Angela Maida, April 5, 2021 | 5 min read

What to Look for in a New Tech Hire

Tech Talent South believes that hiring a new tech professional should not be a huge hassle. The hiring process has been iterated time and time again, and yet businesses can still end up in a bind when it comes to finding the right talent. If your background does not include recruitment, hiring for these positions can seem like a challenging task. Here we will examine what to look for in a new tech hire so that you and your business can be prepared for the future.

A Student’s Mindset

Even though your new hire should not act like a typical student, they do need to have a mindset that is always prepared to learn. A good tech hire will be up to date on all the latest industry trends and have an extensive background of knowledge in the tech industry. They also must be prepared to learn more than just what they already know. Look for those who are willing to experiment and try new ways of approaching the problems that your business faces.

A Personal and Professional Drive

Motivation can be a key attribute to look for when bringing on new tech talent. You will want to search for a candidate who has a strong personal drive to be the best in their field. Not only does this matter to ensure that your team is made up of highly motivated, driven individuals, but it also shows that the candidate takes their position seriously. You do not want someone who is simply looking for a job, you want someone who is looking to progress in their technology career. Questions involving how the candidate has taken initiative in the past can reveal if they are willing to take their skills and career into their own hands. Tech Talent South’s rigorous courses only allow for those truly motivated in their field to make it through before they are placed in their future positions.

An Entrepreneurial Spirit

Technology is a key element to growing your business, and no one should know this better than the tech professionals you are looking to hire. You will want to look for someone who is not content with just staying in their lane and doing what is asked of them. Finding a candidate who can show they have an entrepreneurial spirit and a growth-oriented mindset is crucial to building out your team in a way that allows for your business to grow constantly. The right candidate will understand how their position affects every other part of the business, not just their own.

A Good Culture Add

The culture of your business’ team is just as important as the products you sell or the services you provide. Finding talent that will slot into your existing team well may be the safer way to go, but what you really want to look for is someone with a fresh new perspective to make your team even better. Hiring only people with similar backgrounds or viewpoints can often make your team too homogenous. Strong company culture is key to maintaining employee retention and maximum productivity, so make sure your new hire will add new ideas and perspectives to your team’s dynamic. One of the best benefits of hiring in this way is that you are continuously getting new views and ideas that you can implement in your business. Too many similar people in one company can often lead to a drought of new ideas and unwanted stagnation.

A Useful Skillset

No new tech hire is going to be useful unless they have the skills that you are looking for. While training on the job should be expected, there is no expectation that you should have to take on someone who has no background in the processes you are hiring them for. Tech Talent South provides courses that give our students the best, most in-demand skillsets for coding, tech development, and software engineering. This takes the extra guesswork out of the hiring process since you know that the talent you are being matched with has exactly the skills you need. A quality skillset is even more important than a college degree in some cases, as many college classes do not provide the same in-depth study of subjects that Tech Talent South offers.

A Sense of Perseverance

In the ever-changing world of technology, a tendency to give up at the first sign of trouble cannot be tolerated. Your candidate should have at least a few examples of times when they have tried something and come up short, but they should also be able to tell you about how they overcame those struggles. You do not want to waste you or your company’s time with someone who will give up at the first sign of trouble. Tech Talent South’s bootcamps are designed so that those who persevere come out on the other side, ready to tackle their future career.

An Ability To Communicate

While tech talent does most of their work looking at a computer screen, the ability to communicate effectively is still of paramount importance. Whether within their department with their coworkers, or with other departments outside of tech, your candidate should have exemplary communication skills to allow for more collaboration between departments. Asking questions about their previous experience with problems, especially if related to team members in past positions, can often pull this trait out of your candidate. In cases like this, they will need to explain how they worked through the problem using proper communication and by being a team player.

A Curious Mind

When you are looking to hire new talent, especially tech talent, you are going to want someone who is interested in knowing more. The right hire will most likely not have every single requirement on the list, but if they are curious to learn more about you, your company, and your industry, that can make up for any gap in their resume. Finding a good candidate will involve some tradeoff when it comes to their experience, but you should always look out for those who are eager to learn more about what they do and who they work for.

Knowing what to look for in a new tech hire is essential to making sure your business can grow and run smoothly. Tech Talent South wants you to find the absolute best candidates for your open technology position. If you are interested in finding talent through IT direct hire, TTS will be there whether you are hiring someone new or promoting someone from within. Our carefully maintained ecosystem of corporations and top talent allows us to help you find the perfect fit for your company.

What To Look for in a New Tech Hire