style capabilities, as well as a personality assessment. Hence, understanding the structure and purpose of the Progressive Pre-Employment Assessment can give candidates a competitive edge. But before one tackles online tests, we must first dissect what this assessment is and what it consists of.

The evolution of pre-employment assessments

Pre-employment assessments have undergone significant changes over the decades, from rudimentary tests to sophisticated, modern evaluations. Let’s put the two side by side.

Traditional methods:
Initially, pre-employment assessments focused on basic skills and educational qualifications. These paper-based tests primarily assessed cognitive and verbal abilities, without any conclusions about the candidates’ output in very specific situations.
Modern techniques:
Today, online assessments are prevalent, evaluating a variety of dimensions, including cognitive skills, personality traits, and behavioral evaluations. These tools offer a more comprehensive view of a candidate's job performance potential, while, at the same time, saving precious time for both parties involved.

In today’s competitive job market, progressive pre-employment assessments play a crucial as they not only measure technical skills and knowledge but also provide insights into a candidate's ethical bias, cultural fit, and communication skills.

Likewise, assessment tests have evolved to include situational judgment tests and culture fit analyses, which are pivotal in assessing the suitability of a candidate for specific roles. And this isn’t just in terms of skillsets—they help in identifying candidates who align well with the company's values and working environment.

This is mainly for the tests’ ability to accurately gauge a candidate's interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence, which are essential for roles that require teamwork and client interactions.

What are progressive pre-employment assessments?

Progressive pre-employment assessments are structured evaluations designed to judge a candidate’s abilities and fit for a role at Progressive Insurance. Unlike traditional aptitude tests, these assessments encompass various elements such as cognitive abilities, situational judgments, and personality traits.

These tests typically include verbal and numerical reasoning sections, as well as work style assessments that gauge behavioral tendencies. Through this merger of multiple dimensions, Progressive seeks to understand not just the skills and knowledge of the candidate, but also their ethical perspectives and communication skills.

Components of a progressive assessment strategy

What sets progressive assessments apart? Well, as most employers just focus on the basic credentials and competencies, the comprehensive assessment strategy at Progressive includes several key components:

Cognitive evaluations: These tests measure candidates' logical reasoning and problem-solving capabilities through verbal, numerical, and abstract reasoning questions.
Personality assessments: These tests evaluate traits and tendencies to understand how a candidate might behave in various workplace scenarios. They aim to provide insight into their ethical bias and interpersonal skills.
Behavioral evaluations: These sections analyze how candidates might act in specific situations, ensuring a good cultural fit and alignment with Progressive's values.
Role-specific skills tests: These assessments focus on the specialized skills required for the position, ensuring the candidate has the necessary technical knowledge and expertise.

Implementing progressive assessments

Successful implementation of Progressive Assessments in the hiring process requires designing an effective assessment process and following best practices for administration. This ensures accuracy, better data security, and reliable decision-making. In particular, the implementation hinges on the feasibility of the original design.

Step 1 --- Designing the assessment process

Designing an effective Progressive Assessment involves understanding the specific needs of the role and the company's approach to hiring. Each test component — verbal, numerical, and work style — must align with the desired skills and personality traits for the role.

HR teams need to define clear objectives for each assessment section. This includes establishing what each part aims to evaluate, like the problem-solving or personality assessments. Incorporating legal and policy guidelines ensures the assessments are fair and non-discriminatory, which is crucial for avoiding legal issues.

Likewise, everaging online assessment tests provides flexibility and efficiency. These tests allow candidates to complete them remotely, easing logistics and scheduling concerns. Ensuring security is also essential, and implementing testing and other recruitment tools can help enhance data security and accuracy.

Step 2 --- Best practices for assessment administration

Administering assessments effectively revolves around consistency and fairness. Establish structured guidelines for the administration process to ensure each candidate undergoes the same conditions, promoting reliability. This includes standardizing the timing, environment, and instructions for all assessments.

Training HR representatives is vital. They should be well-versed in handling the assessments, from initial candidate interactions to evaluating the results. Regular training updates ensure the team remains knowledgeable about best practices and any new tools used in the assessment process.

Administering assessments also involves maintaining better data security and accuracy. This is achieved by utilizing secure online platforms and ensuring that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive data. Leveraging top API penetration testing tools is one approach to securing candidate data and preserving the integrity of the assessment process.

Implementing consistent feedback mechanisms for candidates can also improve the process. Providing insights on their performance helps candidates understand their strengths and areas for growth, which reflects positively on the company’s commitment to candidate experience.

Benefits of progressive assessments

Progressive assessments offer significant advantages in the hiring process, such as improving the accuracy of hiring decisions and enhancing the overall candidate experience. These benefits help companies find better-fitting candidates and reduce turnover rates.

1. Improved hiring accuracy

Progressive pre-employment assessments allow companies to evaluate candidates more comprehensively. By assessing personality traits, cognitive abilities, and ethical biases, employers can identify individuals who align with the company’s values and have the necessary skills for the job.

For example, personality assessments can pinpoint traits like empathy, communication, and problem-solving abilities. This helps employers select candidates who are not only qualified but also fit well within the team. Evaluating these qualities ensures that new hires can thrive in customer service roles where empathy and effective communication are crucial.

Moreover, using tools like the DDI Adaptive Reasoning Test helps to simulate real job tasks. This gives employers deeper insights into a candidate's capability to handle job-specific challenges. As a result, the company is more likely to experience lower turnover rates due to better candidate-job fit.

2. Enhanced candidate experience

A well-structured assessment process can significantly enhance the candidate experience. Clear instructions,fair testing procedures, and timely feedback create a positive impression of the company. Candidates appreciate transparency and feel valued when the process is designed with their experience in mind.

Implementing assessments that reflect actual job roles and responsibilities gives candidates a realistic preview of the job. This reduces later dissatisfaction and turnover. Additionally, personality assessments that highlight traits such as confidence and empathy provide a more engaging candidate experience.

Companies can also strengthen their employer brand by showcasing their commitment to a fair and comprehensive hiring process. Providing resources like practice tests helps candidates feel better prepared and less anxious about the assessment, leading to a more positive perception of the company.

Common pitfalls in progressive assessments

Candidates often struggle with the cognitive abilities section, which requires strong analytical skills and problem-solving capabilities. The situational judgment tests can also be tricky as they assess empathy, decision-making, and customer service scenarios. Personality assessments can pose challenges as well, especially for those unsure how to present their personality traits aligned with the job role.

A significant issue is also misinterpretation of the test's format and expectations. Many find it daunting to navigate through various sections, such as verbal, numerical, and work style assessments. Lastly, some candidates might overlook the legal nuances of personality assessments or document redaction protocols, leading to compliance issues.

Strategies to overcome challenges

To tackle cognitive abilities assessments, candidates should engage in consistent practice with sample questions and mock tests. This helps enhance their analytical and problem-solving skills. For situational judgment tests, it is essential to practice empathy and customer service scenarios to develop a better understanding of role-specific challenges.

In personality assessments, being honest while demonstrating relevant personality traits like being a team player is crucial. Seeking guidance from study materials such as Job Test Prep can provide a realistic testing environment.

Understanding legal considerations, such as those around document redaction, is important for compliance. Utilizing a document redaction SDK can ensure adherence to required policies. Familiarity with each section's format will aid in navigating the assessments confidently and effectively.

Trends and innovations in employee assessments

There is a growing emphasis on AI-powered assessments —these tools analyze vast amounts of data to predict a candidate's job performance, ensuring a more objective and efficient selection process.

Personality assessments are evolving to include metrics like empathy and communication skills, which are crucial for roles in customer service and other people-centric positions.

Additionally, gamified assessments, which make the evaluation process engaging, are gaining popularity. They not only assess problem-solving skills but also gauge how candidates perform under pressure.

Organizations can prepare for the future by integrating cutting-edge technologies into their hiring processes. Investing in training for evaluators to accurately interpret new assessment metrics is crucial. This involves

understanding how to measure soft skills such as empathy and effective communication.

Moreover, companies should stay updated on legal requirements to maintain compliance and ensure fair assessment practices.

Encouraging candidates to focus on developing their personality traits, such as being team players and showing confidence, can also better prepare them for progressive assessments that look beyond technical skills.

The strategic value of progressive assessments

Progressive pre-employment assessments rigorously evaluate candidates on multiple fronts, including cognitive abilities, situational judgment, personality fit, and role-specific skills. This multifaceted approach not only helps in identifying the best match for specific roles but also reduces the risk of bad hires.

By investing in these assessments, companies can significantly enhance their recruitment processes. Consistent use of these tools leads to more informed decision-making, reducing turnover rates and ensuring employee retention.

Appropriate preparation and implementation of these assessments can streamline the hiring pipeline, saving time and resources. Furthermore, this approach bolsters team performance and aligns employee roles with their strengths, promoting a culture of efficiency and productivity. While Progressive is far from the only company using this approach, they’ve set a standard in terms of looking at candidates holistically and making sure they’re truly ready for the job.

Frequently Asked Questions

This section covers common inquiries related to the Progressive Pre-Employment Assessments, including differences from psychometric tests, benefits for small businesses, legal considerations, and the role of technology.

How do progressive assessments differ from psychometric testing?

Progressive assessments typically examine a candidate's ethical bias and personality traits. In contrast, psychometric tests focus on cognitive abilities and personality dimensions. The Progressive Pre-Employment Assessment includes verbal, numerical, and work style components, offering a broader evaluation spectrum.

Can small businesses benefit from implementing progressive assessment strategies?

Small businesses can gain significant advantages from adopting progressive assessment strategies. These assessments help identify candidates that align closely with the company’s values and culture, reducing turnover rates. Additionally, they provide insights into a candidate's ethical stance and work style, which are crucial for cohesive team dynamics.

What are the legal considerations when using pre-employment assessments?

Legal considerations include ensuring compliance with equal employment opportunity laws and avoiding discrimination based on race, gender, or disability. It is essential to validate the assessment tools and ensure they are scientifically proven to be fair. Companies must also maintain transparency about the purpose and usage of the assessments.

How can technology enhance the effectiveness of progressive assessments?

Technology can streamline the assessment process by allowing candidates to complete the tests remotely. Advanced analytics help in the accurate interpretation of results, ensuring a better match between the candidate and the job role. Many platforms offer practice tests that mirror the actual assessment, aiding in preparation and reducing test anxiety.

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