Yet all the startups, and established big fish, still can’t find enough talented people to satisfy their technical needs even when they expand their search from sea to shining sea. Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Facebook have taken action—they’ve jumped continents to help solve the skills gap crisis. Maybe it’s time you do the same?
There are three main tech solutions, and one human solution, to help you begin your international recruiting campaign:
Before looking at some strategies for recruiting without borders, what are some of the best reasons for hiring international candidates beyond acquiring the skill sets your organization desperately needs?
Why is hiring international candidates so hard?
Social Media
The benefits of social media continue to expand as people continually refine their approach and presence on an array of platforms. Job boards, corporate career sites, referrals, and job fairs continue to be some of the most relevant approaches to hiring international talent. But consider this: social medial provides a more personal employer brand experience, and its reach is global.
The first step in your social media strategy involves researching global social networks. Pay attention to how each country of interest utilizes social media platforms. For example, Facebook is popular world-wide but LinkedIn is more business-minded. You can also spend time researching popular local channels:
Lastly, use LinkedIn to find international groups that focus on computer science; you can also use LinkedIn to research international universities that might have pages for their computer science department.
Mobile Recruiting
Youth demographics continue to change around the world—and it goes without saying that they’re helping to drive the increased usage of mobile devices. This future work generation is going to lean toward mobile being their primary channel. For business looking to engage the best possible candidates, they’ll need to reach them on the go.
More and more people will conduct their job hunt form the palm of their hand. So you need to optimize your job ads and career site for mobile browsing. The last thing you want is for candidates to immediately leave your site because it’s not mobile friendly.
Video Interviewing
Why video interviewing is important to the process doesn’t really need much elaboration here. It’s simply awesome how much money and time it saves; video interviewing is the most essential step after you’ve done your sourcing campaigns and got great candidates to apply.
Doing research on the best video software available will go a long way. Keep in mind that Google Hangouts are free, and you can also acquire free tools to record the interview session—making it easy to share with others involved in the decision-making process.
Incentivize with Culture, Compensation Benefits, and Relocation Support
Create provocative job descriptions that not only display your company culture—but also draw international candidates in by demonstrating cross-cultural values. Remember to treat candidates like valuable strategic assets, not commodities.
The best candidates will consider pulling up their roots for both monetary and work-life balance perks. Just be upfront about everything from the start.
Help them feel at ease with the relocation process by providing them with information, financial support, and answering even questions they’re not asking. If they’re bringing their family with them—provide resources that cover local neighborhoods, school systems, and child-care options.
Conclusion
Think big: strengthen your global brand so you can source top talent across a wider market range. If you have multilingual or international team members, let their voices and experiences be heard across your social platforms (and if your company is able, consider engaging in multilingual customer service or creating posts in the native languages of the countries you’re interested in).
Nothing about this process is easy, but at least you have technology on your side.
What technology do you use to connect with international talent? Please share in the comments!