Here’s How to Recruit and Hire Top Software Engineers in 2022
It takes a special person to be an outstanding software engineer.
They need strong programming skills, knowledge of new technologies, ingenuity in solving complex problems, selflessness working with others to resolve issues together, and the ability to deal with code that’s less than perfect.
No pressure.
These days, software development staffing is difficult. There’s an increasing demand for qualified engineers and a shortage of people to fill the positions. Developers have options; they can work for growth startups, unicorns, or even go solo. They know the value of their skills and they want to be compensated fairly.
So how do you recruit and hire great software engineers in 2022? What does success look like? And where the heck do you find these people?
Let’s take a look at some opportunities and approaches that can help you secure your next employee.
How to attract software developers
The recruitment process for software developers is complicated and often varies depending on your software developer niche. However, one thing is certain: a successful hire begins with a great job listing.
Your software developer job listing should be descriptive and provide a clear picture of the role. It needs to explain why someone would want to work with you and include specific tasks and responsibilities. If you’re a new engineering manager wondering how to hire developers for a startup, a well-written job description can make all the difference.
Some suggestions for creating an enticing post:
- Make it about the candidate. Software engineers are smart, and they’re busy. Reading a job post that’s written as more of an advertisement than a description of the working environment can be off-putting. Make it about them and speak their language.
- Engage the senses. Let developers hear, see, touch, and feel your company.
- Show how it feels to work there. You want developers who are passionate about the products they’re building and excited to get to work every day. Let them know what it’s like to be a part of your team.
- Remain job specific. Talk about your company, your customers, and the technologies you use. Keep it relevant to your target audience.
- Demonstrate your values. This is a great place to include information about your company culture and the type of people you’re looking for.
Tip: Woven knows the best practices to get the most candidates to your posting. Even better, we’ll do it for you if you ask nicely.
Finally, be where your people are. Use the best job boards for software engineers reddit to find out where developers go when they’re job hunting. Then take a look at how top companies are attracting software engineers. For example, Dropbox uses images of their office space to show what it’s like to work there.
How to find a good software developer
It’s 2022. Gone are the days of calling it an “exciting career opportunity” when you’re actually trying to get someone to relocate. Now, it’s normal for developers work remotely with international teams.
The first step to finding a good developer is to define your ideal candidate—what skills do you need, what personality traits are important? Then, determine where those people hang out.
If you need to find programmers for a project, look to crowdsourcing sites such as Topcoder and Upwork. They provide opportunities to work at scale using freelancers. If you’re hiring full-time, tech-focused job boards like Stack Overflow and Github are great places to start your search.
Check out our blog post about the best places to find software engineers for more ideas. We’ll tell you how to find software engineers on LinkedIn, Indeed, AngelList, and more.
Best place to recruit software engineers
Now that you’ve found your ideal candidate, it’s time to close the deal.
Companies these days are using creative recruiting ideas like hackathons, lunch meetings, and design sprints to get face time with the top talent. But what really sets you apart? And how can you attract new developers into your process?
One way to stand out is to offer a technical test that software engineers actually enjoy. Experienced developers don’t want to do puzzles — and they definitely don’t want to spend 10+ hours on a take-home test. Woven’s asynchronous technical assessments take less than two hours and use real-world scenarios. Plus, every candidate gets individual engineering feedback.
Recruiting great developers requires a lot of time and effort, but it’s worth the investment. Using Woven’s platform gives you access to top talent without all of the headaches and hassles.
How to hire great developers
Let’s say you used a technical test to screen out unqualified candidates. Now you need to know what to look for when hiring a software developer.
Start with candidates who are good at problem-solving. These people can think through —  and solve — complex issues. They’re also willing to learn, experiment, and play around with code.
Having passion is equally important. A candidate with less experience may be able to pick up on your tech stack faster than someone with years under their belt because they’re passionate enough about programming to want to learn quickly.
Next, look for people who are able to communicate well. Strong communication skills will help your team build better products and avoid miscommunication down the road.
Finally, find out what kind of work they’ve done before. Experienced developers should be able to tell you about their role on past teams and the types of projects they’ve worked on. Examples can help you assess whether they’d be a good fit for your company.
How to retain developers
Developer turnover is becoming more common as companies compete for top talent.   According to Harvard Business Review, resignations in tech rose by 4.5% in 2021 — and it’s likely to keep climbing. That’s a problem for employers who want to keep the people they’ve invested in.
The top reason for this sucky software engineer retention rate? An increased workload. Developers are feeling overworked, underpaid, and burnt out. And they’ll go elsewhere instead of sticking around and slogging through the job on a daily basis.
Here’s how to retain software engineers:
- Don’t demand long hours from your team. Give them time to rest and recharge for the next day’s work. If they burn out, you’ll lose them — and the hours they spent at work will be wasted.
- Offer autonomy. Software engineers want to have some control over their work. They know the tech industry is competitive. They also know that companies are looking for talented people, so they’ll go where they feel empowered.
- Give your employees a purpose. As a developer, it’s important to have the opportunity to build something from scratch and see it succeed — or watch it fail and fix the problem. Knowing you’re helping people with the code you write is incredibly motivating.
- Offer competitive salaries. You can’t keep talent if there aren’t enough funds in the budget. The money doesn’t need to be unlimited, but software engineers should receive fair compensation for their work.
Employee retention in the software industry is becoming a priority, and that’s good news. Attracting skilled developers who enjoy working for your company is the best way to keep your tech stack growing.
Final thoughts
We hope this article helped you get a better idea of how to find the best software engineers.
We know that hiring and recruiting isn’t easy. At Woven, we make it simple for you by getting your job posts in front of developers who want to work at companies like yours. And our technical assessments help you spend less time managing applicants and more time interviewing top candidates.
In the end, your recruiting success should be defined as finding the absolute best people for a role. The term used among software recruiters is hotness. It’s like Goldilocks: one cohort is too big/small, another group isn’t experienced enough, and with most groups we find ourselves saying: “This one was just right.”
Let’s explore what needs to happen to find that just-right cohort for your open software engineering roles. Start a free trial with Woven today!
