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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.
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.
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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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.
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Technology has been an enabler at workplaces. With the advent of solutions such as the Cloud, employers are now empowered to hire and manage a workforce that is no longer confined to brick-and-mortar offices.
Gone are the days when organizations had to follow an office-based work culture and suffered losses when the employees couldn’t make it to the office.
Technology helps teams stay connected irrespective of their location. This has helped organizations keep their employees happy and productive and has also encouraged diverse hiring policies.
Even though the transformation has many advantages, it has also created new challenges for leaders in Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development. Leaders now find it difficult to ensure training and reskilling sessions for employees working remotely.
According to a recent survey by Gallup, 43% of the 15,000 employees surveyed claimed that they spent at least some time working remotely in 2016, whereas this number was just 4% in 2012.
There has been a lot of debate over why we need a remote workforce despite various facts and figures being presented in favor.
Offices in cities like Mumbai and Chennai had to shut down due to heavy downpour. Organizations with remote work policies continued business operations, while others suffered losses.
Building Independent Critical Thinking Skills
Remote working helps groom employees into critical thinkers by promoting individual accountability and decision-making.
Building Trust
Managers and employees must trust each other. Remote workers often show increased responsibility and productivity.
Diversity and Inclusion
Remote work enables those who can't commute—like new parents or older professionals—to contribute meaningfully. It helps build a multi-generational, inclusive workforce.
“While the thought of working remotely appeals to a lot of people, it’s not for everyone... it takes a certain kind of person.” — Krisha Buehler, HR Head at BELAY
10 Steps to Managing Remote Teams Effectively
1. Invest in the Right Technology
Use AI-driven hiring tools like Recruit or Zapier for better screening and tracking of applicants. Free eBook
2. Chalk Out the Right Processes
Share clear hiring processes and onboarding kits to ensure candidates understand the company culture and expectations.
3. Explain Your Vision Well
Sell your organizational vision with purpose, especially since remote hires don’t experience daily in-office culture.
4. Focus on Transparency
Set honest expectations during hiring. Ensure candidates understand both the flexibility and responsibility of remote work.
5. Set Reasonable Expectations
Define work hours, responsibilities, and deliverables clearly for remote employees.
6. Ensure Data Security
Use encrypted WANs, VPNs, and security protocols to protect sensitive data. Free eBook
7. Deploy Experts Wherever Needed
Consult experts when implementing new tech and strategies for remote workforce management.
8. Build a Sense of Community
Keep remote workers engaged with recognition programs and simple appreciation gestures. Learn more
9. Don’t Ignore Their Learning & Development
Use e-learning and Learning Management Systems (LMS) to offer consistent development opportunities. More info
10. Don’t Forget Face-to-Face Interaction
Organize in-person meetings occasionally to build stronger team relationships.
Challenges of Managing Remote Teams
1. Communication Barriers
Lack of face-to-face interaction may cause misunderstandings.
Time zone differences slow down decision-making.
2. Cultural Differences
Diverse work ethics and communication styles can lead to friction.
Language nuances impact clarity.
3. Monitoring and Productivity
It’s difficult to assess remote employee performance directly.
Balance issues may lead to burnout or disengagement.
4. Team Cohesion and Culture
It’s harder to create team spirit without regular personal interactions.
Isolation can affect mental well-being.
5. Technology Dependence and Issues
Heavy reliance on tech means failures can disrupt work.
Not all employees may be comfortable with digital tools.
This article has been updated on February 20th, 2023.
To hire a software developer and a talented one at that is akin to winning the lottery, especially in today’s competitive market. It’s like the Hunger Games out there! To quote, “We fight, we dare, we end our hunger for justice.” — but for developers instead 😛
“People are the most important component of almost any business, and attracting the best talent possible is going to make a huge difference,” says Peter Berg, founder of the consulting firm October Three. There is no disputing this, is there?
Finding people with the right skills, meeting salary and benefits expectations, competing with larger brands, and immigration regulations are perhaps the greatest hiring challenges for any tech company. Add recession, a global pandemic, and the fact that you want potential candidates to work for a startup (in this unstable economy) to that mix. Good luck ever finding anybody!
Startups are notoriously known for failing. In fact, studies show 9 out of 10 startups fail. Understandably, tempting talented candidates to apply for open roles at your organization can be difficult. So how do you go about attracting qualified developers to apply to your startup?
We’ve got you covered. In this post, we will:
Give actionable tips on how to attract software developers
Bring you some great ways to source, screen, and interview software developers without making a dent in your already stretched budget
What do software developers look for in a job?
And no, the answer is not “competitive salary”. Step 0 is to attract developers before moving on to interviewing or hiring them.
Recruiters, ask yourselves this—what do developers want from their job? Is it a better work-life balance? Personal growth potential? Or flexible schedules? Walk a mile in a developer’s shoes to understand what they look for in an ideal job opportunity and what makes them happy. Then you’ll be one step closer to attracting and hiring the cream of the crop out there!
A few vital benefits to offer include:
Flexible work schedules
Developers crave flexibility. They like to identify their most productive hours and set their work timings accordingly. Offer remote/hybrid working models for your devs with the option to structure their workday around their needs—the 9–5 model is slowly becoming a thing of the past. If their company stood by rigid work schedules and returned to working from an office full-time, people will switch jobs in a heartbeat as seen during the Great Resignation.
Providing good growth opportunities
Findings from our annual Developer Survey show that both beginner devs and experienced software professionals can be wooed by offers of a good career growth curve (~60%)—it’s a must-have requirement when looking for a new job. Offer valuable learning and development opportunities for your software developers to enable them to build their portfolio as well as keep them satisfied enough to stay with your organization. Take HackerEarth’s L&D platform for instance—it helps you identify skills gaps as well as curate customized learning paths for individual employees.
Wellness benefits
In a post-pandemic world, mental health is no longer “a good-to-have perk”. It’s become a priority. Therefore, promote self-care and stress management by providing mental health counseling and diet, exercise, and wellness coaching. Managers are not mental health experts but they can point their developers in the right direction—encourage them to seek help from the resources available. We, at HackerEarth, are pre-registered for 1to1help, an emotional well-being Employee Assistance Program that helps employees prioritize mental health. They conduct regular sessions on achieving work-life balance, managing anxiety, why taking care of mental health is important, and so on.
This is not an exhaustive list by any means. Here are some more employee perks and benefits that can attract developers to apply to your organization. 👇
Whether you are an employer or an employee, you need to think beyond résumés to stay ahead of the game.
From hackathons to automated evaluation tools, semantic analysis to personality tests, social hiring to website scraping, recruiting is being reinvented and how.
A “one-size-fits-all” strategy certainly doesn’t cut it.
Résumés will take you only so far.
Research shows that context-dependent skills and passion for the job will continue to drive hiring more than ever.
Here is a quick overview of the top nine sources when scouting for technical talent.
Even if you are not a programmer yourself, these places should help you build a good talent pipeline.
LinkedIn
How are recruiters using LinkedIn for hiring developers?
Recruiters can post jobs, source talent, and build the company brand easily using LinkedIn Talent Solutions.
LinkedIn has over 400 million people! Follow etiquette before all else for optimal results.
Use your profile and company page
Potential candidates will see your personal brand as a reflection of the employer brand.
A good recruiting profile has a friendly profile picture, an interesting descriptive headline, a summary that showcases your professional story and the company culture, goals, accomplishments, and candidate expectations in the best possible light.
Encourage discussions to build your brand.
Establish yourself as a thought leader by publishing engaging, insightful content, either curated or original.
Create a career page, apart from your company page.
Read a bit about the publishing platform, LinkedIn Pulse, here.
Read more on how to share content using this news aggregation feed here.
Use the built-in analytics features to capture valuable insights for data-driven recruiting.
Say, your company is organizing a Swift hackathon, then you can sponsor an update to software professionals and students nearby, expanding your network with new followers.
Use the built-in dashboard to study the impressions, engagement, clicks, shares, likes, and acquisition.
Read more on some best practices for sponsored content here.
*Note that you can’t publish sponsored updates without a company page and an advertising account.
Use your network
Beef up your existing network through content that might interest programmers. Once again, use sponsored content or company updates to grab attention.
LinkedIn Elevate gives your employees quality shareable content, thereby influencing future recruits in their networks.
People are more likely to believe employees than recruiter spiel. Studies show that people who use this tool,
share four times more than before
drive forty percent more followers
drive three times more job views
Build a referral chain, and run referral contests or referral programs that reward the participants.
*Data suggests that “it takes 29 days to hire a referred candidate, 39 days to hire a candidate through a job posting, and 55 days to hire a candidate through a career site.”
Go here to see how you can use LinkedIn Referrals to get the most out of your employees’ networks.
Go here to see different types of referral programs to source the best candidates.
One of the most effective ways to humanize your brand is by adding recommendations or testimonials.
Don’t forget to tag connections.
For example, a recruiter can group Python developers using tags.
Scan the events section for valuable connections in the attendee list. Or, list an event to spread the word.
Use ads
LinkedIn has a minimum daily budget that you have to spend on your ads.
Your ROI is much higher than any other internet advertising mediums.
You can attract the attention of people who are checking out profiles of employees in your organization by using Recruitment Ads beside these employee profiles.
Go here for some inspirational ads to boost hiring.
Sponsored ads specifically reach the right audience and have proved to be very useful in getting new followers.
Text ads simply display the information you provide under the column “ads you make like” on the right side.
Personalized messages can be delivered to a target hire’s inbox.
Use paid options
LinkedIn offers paid services to find passive candidates with access to a wider pool of talent and features to “build a candidate pipeline.”
The advanced search and filter options on offer with a premium account help you source quickly and nurture relationships with top talent easily.
Free (typically done via status updates, job discussions/groups, or creative presentations) and paid job advertising gets you relevant clicks from your target audience.
Participating in group discussions can be really effective to increase the visibility of your brand among the developers and foster your relationship with them.
Here are a few LinkedIn groups that you as an IT recruiter should join for networking, knowing about the latest trends in tech, engaging with the talent, and posting jobs:
When your company creates an ad with great visuals, make sure it includes all pertinent job posting details.
Go here for WordStream’s infographic on ad targeting options FB offers.
Read about FB ad types, costs/pricing, and guidelines here.
Tips
Find suitable programmers using the FB Graph Search feature. Organic search can’t help you look beyond employees’ friends.
Read how to use the graph search option for recruiting here.
Don’t create work and a personal FB account as this is against the Terms of Service. Create a “candidates” list and make employer information and hiring posts available only to that audience. Only you know about the privacy restrictions.
GitHub
GitHub is an online project-hosting service site where developers share their open- source projects.
You can collect contact information from this hotbed of emerging and established technical talent from around the globe.
Perhaps no other platform has so many programmers in one place. “It is the largest code host in the world.”
Once you have a public account up and running, you can get details such as a candidate’s current employer, location, email address, websites she has chosen to display, number of followers (the number telling how good they are at what they do and how respected), GitHub contributions (notice the keywords, for example, Django, Ruby on Rails), and repositories.
Your search could be:language: ruby location: San Jose followers: > 15.
After filtering your search results (best matches on top), you can reach out to people of interest. Remember to do a bit of research about their work on the site, public activity, and cross-check on other social media sites if possible.
You want Code listed as Sources, not Forked.
Tips
Use tools such as SourceHub to find candidates easily.
Note that GitHub wasn’t designed for sourcing, so people may not respond. Find a less direct way to approach them.
Pick a talented programmer from your company, find her on GitHub, and identify similar people from the follower list.
Stack Overflow
Stack Overflow is an online community for programmers to learn, share their knowledge, and advance their careers.
Currently, it’s a community of 6.9 million programmers where sort-out developers post their day-to-day questions seeking help and advice from other developers.
Use Google search bar to search for candidates with specific skill-set in a particular location because the Stack Overflow search interface is limited. For example, to find android developers in the “Portland” area, in the Google search bar, you can type: “site:stackoverflow.com/users Android (“location*oregon” │”location*portland” │”location*or”)
Add a tag (say, the area of expertise such as Flask) as the keyword to find developers who posted or answered questions from that tag.
Use Stack Overflow job listings portal to subscribe to Stack Overflow talent.
You can find basic details and summary about programmers, answers they have provided, questions they’ve asked, and a rank/reputation based on how the candidates’ questions and answers are perceived by others.
Tip
Use Stack Overflow badges to search for great candidates.
Find passive candidates by going to the Careers section; you’ll get an idea about what sort of opportunities they may be looking for.
Construct MySQL queries to search data.stackexchange.com.
Use properly constructed simple queries on recruitin.net to search Stack Overflow.
Read more about sourcing programmers using GitHub and StackOverflow here.
Reddit
Reddit is an online community where users submit content, such as text posts or direct links, in very specific “subreddits” (areas of interest such as news, gaming, music, books, and technology).
Users can vote submissions up or down.
As of early 2017, Reddit had 542 million monthly visitors (234 million unique users) and was the seventh most visited website in the US.
Various developers and thought leaders ask questions and discussion on technology in the Technology section. This can be an amazing place for you to discover highly skilled programmers.
Create a personal or company profile after you’ve understood the somewhat complex interface.
Use the search bar to find relevant subreddits using keywords like technical hiring, hire, tech jobs etc.
Note that Reddit has its own Boolean search terminology. Although it is more limited than some other sites such as LinkedIn, if you are looking for a Python developer who is actively looking to be hired, you can try this: subreddit:forhire selftext:python. If this gets you too many results, use more filters such as time.
Once you find your subreddit, you can share your well-defined job description after you read the Rules.
You can also contact a Redditor looking for a job in the technical domain.
Quora is a Q&A site which facilitates social interactions and interesting conversations.
Just like you would when using any niche community for recruiting, you will need to first establish yourself as a thought leader, for example, by answering questions on hiring. Build your reputation.
You can identify domain experts by going through topics of interest. For example, if you are interested in Go, you can find people who consistently provide accurate answers.
Initiate conversations with the experts and keep in touch. You may just be the recruiter of choice when they start looking for jobs!
If nothing else, listen to what people are saying about your company and hiring process. This will help you design your strategy better.
Pick up pointers on better-recruiting processes, developers’ pain points, and general know-how in the tech area.
Glassdoor
“Glassdoor is a bit like TripAdvisor for HR, gathering user-generated, anonymous reviews about companies and company life,” says Jonathan Bright in his post on the Business 2 Community website. The candid content prompts potential hires to check out employer ratings before they sign on the dotted lines. A promising tool for recruiting, Glassdoor exerts a huge social influence on job aspirants.
Sign up for an Enhanced Employer Profile and make the most of it. Tap into the potential hires’ needs, paint wonderful pictures of the work culture, growth opportunities, work-life balance, and other company policies (which are true, of course).
Go here to know more about Glassdoor for Employers.
Take pains with your Employee Value Proposition. How you present it and how you promote your company brand makes or breaks a deal.
Tips
It is hard to fake content on Glassdoor. So, be genuine and transparent and earn trust.
Gather “competitive intelligence” from Glassdoor before you create your employer profile.
Use metrics to better identify your target audience and tailor your hiring approach.
Meetup.com is an amazing networking site which unites people with shared professional interests.
With 30.3 million members and more than 0.25 million groups, it’s one of the largest networks of developers all around the world.
Meetup allows members to find and join groups unified by a common interest. It’s designed so that organizers can manage events associated with in-person meetings.
For individuals, it can help them find groups that fit their interests and attend events in their preferred location.
But you can use meetup to find potential candidates without having to go to any events as many of meetup’s groups and attendee lists are public.
Find groups of interest (according to location, skills, etc.) using specific keywords. For example, you can find tech meetups within 25 miles of Melbourne, you can browse by country, state, city and the topic of your interest (in our case, it’s tech).
Look at the meetup members’ profile and evaluate them through their introduction, interests, and answers to group questions. (Highlight “members” in the image.)
Get a list of other groups they’ve joined. This would help demarcate serious ones from the others. Also, you’ll get to know about their interest areas. (Highlight Members of 11 other meetups.)
Once you’ve made your interest list, for reference, check their Twitter, Google+, blogs, or sites (if any) to know more about them. Once you’ve filtered your candidates, you can send them a personalized email through meetup which goes to their personal e-mail address as that’s the same address where their meetup updates are sent to.
In this era of digitalization, we daily come across innumerable ads, emails, offers, sales pitches and a lot of other things.
So as a recruiter, how can you differentiate yourself and your company from others?
Personal relationships not only can enable you and your organization to stand out but can create an image of an outstanding brand for which people would want to work.
And to develop these relationships, as a recruiter, developer events can provide you with an opportunity to network with the most sort-out technical experts.
You can make connections and build mutually beneficial relationships with them.
These events happen around the year globally and your colleagues and you can be part of it.
Over coffee, lunch, or cocktails, you can make connections and spread awareness about how awesome your company is for the developers.
Maybe at a breakout session, you may find your next tech star.
Tips
There are various sites which provide you with information about these events. Search on Google will give you these on top:
Companies conduct hackathons to foster innovation and get out-of-the-box ideas to create efficient and highly effective products.
Irrespective of the format or theme of a hackathon, participants are expected to build something from scratch and typically complete the challenge with a working prototype.
Hackathons are one of their favorite talent-discovery activities, say recruiters.
External hackathons are amazing places to network with exceptional talent and industry experts.
You can skillfully build a talent pipeline of hardworking, smart, and passionate programmers by attending the right events.
The participants will need to work collaboratively and competitively against time and resource constraints; this gives a recruiter a complete picture of the programmers in their “natural habitat.”
Companies also conduct internal hackathons to crowdsource ideas and identify untapped exceptional talent in their workforce.
Read more about how hackathons can be leveraged by HR here.
Tips
Go here for some pointers on how to successfully recruit at hackathons.
Companies such as HackerEarth and Hackfest offer platforms to conduct, manage, or organize hackathons easily.
Conclusion
Recruiters can use these ideas to rope in the best programmers looking for a challenging and rewarding opportunities. Admittedly, finding them can be overwhelming.
No matter which source you turn to, remember to hire a programmer who fits into your work environment in terms of vision and commitment.
To ensure better chances of success, you can give them audition projects or bring them on board as consultants initially.
Take your time.
There’s more to a programmer than knowing how to code. “It’s really just about logical thinking and analysis,” says Zack Haehn, Bloomberg’s Software Engineering Head.
React.js and Vue.js are two of the most popular JavaScript frameworks. The duo are on the list of 10 best JavaScript frameworks to use in 2019, which says a lot about them. As such, both frameworks are great options to learn while aiming for learning or advancing in JavaScript.
Nonetheless, learning either of the two leading JS frameworks demands time and effort. Therefore, when required to make a choice, which one must gain preference over the other? Well, it’s not all black and white.
So, before we decide which should be prioritized over the other, React.js or Vue.js, let’s first have a brief introduction to both the JS frameworks.
React.js
Initially Released – May 2013
Used for – Front-end development
Though considered a leading JS framework, React.js isn’t essentially a framework. Instead, it is a front-end library created by Facebook for building user interfaces. Nonetheless, it is an excellent option for developing dynamic, full-scale applications.
One of the most outstanding features supported by React.js is the concept of virtual DOM. If you’re to give a React interview, expect queries related to virtual DOM coming your way along with other important React interview questions.
As the virtual DOM is capable of being rendered from both sides, i.e., the client-side and the server-side, React.js offers a high-performance rendering of complex user interfaces. Other than Facebook and Instagram, React.js is adopted by BBC, Netflix, and PayPal.
Vue.js
Initially Released – February 2014
Used for – Front-end development
Originally developed by Evan You, Vue.js is an open-source JavaScript framework that has an immense potential presently being exploited by web developers from across the globe. Adobe, Alibaba, EuroNews, Grammarly, and Xiaomi are some of the top brands benefitting from Vue.js.
Among all the JavaScript frameworks, Vue.js is the ideal option when it comes to simplicity. Moreover, it is one of the fastest-growing JS frameworks that allows updating model and views via two-way data binding.
In addition to AngularJS, KnockoutJS, and RivetsJS, the development of Vue.js has also drawn inspiration from React.js. Hence, there are several similarities between React.js and Vue.js, including the server-side rendering and using a virtual DOM.
React.js or Vue.js: Which one to pick for learning?
So now that we’re acquainted with React.js and Vue.js frameworks, it’s time to decide which one to learn first. Frankly, it’s up to the learner to determine which one to choose. To aid the process, we’ll discuss various important differences between the two JS frameworks below:
1.Community and resources
Of course, being supported by the world’s two leading social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram, isn’t something trivial. Throughout its tenure of over 5 years, React.js has accrued a grand community, which is expanding incessantly.
Thanks to the strong community backing, React.js developers receive instant help from veterans from around the world. Moreover, there are plenty of libraries and resources available for the leading JavaScript framework.
Although Vue.js was released only a couple of months after React.js, it was initially popular in China. It took some time for the JS framework to make its way to the western world. Hence, it has a relatively smaller, yet active, community.
Because Vue.js has a smaller community, fewer libraries are available to extend the functionality of the JS framework. It will take some more time for the Vue.js to flaunt a massive resource base like that supported by React.js or Angular. There are already a good number of Vue.js tutorial available online.
2.Data binding
Vue.js automatically synchronizes the complete model with the DOM and the data flows in both the directions. Hence, it supports two-way data binding.
React.js, on the contrary, offers one-way data binding. In this approach, the view reacts to any change made to the model, but the view can’t affect the model. As a consequence of one-way data binding, data flows in only one direction.
3. Documentation
The volume of documentation available for React.js is enormous! Moreover, as many individuals contribute to it, it can be hard to find what you are looking for. Documentation guides and API references pertaining to Vue.js are simpler and easier to navigate, so getting started is a cinch if you have some experience with JS and HTML.
4. Further development
React.js is one of the most rapidly developing JavaScript frameworks. Maintenance and further development of the popular JS framework rest in the hands of Facebook and a team of volunteers.
Vue.js is an open-source framework that is expanding continuously. Its maintenance and development are controlled by its original developer Evan You and the community.
5. Learnability
Another important difference between React.js and Vue.js is the learning curve. React.js is an elaborate JS framework that requires a decent amount of time and effort to understand. There is a variety of semi-advanced to advanced concepts, helper libraries, and coding practices that can be intimidating for beginners.
Vue.js is a lightweight JS framework that stresses a minimalistic approach. In addition to being easy to implement, the JavaScript framework is relatively easy to comprehend.
6. Reliance on third-party technologies
As React.js is a JS library; the possibilities that a developer can have while working solely with it is limited. It is often mandatory to extend the functionality of React.js, for which developers need to rely on third-party modules and libraries.
Vue.js, on the other hand, is a complete JavaScript framework on its own. Hence, it offers a wide variety of opportunities. Furthermore, using third-party technologies can help further extend functionality. However, it isn’t necessary to use them.
7. Templates
Vue.js makes use of declarative templates. These are completely written in HTML. Hence, it makes them readable without any knowledge of other programming languages. Unlike Vue.js, React.js doesn’t use any templates. Instead, it relies on something called a component model. Although many front-end JS frameworks now use the component model, it was React.js that introduced the idea. The component logic in React.js is written in JavaScript. This allows for better flexibility, enabling rich data to pass through an application easily, and keeping the state out of the DOM.
These were some of the notable differences between React.js and Vue.js. Now, it should be easier for you to decide which one to pick if you had the choice to only learn one of the two leading JavaScript frameworks. To further help you decide which one to pick over the other, the following section highlights the type of applications preferred to build using the two JS frameworks:
When to use React.js?
Dynamic applications – React.js is an ideal pick for building an application that requires re-rendering quickly. This is due to the JS framework’s ability to instantly reflect data changes in the view.
Native mobile applications – Reactive Native, a framework for building native apps using React, allows developing mobile applications that are almost identical to the ones built using Java or Objective-C.
SPAs – Because React.js is capable of displaying changes in the content without reloading the current page, it is best suited for building single-page applications.
When to use Vue.js?
Dynamic performant applications – Like React.js, Vue.js is a great option when developing dynamic applications. However, because it offers better performance than React.js, it is ideal for building dynamic applications that need to be highly performant.
SPAs – Vue.js allows changing the content quickly without reloading the page. Hence, it is ideal for developing Single Page Applications (SPAs). Again, SPAs built using Vue.js perform slightly better than those built using React.js.
Which JavaScript framework should I learn first?
Vue.js is simpler to learn while learning React.js comparatively takes more time and effort. Hence, it’s all up to your comfort level. The two JS frameworks share several similarities, e.g. the virtual DOM, so learning one will assist in learning the other.
Different JavaScript frameworks are developed to meet a certain set of requirements. For a JS developer, it is desirable to have a working knowledge of several frameworks.
JavaScript has something coming up every now and then. Hence, it is advised to keep a close eye on the latest JavaScript news and happenings to stay relevant in the continually transforming IT industry.
Conclusion
React.js and Vue.js are two of the leading JavaScript frameworks. Learning either of them will boost your marketability as a JS developer. Learning both of them is an even better option, provided you get the time and effort for doing so.
Disregard of the order in which you learn the two JS frameworks, having adequacy in React.js and Vue.js will undoubtedly boost your reputation as a JavaScript developer.As a leading JS framework, React.js is often compared with other popular JS frameworks, most notably Angular. Here is a detailed comparison drawn between Angular and React.js that any JS developer must know about.
I have always dreamt of working for an organization where loads of responsibilities are placed on their employees. And HackerEarth does just that! Obviously, you get hired because of your skills, but founders and managers expect much more. Opportunities for learning and growth are plenty, as often, you work outside your job description. Everyone works together and the best part is, there's no middle management, so you learn from the best.
It was a pleasure to join the Inside Sales team as a Market Research intern. Interning at HackerEarth gave me the freedom to learn from many vertices. Everyone at HackerEarth has the license to show off their brilliance. Delivering results with fresh designs and pitching in new concepts that capture consumer interests happen almost everyday! There’s pressure to break new ground, but dynamic energy drives the progress here. Pride in growing the company and sharing in its ups and downs creates a tight-knit team.
Not to forget, HackerEarth is one of the coolest places to work in. Plenty of perks keep employees happy, such as quarterly outings, flexible working hours, free food, a casual atmosphere, a gaming zone, etc.Every quarter, the entire organization gathers for a session with the CEO, Sachin Gupta. He gives an insight about the company, industry trends, what the company has achieved so far, what it intends to achieve, and much more. The level of transparency is impeccable! A special shoutout to Shishir, Head of Inside Sales, and probably the most resourceful person I have ever known. He helped me get a hang of things, starting right from the basics.
My Experience:
As a fresh MBA graduate, HackerEarth was the perfect place to calm my hunger - the hunger for knowledge, career growth, and skill development. As a Market Research intern, I learned that it is one of the most interesting and fastest growing fields to be in. It has a wide scope in the international forefront. This role not only improved my theoretical skills but also gave me hands-on experience in sales, marketing, lead generation, and business development. Apart from being one of the foremost startups in the country, HackerEarth also provides a fair working environment. The young and talented employees here are ready to walk an extra mile when you are in dire need.HackerEarth has an open culture and everyone is free to suggest new ideas and changes. There’s no scope of boring preset “to-do” lists; it is a world full of new challenges and possibilities. Yes, working at HackerEarth is an adventure!
Take Away:
It is said that good salespeople are hard to find, effective sales managers are rare commodities, and an outstanding sales director is like the proverbial needle in a haystack. The sales team at HackerEarth is exactly opposite of what is stated above. I was fortunate enough to work with this outstanding team - their effectiveness and principles are beyond brilliant!
I can confidently say that HackerEarth is “The Company” where one can acquire new prowesses and upskill themselves in a very short span of time. In only six months, I learned about consumer/client behavior, different research techniques, analytical skills, various marketing methods, to name a few. The company truly lives by its motto, “Everyone here is an owner of the company and we are always open to hearing people who can help us become better.” Career development opportunities are excellent for those with a go-to attitude and motivation to turn ideas into reality.
Small gestures can have a big impact. Create where it matters.
We at HackerEarth believe in it and have spent no single day without working toward the same.
Early 2018, we promised ourselves to create an environment which would bring a culture of positivity and change in the developer ecosystem.
We decided to create these footprints with a hackathon, a platform which helps you express your creative potential. And these potentials are the stepping stone to open innovation.
Open innovation is about combining internal and external resources to create efficient and beneficial solutions.” – Dr. Matt Chapman, Mindjet
When it came to attempting analyzing our hypotheses to standout amongst the most paramount open-source hackathons of 2018, there was no preferred choice over HackerEarth’s very own Djangothon. HackerEarth Djangothon is stepping to a culture of open innovation.
#Flashback
6 years ago when we started HackerEarth, Python and Django came to us as a natural choice. (This was more than intuition!)
Django gave us the tools and flexibility to build a platform that was flexible yet robust.
And this helped us built one of the largest developer communities in the world, with over 2.5 million developers.
Today there are millions of lines of code written in python and Django running in production. (This story is no way related to Dr. Strange)
In layman’s terms, Djangothon is a tribute to the Django web framework, a dedicated Django hackathon where we solely focus on enhancing, building, and adding to Django packages.
Our engineering culture embodies the essence of open source, and it’s a small contribution to the community - atoken of respect, a small payback.
So the question was, how can we make Djangothon worthy for developers? How can we create a greater impact on an open source community? And how do we make Djangathon more than just ‘another hackathon’? (Read this in Bill Pullman from Independence day voice)
In any case, how can we make Djangothon noteworthy and not just another hackathon for developers? The answer:
Let’s make it personal
#PresentDay
Indeed, even a normal hackathon accompanies dozens of challenges, and the chances of pulling off a trick like personalization was out and out a puzzle.
We had 24 hours to know each hacker present at Djangothon.
However, since every hacker was trying to utilize those 24 hours to the most, we realized that not all of them would be available for an up-close-and-personal discussion.
They would want to concentrate on their tasks.
At HackerEarth, we believe every hacker has an individual identity. Over the years, we have built a meaningful and lasting relationship with our community to show them they are valued, and we wanted to do just that even this time around.
We ensure that the hackers remember us for the way we made them feel, the time they spent with us, and conversations we had around the hacks they built.
So, to make this Djangathon a memorable and everlasting experience, tech and marketing created the most fascinating ally.
Hackers will remember the hackathon they attended. When they do, make sure they also remember how we made them feel. – Han Solo
From an organization’s perspective, we were aware that getting developers together in one place and asking them to make an open source contribution would not convey the experience we wanted our brand to offer.
That’s why our focus was to create an environment in which the participants could bond and socialize, infusing code with fun!
Providing travel reimbursements, free food, and other such things are important, but not enough. For example, an engineer who buckled down free food and did not win may go home. However, he/she may not be intrigued whenever you say, “Hey John, I hope you liked working at our office overnight and the free pizza. Would you like to join us for the next hackathon?.” I mean, c’mon, something extra needs to be done for so much of hard work!
Nothing piques the interest of a developer more than “Developer Swag!”
No matter how old or young you are, if you are a hackathon enthusiast, you unquestionably look forward to it. Some developers even carry the sentiment, “These swags can never be bought; you earn them.”
As hackathons are becoming increasingly popular, companies and organizers are coming up with many out-of-the-box ideas for swags. And being one of the industry leaders in hackathons, we had a reputation to uphold!
We knew, this is where personalization would come into the picture.
In this blog, I am going to share the factors that allowed us to stand out amongst the most anticipated open source hackathons of 2018.
1. The kickoff — How we kick-started Djangothon
The first impression has a significant impact on the participants. A warm greeting and welcoming smile was step one in making the developers feel at home. In addition, we got one of our founders to address the developers, share the origin story, and tell them why we continue to host such hackathons.
Djangothon registration-desk opened at about 10:00 am and we formally commenced the hackathon at 11:00 am, with Vivek Prakash (CTO HackerEarth) delivering the keynote. He spoke about Django, what it means to HackerEarth, and how it has helped build a robust and scalable platform for one of the largest developer communities in the world. Vivek spoke about how 20 developers in 2013 built the foundation of HackerEarth on Django, the first Djangothon (2015), and how far we have come.
Hackathons are a great platform to engage and learn. Informative sessions like tech talks are a great way to engage the developers. For some developers, this is an opportunity to learn something new, and for others, it acts as a refresher. It is always wise to invite local experts who are well versed with the topic. Rolling out proposal application for these talks helps one being prepared in terms of the content of the speech and making sure this content aligns with the agenda of the hackathon. The speakers can also step ahead, making time for answering the queries and speaking with participants about their ideas, challenges, and approaches
At Djangothon we invited speakers who could deliver lightning talks (15 mins duration) around Django. We had 4 amazing speakers, and they spoke on topics such as “Python and Community” (by Kumar Anirudha, CEO Acyclic Labs) and “How to showcase your hack using storyboarding?” (by Anagaha, Software Engineer from Suki). The developers then went on to discuss their ideas and clear their doubts with the speakers.
3. Entertainment break — Stand up comedy
Everyone needs a break from work, something that can cheer people up, lighten the mood, and breeze away from the stress. Introducing things like stand-up comedy, indoor game tournaments, etc., can make the hackathon experience enjoyable and truly memorable.
We invited comedians to perform at Djangothon. Prasad Bhat (comedian) wowed the audience and everyone had their stomach hurting from all the laughter. This served two purposes, it gave the audience something to laugh about and remember and it also helped soften the mood.
It was the perfect opportunity to interact with the hackers and become acquainted with them.
4. Personalization — Personalized goodies
They say, actions speak louder than words. And what better way to say, ‘You’re special to me’, than a thoughtful gift. A personalized token of appreciation will not only be something unique you can give someone, but it will also carry a magnitude of positive effects. It has a strong sentimental value and but also acts as a happy reminder of the event.
When our team was conversing with the developers present, we secretly took notes about every individual, what they are working on, if they are actively part of any open source project, where they came from, etc. We also used Polaroid cameras to click photos of the teams present.
Using the notes, we wrote personalized messages and stuck everyone’s photos on their respective cards. People do not get a printed photo of themselves every day! We made sure we got great photos of everyone.
We added these cards in the swag bags along with all other goodies. This was something unique and unexpected for everyone, something no one ever received at a hackathon before. From the looks of it, every hacker present at Djangothon loved it!
The outcome
We ran a survey post Djangothon, and the results were unlike any other hackathon feedback we have ever seen.
We received a ton of love and appreciation on social media. More importantly, it was one of the best in-action demonstrations we had seen about the value of personalization and how it could build lasting relationships with an organization’s users and community.
At the end of it, our mission at Djangothon was accomplished and we also made some cool contributions to Django.
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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.
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.
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.
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.
“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?
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!
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
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:
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.
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.
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.
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
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.