Here’s a news flash – finding top IT talent is becoming increasingly difficult as budgets loosen up and employers are desperate to fill positions requiring high demand skills.  The problem seems to be that there are more jobs (believe it or not) than qualified candidates (who are actively looking for a career change).

Finding top talent can be a bit challenging in today’s market, but that’s what IT recruitment agencies like Agile do (although we admittedly do it better and faster than other agencies).  But what we’re finding to be the real challenge now is when the candidate’s current employer makes a counter-offer to keep the top performer from leaving.

Recently, one of our candidate’s interviewing at a client company received a counter-offer from his current employer. The candidate was really impressed with our client, but he was just a little nervous to make a move and decided to stay put. The client was disappointed because the candidate was a perfect fit. The hiring manager at the client company was empathetic though, because he had been in a similar position earlier on in his career.  He decided to write the candidate a message to share his experience and offer a persuading argument as to why the candidate should reconsider.

The email goes something like this (names have been changed to ensure the privacy of all individuals and entities):

Seth,

I can’t say that I am not disappointed, but I do understand that everyone has their own circumstances and must do what’s in their own best interest.  I will say this, my circumstances were very similar to yours when I made the decision to leave my last company to be a part of Acme Enterprises. I was working for a very successful company, I was well respected, making a huge business impact, big salary plus bonuses, office with a view, great people, etc.  But there were several things that, regardless of my compensation and my environment, were not going to change. I was the biggest fish in the pond.  I had no peers, and no potential to really learn from others.  I found myself implementing the same technologies\techniques\patterns – occasionally introducing something new, but no peer validation that these were great decisions and implementations.

I can honestly say that I have learned more in the last 12-18 months through the process of designing this platform from the ground up than I have in the last 5-10 years working on legacy technology and enhancing existing platforms.  Another factor for me was the “Acme Enterprise” opportunity itself. At my previous company, I could begin to see the end of the runway from a technology roadmap perspective. I spent several years getting them on the right path and putting the right pieces in place which in my opinion covered about 75% of the “runway”.  The remaining 25% would be spent making minor tweaks, maybe integrating a few new technologies here and there.  I could see that final 25% dragging out for quite a while and I could see myself getting complacent – which can be very dangerous from a technology career standpoint.

Acme Enterprise, on the other hand, was a blank slate, with easily 6-10 years of runway.  We have been working on the core platform and client for about a year and a half and have only begun to scratch the surface.  As we present this to future customers, we learn more about the business potential and the opportunities, and the runway keeps increasing – which is very exciting!

The last factor for me was the core competency and the attitude of the team itself.  Every member of this team is a winner.  Each one of us has been successful in the past and this company will be no exception.

Sounds like you have made your final decision, but If there is anything else you would like to discuss before completely closing the door, let me know.  If this is the end of the road, I wish you the best.

What an impactful message. After the candidate read the email, he had a change of heart and decided to accept the company’s offer because he was so impressed, and could so relate to, what the hiring manager had written. The key point is how the hiring manager had the ability to see things from the candidate’s perspective. He then provided an honest and compelling story that resonated with the candidate – so much so, that it convinced him to reconsider and accept the client’s offer.

Long story short – if you want to hire top talent, you have to impress candidates. Sometimes that may require a deep understanding of where the candidate is coming from and what some of his concerns may be.  Once you are able to relate to the candidate, build a compelling case that will convince him why your opportunity is the better career choice.

Here’s the scenario:

You’re a Project Manager in the midst of finding a new job. For the past several years, you’ve worked as a contractor at a number of companies. During this time, you’ve had the chance to work on some high-profile projects using the latest emerging technologies. These projects have allowed you to learn new skills and work with teams consisting of diverse and highly talented IT professionals. You’re current contract is ending soon, but you know that your skills are in high-demand and finding a new gig shouldn’t be a problem.  In fact, your technical recruiter has presented two opportunities: one is a contract job and the other is a permanent position.

You go through the interview process at both companies, and you’re presented with two offers. You decide the contract position offers an exciting opportunity to work for an industry leading company that is in the process of developing an innovative technology. There’s also the freedom of telecommuting during the week. The perm job, on the other hand, isn’t as appealing.  The company reduced staff significantly during the Great Recession.  It has several projects that must be implemented this year, and has begun increasing staff and hiring full-time employees. You aren’t really excited about the full-time position, and the company’s culture may not be the best fit. You also don’t think there will be much opportunity within the company to grow. You really like the contract job and feel there is opportunity there that will enable you to take your career to the next level.  However, there’s one thing that makes the full-time job more attractive.  It appears to offer more stability. And that’s important given the fact you and your wife have a baby on the way.

Which offer do you choose?  As more companies are opening up full-time positions, would-be IT contractors are facing this dilemma. Many are going straight to the company with full-time work for the sake of stability. That’s understandable – given what most of us have struggled through during the recession. But keep in mind one thing. Contract jobs can offer the same level of stability and security (and more flexibility). The key is to be prepared for the next opportunity by working with a recruiter who’s always going to have your back.

If you’re a contractor and you want to ensure a high degree of job security follow these simple rules.

1. As soon as you know when you’ll be coming off your current contract, start updating your resume and get it to your recruiter ASAP!
2. Have a discussion with your recruiter early on and let her/him know what new opportunity you’re interested in. Having this information will enable the recruiter to scope out opportunities that will be a good fit and get you excited!
3. Throughout your existing assignment, make sure your quality of work remains high, your attitude is always professional, and you leave on good terms with your manager. You never know if and when you’ll be called back for another assignment with that client.  In addition, this will make it easier for your recruiter to sell you to other clients.

Full-time work can be enticing to IT professionals who want some semblance of job security.  And sometimes, taking a perm job over a contract assignment makes good sense based on the needs of the individual. But don’t discount the stability of contract work.  If you partner with a solid recruiting company, and you prepare yourself for the next assignment, there shouldn’t be a reason to worry about periods of unemployment – or being stuck in a job or company you dislike.

If you’re still not sure about what you would do if faced in the above situation, read our previous blog “10 reasons why IT contract jobs are worth considering.”

We came across the following blog post, and felt compelled to respond.

“I’ve worked as a pure recruiter and sourcer for most of my staffing career. I’m new to full desk recruiting and I would like to know how to explain to clients why they should use me as their agency recruiter for a placement fee. I do realize that HR or internal recruiters prefer not to use agencies for permanant job openings because it’s their function to recruit and source for these roles.  Employers also don’t like to pay a fee for perm placements. Any ideas why HR should consider a recruitment agency for their perm positions?”

From the perspective of a corporate recruiter, we understand why there may be a hesitancy to utilize an outside firm for perm placements. But there are advantages to partnering with an IT staffing firm, and here are just five reasons a company should consider the services of an outside recruiter.

1. High volume of open positions -  There are times when the internal recruiter will simply not have the ability to work all of their openings.  At any given time, there may be 10, 20, 30 or more openings.  Trying to successfully fill a number of openings (many of which require very niche-specific skill sets) with a limited number of internal recruiters can be quite a challenge, if not nearly impossible.   In addition, many corporate recruiters have aggressive SLA’s with hiring managers. Continuously missing those targets makes a huge impact on overall performance within their organization. Working with an outside agency to fill at least some of these positions can “speed time to talent” and ensure SLAs are continuously met.
2. Skillset/Focus – There may be some skill sets that the internal recruiter lacks expertise.  We’re seeing more and more job descriptions that require very specialized skills. Using an agency that has experience recruiting for particular roles and skill sets can be highly beneficial.  Companies may even want to consider using the outside agency(ies) to proactively look for talent with high-demand skills and make hiring decisions once those candidates have been identified. Competition for IT professionals with high-demand skills will become fierce in 2011, and to stay competitive companies have to be quick in finding AND hiring these extremely sought-after workers.
3. Screening – This is a touchy subject with HR/corporate recruiters, but it can be a great selling point if you approach it in the right way.  HR personnel that recruit (especially when there is a high volume of positions throughout the organization) simply do not have time to develop and adhere to an effective screening process. A reputable recruitment agency will be able to guarantee a successful screening process.  Screening candidates is something staffing firms do on a daily basis, and it’s something they should excel at. Agile’s talent process “Ready. Aim. Hire.” includes multiple levels of screening that ensures our clients receive the most qualified candidates in the fastest time possible.
4. Network of referrals and candidates – Because a staffing firm is in the business of hiring people – that’s all they do 24/7 – the network of referral candidates can be huge.  Each recruiter at the agency has her own network of people that she’s either placed in the past or has received referrals from.  These individual networks, when added together, can contain hundreds or thousands of highly qualified candidates that an internal recruiter just does not have access to. By having access to a large pool of professionals, an agency is better positioned to identify, screen and present more qualified candidates in a faster amount of time.
5. Recruit from the competition – Due to non-compete issues and recent laws pertaining to non-competes, it is very difficult (if not unlawful) for internal recruiters to directly recruit from their competition.  Here’s an example. Tim works at Company A and gets an offer from its competitor, Company B. He accepts the offer at Company B and HR asks him “who else would you recommend we hire from your old group at Company A. Tim says he would hire Sue, Sallie and Rich but he has a non-compete and cannot recruit these candidates. His non-compete extends to “direct” or “indirect” solicitation, therefore advising HR to recruit these folks would also be in violation of his non-compete. However, it is possible for a recruitment agency to assist a company in recruiting staff from the competition.  Provided Sue, Sallie and Rich are already in the agency’s database prior to Tim’s start date at Company B, the agency can attempt to recruit those individuals, whereas Tim and Company B legally cannot.

There are other benefits to using an outside recruitment agency.  The above are just a few that company’s should consider as they develop and refine their hiring strategies in 2011.

In the past year, there’s been a growth in hiring contract workers. Employers who need to fill positions but are still uncertain about the economic recovery may be more inclined to hire contractors because it frees companies from making long-term commitments in uncertain times.

While hiring contract workers may be advantageous for the employer, what about the job seeker? With unemployment still hovering around 10% in Georgia, many IT professionals who are out of work may be finding it difficult to quickly land a permanent job that pays well. Unfortunately, many of the unemployed do not or will not consider contract work. But being a contractor has its benefits. Here are 10 reasons why you should consider a contract job in today’s uncertain economy.

1. Taking on contract work can be a good opportunity in any economy. Job seekers having difficulty finding perm work can more easily find a contract position. Work with a reputable IT staffing firm (like Agile) to find contract jobs that will help further your career during this transitional period.
2. Earn more money during the transition from unemployed to permanent job. Contractors typically earn more per hour – about 15 percent more – than perm employees. Why sacrifice going without cable, eating out at your favorite restaurants or shopping when you can earn a great paycheck as a contractor?
3. The employer gets to audition for you. Taking on a contract job is an opportunity for the job seeker to get to know the employer and determine if the culture is a good fit. If it’s not, then you are free to leave once the term of the contract expires.
4. Contracting is a resume builder. As a contractor, you’ll most likely learn new skills and get exposure to a variety of technologies, industries, cultures, and responsibilities. And a contract job offers current experience for your resume which can ultimately lead to a full-time role elsewhere.
5. Variety is the spice of life. IT professionals choose contract work over a perm position for many reasons: freedom to choose assignments, exposure to more employers, better pay, and opportunities to learn new skills. Contract jobs can take the “ho-hum” out of the traditional office setting by providing more flexibility and job diversity.
6. Prove yourself and you’ll be rewarded. When you do a bang-up job for the client company, your IT recruiter will want to keep you happy by making sure there are future opportunities. It’s also likely your staffing firm will be able to place you in a perm position when the right one comes along.
7. Contracting is a terrific networking opportunity. Think of contracting as a very special networking event where you get to rub elbows with people who work with you and know how valuable you are. Take advantage and meet as many key people such as department heads, supervisors, executives, HR, and others with influence within the client company.
8. Take time off when you choose to. When you become a contractor, you typically know when a job begins and ends. Because of this, you have more flexibility and control over how much time to take off in between gigs. Imagine working on a six month project and then having the opportunity to relax on a beach for an entire month or two – depending on how well you’ve been able to save the extra money you made as a contractor!
9. Benefits. Despite the notion that only full-time employees receive benefits, staffing firms like Agile offer its contractors benefits like medical, dental, 401K and life insurance. If benefits are important, talk to your recruiter before beginning the job search to ensure the staffing firm has you covered.
10. When one door closes, another one opens. If you’re not offered a permanent job when your contract assignment ends…don’t worry; there will be more opportunities. Keep your recruiter in the loop and communicate with her on a regular basis. In the meantime, ask the client company for a reference. Leave the client company on good terms – you never know when an opportunity there might open up. And keep in touch with your boss. Remember, you can never network too much!

If you’re currently looking for an IT job, keep an open mind and consider working on a contract basis. Working on a contract basis can be exciting, rewarding, and educational. In fact, you may enjoy it so much that you won’t want to go back to the traditional “perm” job ever again.

This week, guest blogger and author Marci Reynolds provides tips on using IT kewords and phrases in your job search documents.

If you’re in the midst of a job transition or job search in the technology industry, you must become familiar with the keywords and phrases that best align with your target profession and role. Then, you should include these keywords and phrases in your IT job search documents, both online and offline. These documents include your social networking profiles, online resumes, personal blogs and websites.

Why? IT recruiters and hiring managers use keywords to source candidates online. Whether they access a resume database on a job board like Monster.com, use the Advanced Search function on LinkedIn & Twitter or even a search engine like Google, they leverage position specific keywords and phrases to narrow down their results and zero in on the best candidates.

In addition, when you apply for IT jobs online and upload your resume, your application and attachments often go through a computerized screening process that does the keyword searching electronically.

IT Job Seekers Use Keywords Too!

To better understand this process, think about how you search online job boards or job aggregators for job postings. You go to a website (ex. Jobserve, Careerbuilder, Monster, Dice), you enter a series of keywords and choose some job specific criteria such as location, industry and level.

After you hit enter, you’re presented with a series of job postings. Some are very relevant to your search and others may not be the best match. Most likely, you click on and view the job postings that best match your specific needs.

When recruiters are looking for candidates with your unique set of qualifications, experience, training and education, you want to show up in these search results.

How To Find The Job Search Keywords  & Phrases For Your Target Role

One of the best ways to find the keywords and phrases that best align with your target profession, role or industry is to read updated job descriptions that match. For example, if you want a Business Analyst position in an IT organization, go to an online job board and search for jobs like that. Find 10, very well written job descriptions and cut and paste them on to a “personal keywords document”. Print the document off and read through it with a highlighter in your hand.

As you complete your review, start highlighting the words and phrases that keep getting repeated. Then, type up the list of the top 10-15 that rose to the top.

There are also a number of great books on this topic. One book that I use frequently when crafting online messaging is called, “Best KeyWords for Resumes, Cover Letters, and Interviews” by Wendy Enelow. You can get a used copy for as little as $2.

Once you have your list, go back to your job search documentation (both online and offline) and update the verbiage, including these keywords and phrases where they make sense.

If you have the time and ability, you should consider tweaking your resume and cover letter for every individual job you apply for, as the keywords will vary based on the company. The closer your keywords match, the more likely your resume will be found amongst the hundreds of applicants.

Be Authentic

Regardless of the keywords and phrases for your desired position, you should present yourself in an authentic, honest manner. Choose the verbiage that best matches your unique and impressive qualifications, experience, training and education.

One last point…

Using the right keywords is just one step in a larger job search strategy and plan, which includes powerful interviewing skills, effective networking, building your online brand etc. But, every little step counts!

Best of luck in your IT job search!

Author, Marci Reynolds, Reprinted With Permission