Top 4 Challenges in Recruiting IT Talent & How to Fix Them

Ruffy Galang | February 6, 2024

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IT recruitment challenges continue to plague businesses of all sizes. Smaller companies, in particular, face formidable IT recruitment challenges as they compete with larger industries for highly skilled professionals. The key lies not just in finding candidates with the right technical expertise but also in ensuring they align with the unique culture of your organization.

70% of employers likewise anticipate ongoing challenges in hiring for the tech sector. But what is causing some of these issues? And how can we address them?

“In IT, recruiting challenges go beyond just finding talent—it’s about discovering professionals who are not only technically proficient but also culturally aligned with your company’s values,” said Ruffy Galang, CEO and Co-Founder Remote Employee.

In this blog, we’ll identify some of the top tech recruitment challenges and how working with a business process outsourcing (BPO) partner can help.

The Challenges of IT Talent Recruitment

Recruiting in IT is challenging for several reasons. First, there’s an increasing demand for technical professionals due to our growing reliance on technology. This demand outpaces the supply of qualified candidates.

Another factor is the shift in hiring focus. Companies are no longer just competing with Silicon Valley firms; they now have to consider global hiring pools. This change requires adapting recruitment strategies to different markets and cultural expectations.

Moreover, the rise of remote work trends complicates traditional hiring approaches. High salaries and benefits, once effective tools for attracting talent, are becoming less influential.

Here are some of the most common issues we’ve been seeing in recruiting for IT positions.

1.Finding Right-Fit Candidates

A key factor is the lack of qualified candidates. Many applicants don’t meet the specific role requirements, leading to prolonged recruitment processes. The situation is compounded by the fact that, in 2020, less than half of tech roles in the U.S. could be filled by candidates with computer science degrees.

These challenges are magnified when expanding recruitment internationally, where understanding IT certifications, overcoming language barriers, and navigating cultural differences become critical.

Attracting the right candidates is another major hurdle when recruiting IT talent. Consequently, companies often settle for the best available candidate rather than the most suitable one. This leads to a pressing need to focus on forming a smaller, more qualified talent pipeline instead of a large pool of unqualified applicants.

How to Address This IssueHave you ever considered working with a BPO? BPOs offer a scalable offshore talent pool, ideal for businesses needing top tech talent at competitive rates. Unlike other BPOs, Remote Employee also allows you to interview and select candidates. All of our candidates speak fluent, accent-free English.Facing a shortage of qualified tech professionals? BPOs provide access to a wide range of expertise. You can fill roles from multiple tiers of support to network support, tapping into a rich talent pool that might be scarce locally.

2. Reducing the Time to Hire

One significant issue is the cost and operational delays caused by vacant positions. Certain industries inherently take longer to hire due to the specialized nature of the roles and the scarcity of qualified candidates. This shortage prolongs the hiring process, as finding candidates with the necessary skills and experience can be time-consuming.

Another significant challenge comes from the demands of technical hiring managers. Often, their expectations can be highly specific and unrealistic, such as demanding extensive experience in a new programming language or finding a database analyst with exceptional communication skills.

How to Address This Issue When you work with a BPO, you have the opportunity to hire directly from a selected pool of pre-vetted, select talent.When working with a BPO, you maintain your internal processes while augmenting your team with top talent. Our scalable, offshore talent pool extends across all business areas, especially in the IT sector.By providing pre-vetted candidates, we eliminate the lengthy process of initial screening. IT team members are also available at up to 70% less cost than in-house hires.

3. Not Making the Most of Remote Recruitment

Adapting to remote recruitment methods is a struggle many companies face, especially with sourcing and interviewing candidates virtually. With the increasing demand for remote work, building effective remote recruitment processes is essential. Future trends indicate a continued reliance on remote recruitment post-pandemic.

However, companies that fail to adapt to these changes face difficulties in attracting top talent. The transition to remote recruitment requires not just technological tools, but also a shift in strategy and approach.

How to Address This IssueBPOs stand out by offering a scalable, offshore talent pool, allowing clients to interview and select candidates efficiently in a remote environment.As the future of recruitment leans heavily towards remote processes, with a significant majority of professionals seeing it continue post-pandemic, partnering with a BPO places you at the forefront of this trend. Established remote recruitment processes mean you won’t face difficulties attracting top talent due to outdated HR methods.

4. Not Relying on Data-Driven Recruitment

Utilizing recruitment data and metrics is crucial for improving decision-making in the hiring process. However, maintaining up-to-date data can be time-consuming and tiresome, especially when dealing with a high volume of candidates and roles in the tech industry.

The inability to effectively utilize data-driven recruitment methods means companies might not be targeting the right candidates, understanding the effectiveness of their recruitment channels, or accurately predicting hiring needs.

How to Address This IssueWhen you work with a BPO, your BPO team’s experience in handling recruitment data means that tracking and organizing data is efficient and accurate. Data guiding the recruitment decisions is reliable and up-to-date, crucial for the fast-paced IT industry.We ensure data is not only accurate but also efficiently utilized to match the right candidates with the right roles.

Why Recruit IT Talent With a BPO?

Here’s a few benefits of hiring through a BPO to address  IT recruitment issues.

The What	The Why
Access to Global Talent Pool	BPOs provide access to a wider, global pool of IT professionals.
Cost-Efficiency	Outsourcing can significantly reduce labor costs, allowing for budget-friendly recruitment without compromising on quality.
Time Savings	BPOs streamline the recruitment process, reducing the time-to-hire with pre-vetted candidates and efficient screening.
Reduced Recruitment Complexity	Outsourcing eliminates the complexities of recruitment, handling everything from sourcing to interviewing.
Focus on Core Business	Hiring through a BPO allows your company to focus on core business activities, while the BPO manages recruitment tasks.
Flexibility and Scalability	BPOs offer flexibility to scale up or down quickly, adapting to your changing IT talent needs.

Learn about the benefits of offshoring and mitigating hiring challenges: Hiring Challenges In 2023: Are You Prepared? Business Process Outsourcing – Everything You Need To Know BPO Company Philippines: From IT to Accounting

Turn Tech Recruitment Challenges Into Opportunities With Remote Employee

Join the ranks of over 50 satisfied clients that have saved up to 70% in labor costs with Remote Employee. With our 97% customer retention rate, we’re not just a service—we’re a proven solution. Outsource Accelerator also ranks Remote Employee as No. 2 in the U.S. and No. 3 in the Philippines.

With Remote Employee, you can hire for:

• Tier 1 through 3 operations support
• Performance testing
• System monitoring
• Network support
• Data back-up and recovery
• And much more

Ready to get started? Contact us today.