Technical Assessments for IT Professionals

Evaluating an IT professional is often a challenge for average recruiters, and those who have been in the hiring position are well aware of the difficulty of evaluating candidates for technology positions. This is largely because the distinctive qualities of software engineering candidates are considerably difficult to evaluate.

Hiring developers is indeed an art. However, there are approaches and methodologies to evaluate the subtler dimensions of skills and, at the same time, the essential skills of a developer. When used together, these basic recruiting techniques offer very good results, and in this article we list some essential steps in interviewing and evaluating an IT professional…

The first step in conducting substantial evaluations is to create a pipeline with the best candidates. That is to say, having a funnel process to limit the number of candidates going on to the interview phase, which will allow you to focus on viable candidates and not waste time on those who do not match the needs of the company or clearly do not have the skills required by the position. Currently, the best source of qualified candidates is personal networking, as high-quality people tend to associate with other high-quality people. Personal references are key to successful recruitment.

Review the job description. When you are ready to start your selection process, start with the basics and verify that the job description accurately reflects the needs of the company. See if it needs any updates, take note of the most important aspects and compile a list of required attributes. It is time to ask yourself questions like “What do I expect from a potential candidate?” and “What skills should I value the most?” in order to be prepared for the interview and focused on what you want to determine. Ideally, use the structured interview format.

Demonstrate that you have read the CV. Once the interview phase has begun, showing the candidate that you have researched them is a good detail because it is a sign of treating someone seriously. The interview is not the time to familiarize yourself with the résumé, but showing interest in their work and experience is of utmost importance. However, you should not make the mistake of focusing only on the candidate's résumé and spending the whole process firing off questions about past projects.

Set a technical challenge. Present a problem to the candidate and ask them to describe a solution. The candidate is presented with a problem similar to those they might encounter on the job and is asked to indicate how they would solve it, what processes they would use, and what technologies they would consider in order to solve the problem in the best possible way. For example, you can ask things like “If we need to improve the security of a web application, what would your strategy be to achieve it?” These kinds of questions fit well in the structured interview format.

Avoid random questions. The mistake that many people make when conducting this type of interview is asking the all-too-common random questions. When it comes to technology, this type of question has no place, since most of the time the candidate has no idea what to answer, as such questions depend a lot on context, which can be inconvenient in terms of time and in the overall course of the interview. Long interviews are often tedious for both the interviewee and the interviewer.

Offer online coding assessments. Conducting an online assessment without having to invite candidates to an on-site interview is also an option, especially important in the technology industry, where relocation is common. Online programming tests are an excellent way to reduce the number of candidates who go on to the interview, which makes the selection process much more efficient. Online programming tests should:

Include practical and not solely theoretical questions where the candidate must write a program.

Be part of an automated process for sending and tracking the evaluation process.

Match the difficulty level of the position.

The techniques described here can serve as a valuable core process for finding and hiring software developers who are what the company truly needs and who have the knowledge and ability the position requires. However, it is important to know that effective recruitment is not a destination, it is a process, and each company's process is different; the key is to learn from it.