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    Future-Proof Your Tech Career: How to Make Strategic Decisions (VIDEO)

    These days, making strategic career decisions is often tied to conversations about “quiet quitting.” This term was coined in 2022 due to a mix of:

    Unclear expectations

    Few growth opportunities

    Disconnects between a company and the employee’s needs

    Quiet quitting transformed jobseekers’ way of thinking, with most centering the job search around their needs, goals, and values. 

    But what happens when jobseekers find companies they align with? They stay longer and are generally happier. Studies show retention is highest when employers invest in long-term learning and growth opportunities.

    Watch this on-demand webinar to hear experts from the Get Hired Summit discuss how jobseekers can strategize to future-proof their careers in tech. You’ll hear from:

    Related: Hired’s 2022 List: Top Employers Winning Tech Talent  

    Read an excerpt of the conversation here and scroll down to access the full webinar. 

    Amid the uncertainty, what are you seeing in the market right now? What advice would you give those in entry-level or mid-career positions in tech?

    Adam

    There definitely has been a shift in the last six months or so. We’re seeing conditions start to change in the market. I’m seeing that it’s still quite competitive for… people with 5+ years of experience. Those people are still in very high demand and they still have competitive offers from a variety of companies. Where it’s getting a lot harder is for the entry-level, junior candidates — people with 1-2 years of experience. 

    We’ve had the same role open at different times over the last few years. A year ago we would have seen maybe a handful of applicants come in. Recently, we had 1,500 applicants come in within the first few weeks.

    The advice I would give to someone just starting out is to just build things. Do what you can to optimize for learning and practice your craft. Even if it’s something you build, get it up in GitHub, GitLab, or wherever you host your code. Practice and build it. Maybe you’ll throw it away but you’ll learn something along the way. 

    Related: Hired Releases 2023 State of Software Engineers Report

    I highly value the people who want to show their commitment to practicing their craft and showing they enjoy it and like building things. That’s what I want to have a conversation about in the interview process. I want to learn why they were excited about it, why they built it, and what they learned along the way. That goes such a long way.

    Matt

    Definitely try new things and take some risks early in your career. The world is your oyster. There’s no time like the present to jump in and swim. You’re going to try a lot of things and you’re going to fail. You’re going to find some things you don’t like but you’re also going to find something you do like — something you’re really excited about. That’s what you want to run toward. 

    Think of your career as this marathon that will be many years of your life. Do you want to spend it doing something… you don’t love? Find what you can be really passionate and excited about. There will be hard days and hard projects but you should have more positive experiences than not. Implicit in that is to learn from those experiences.

    Kelly

    I speak to a lot of candidates in my career. Some of them have just finished college and have known exactly what they wanted to do their whole life. I speak to other people who had multiple careers. They’re in their thirties or forties and just starting bootcamp. They’re excited and passionate. Trying as many different careers until you find something you’re really passionate about is important. It’s never too late to start something new!

    Related: Partner Spotlight: Coding Bootcamps & Non-Traditional Education for Tech Talent

    Watch the full panel discussion to learn:  More

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    How to Create a Strong Personal Brand: The Key to Beginning a Networking Relationship (VIDEO)

    A strong brand is not only relevant for businesses. It’s important for individuals too, especially those navigating the job search. A strong personal brand that speaks to your skills, values, and expertise is crucial for networking and your overall career. 

    It’s your identity. What should people think about when they hear your name during conversations or in the media? What populates when hiring managers or recruiters search for you online? 

    Watch this on-demand webinar to hear experts from Get Hired: Future-Proof Your Career in Tech discuss what it takes to make your personal online brand effective and how it can lead to a new career and networking opportunities.

    You’ll hear from:

    Revenue & Product Marketing Manager, Multiply, Lee Brooks

    Senior Platform Engineer, RVU, Suraj Narwade 

    Lead Talent Acquisition, GTM, International, Sonatype, Heidi King-Underwood

    Founder & CEO, Hustle Crew, Abadesi Osunsade

    Read an excerpt of the conversation here and scroll down to access the full webinar. 

    When it comes to seeking talent, what do you want to learn about someone from their personal brand?

    Suraj 

    When it comes to hiring someone from a personal brand perspective, the first thing to call out here is that you obviously see a resume. But I think in today’s world, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, etc. act as a resume together. From a personal brand perspective, I will look at how they are presenting themselves and how they are showcasing their knowledge on any of the platforms. 

    Lee 

    For me, one of the most important things is: Are they fit for the role I’m hiring for? Does their personal brand give me confidence they have expertise in the areas I’m recruiting for? Sometimes it’s easy to tell from someone’s personal brand. Sometimes it’s more difficult, but if I was looking for someone who was good at creating content or social media, I hope I’d be able to get that from their online profile. 

    Another one that’s really important to me is cultural fit. How would someone’s personality, values, and work style fit? At Multiply, we’re all remote workers. It’s quite important that you have someone who can fit into that culture and thrive. 

    The third one is passion and drive. Are they enthusiastic when they’re talking online? This leads to culture a little bit but do they really show passion and drive for their work? I think you can tell through the content, achievements, and overall approach to their career.

    Heidi 

    The cheat is we are bundle searching. We’re looking for keywords. Make your LinkedIn profile as full as possible, like you would a CV… Talk about everything you were doing and everything you’re looking to do. 

    On LinkedIn these days, you can actually put how to pronounce your name. Make things as easy as possible for the recruiter. What are your pronouns? Let’s make sure I don’t insult you by presuming… 

    Talk about the tech stack you’re utilizing. If you present yourself on a third-party site, put the link there. Make it available so I can actually forward it to my hiring teams. I might send over that link and say, ‘What do you think about what they’re putting out or their content?’ It shows… you’re using your own recreational time to highlight you’re really passionate about this. Include stand-out elements like volunteering… If you have certain skills or have done a workshop on LinkedIn learning around diversity and inclusion, that goes with cultural fit.

    Related: Code Your Career: Staying Competitive in the Developer Job Market (VIDEO)

    It shows passion and drive around the fact that you’ve gone off and taken on that skill and you recognize it as a skill. There are so many different elements but the more words you put on your professional site, CV, and personal sites, [you increase chances that] we will find that by doing boolean searching. The more content you have and the more authentic you are about yourself, the easier it will be for me to find you. Put your contact information out there too if you want to be contacted. That’s really important.

    Watch the full collaborative panel discussion to learn:  More

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    Tech Candidate Spotlight: Nathan Reynolds, Integration Engineer

    Thanks for joining, Nathan! Let’s start by talking about your educational background.

    I have a relatively traditional path in technology. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. After a few years of working, I got an MBA to advance my career.

    My MBA was surprisingly more impactful than my Bachelor’s degree. It’s helped prepare me for customer-facing roles like implementation.

    What would you like to learn more about?

    I’m always interested in learning more about web development, technologically.

    As for interests outside of the tech realm, I am constantly learning more and more about coffee. My next adventure will probably be in roasting my own beans!

    Related: Thinking About a Career Transition? General Assembly’s 4 Immersive Tech Programs to Help You Pivot

    What led you to pursue a career in tech?

    I’ve always been interested in computers. My first aspiration was to be a game developer. I eventually discovered I prefer B2B software because it allowed for more varied work. It is also an industry that is easier to build a career in.

    How has your skill set evolved throughout your career?

    I started my career in a traditional IT role maintaining servers, updating old applications, and fielding service requests. Then, I eventually moved into implementation and fell in love. I have continually learned new technologies throughout my career starting with a Java/Weblogic/Oracle SQL stack and moving into React/Node/Kotlin/Postgres. I’m always expanding my skill set!

    Related: Hired Releases 2023 State of Software Engineers Report

    Is your new role different from previous ones?

    I’m now an integration engineer rather than an implementation engineer. Much of my work will remain the same but with a slightly different focus. The industry I’m working in is very closely related too — B2B software.

    What are some of the things you’re most excited about in your new role?

    I’m excited to work at a business with a counter-recessionary business proposition. I’m looking forward to helping businesses optimize their costs and weather economic hardships.

    What’s your best advice for jobseekers on the Hired platform? 

    Really tailor your resume to the specific type of role you want. Being as specific as possible helps recruiters pick up the keywords they’re trained to look for.

    Related: Want More Interviews and Better Matches? 5 Key Tips!

    What would you tell someone curious about Hired?

    You have, literally, nothing to lose. It is nice having companies reach out to you rather than constantly sending out dozens of applications daily. That being said, you still need to put forth an effort to land the job.

    Any general advice you’d like to give other tech professionals?

    Be open to learning new things. Don’t over-fit to any one position. You may think your end goal is one specific position but trying other things will allow you to validate that idea.

    About Pricefx

    Pricefx provides the leading SaaS Pricing Platform with best-in-class Price Management, Optimization, and CPQ capabilities covering all key processes for B2B and B2C companies. Founded in 2011, Pricefx has 501-1,000 employees and is headquartered in Chicago.

    Tech Stack

    Java, Groovy, JavaScript, Spring, ETL, AWS, JSON, React, REST, SOAP

    Benefits

    Health/dental/vision/life/disability insurance, maternity/paternity benefits, 401k plan/matching, mental health benefits, paid time off, mentorship opportunities, management training, and more. More

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    Building an Effective EVP: The Journey of a Bangalore Tech Company

    India’s startup ecosystem has been experiencing a rapid growth rate, with the country emerging as the third-largest startup hub globally, posting record revenue of $227 billion in 2022, according to Mint. This growth has led to a highly competitive market for talent, making it essential for companies to have strong employer branding and an attractive Employer Value Proposition (EVP) to remain competitive.
    To gain insights into creating an effective EVP in such a fast-paced environment, we caught up with Malliga Rajkumar, the Senior Director of HR and Talent Branding Lead at Flipkart, one of the largest e-commerce platforms in India based in Bangalore, which began as a startup 15 years ago with a team of 200 people.
    As a 30,000-strong organization serving 150 million customers across all of India, Flipkart is known as the “startup of startups,” with alums going on to found their successful tech enterprises. Despite its size, the startup ethos of risk and innovation remains near and dear to Flipkart’s heart.
    However, with the tech sector’s growth came fierce competition for key talent, prompting Rajkumar and her team to build and implement an employer branding strategy to ensure Flipkart could compete. Rajkumar’s approach was to ask two simple questions: “What is it about our culture that we want to absolutely retain and rebuild where it may have atrophied? And what are the elements that we want to add on?”
    Developing EVP
    The journey to Flipkart’s EVP was months of extensive primary and secondary research. Rajkumar and her team interviewed people at all levels within the organization, spoke to headhunters, and did market benchmarking with accredited organizations like the Great Place to Work Institute and Mercer.
    In the end, they had a list of all the things Flipkart wanted to be known for and a list of the things talent cares about. The challenge was to find a balance between the two to stake out an EVP that encapsulated what Flipkart stands for while appealing to the talent they wanted to attract.
    They settled on a simple EVP that stitched together all of the concepts they wanted to include in one phrase:
    “Together, We Dare to Maximize.”
    Together spoke to everything they hope to foster in terms of community and collaboration. Dare represents their startup heart by celebrating audacity and breaking boundaries. And maximize represents their ambition to be the best they possibly can be and continuously improve.
    Activating EVP
    Articulating an EVP is only half the battle; Rajkumar and her team still needed to activate it for both employees and candidates. “Together we dare to maximize” is displayed in every Flipkart office. More importantly, that concept and the four pillars that support it are woven into all internal communications, awards, employee forums, and events throughout the year.
    They also measure its resonance each year in their annual employee engagement survey. A team of over 250 employee advocates helps get the word out and shares an honest look at what life at Flipkart is like.
    Aspirational EVP
    Flipkart sees its EVP as aspirational, and they want to ensure that they live up to its promise. Therefore, they used their mission statement to build a 3-year maturity model that articulates every process’s intent, design, experience, and measurement. The goal is to look at everything they do and take the time to align it with their EVP incrementally.
    As always, it is crucial to measure the impact of employer branding to demonstrate its value to key organizational stakeholders. At Flipkart, they compare their engagement statistics to a benchmark list of other companies to assess their performance and identify areas for improvement. Additionally, they have specific metrics for individual campaigns and regularly conduct internal surveys to assess the level of awareness within the organization regarding employer brand themes.
    According to Rajkumar, “Employer brand is not about who you are today; it’s about who you aspire to be.” A good EVP should reflect the organization’s current state and set higher standards for what it can become. Good employer branding presents an opportunity for an organization to improve and live its values, which in turn attracts top talent.

    To follow Malliga Rajkumar’s work in employer brand, connect with her on LinkedIn. For help identifying the values and culture you want to create in your company, get in touch.
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    Tech Candidate Spotlight: Rory Scott, Leader, Software Engineering

    Let’s kick off by talking about your educational background!

    I have a degree in Sociology and Media Studies. I am a self-taught/mentored software engineer and started in this industry in the data and ETL space. Then, I gradually shifted to infrastructure and back-end development, eventually going into people management.

    Which educational opportunities have made the biggest impact on your tech career? 

    Connecting with the people around me and being able to spot opportunities in companies is where I’ve had the most success. I’ve actually been able to drive my own career growth more than educational opportunities have. The biggest educational impacts I have had were on a mentorship and opportunistic basis.

    Related: Job Searching? Online Networking Strategies to Get you Started

    What would you like to learn more about?

    I stopped studying jazz guitar in college and wish I had stuck with it a little more. I consider myself a pretty good player and would love to dive into that space again.

    What led you to pursue a career in tech?

    I traditionally worked with very small companies where I had to wear many hats. As a data person, I often didn’t have software, tooling, QA, or infrastructure engineers to help build what I needed. It was often up to me and my team(s) to fill those gaps. It wasn’t always pretty or elegant but we learned a lot and got the job done. This paved the road for my career in tech.

    How has your skill set evolved over the course of your career?

    It has evolved immensely. I started out only being an excel expert, automated through macros, then moved on to database management. Then, I went on to automate ETL, build services to automate the data munging, and finally, build internal platforms for other software teams to use. 

    If you choose to specialize in one area, what was it and why?

    Developer Productivity is a space I am extremely passionate about. I’ve seen really good platforms, really bad platforms, and just about everything in between. For engineers who have never been able to experience what life could be like with a solid platform, I love showing them how their life can be improved, bottlenecks removed, and wait times reduced to virtually nothing.

    Is your new role different from previous ones?

    It’s actually very similar to my previous role. I am managing a platform team made up of a handful of extremely talented folks. However, in some ways it is different. For example, instead of being globally distributed, the team is centralized in one US state. The industry is also very different. Instead of retail, we work with security.

    What are some of the things you’re most excited about in your new role?

    Using my interviewing process as a basis, both the team and my manager are extremely good at and passionate about what they do. They care deeply about people and enjoy many of the same cultural ideals that I have. That includes empathy, empowerment, and psychological safety.

    What was your job search experience like before you joined Hired?

    Before Hired, the process was what you’d expect. You’d send many resumes and cover letters, hoping to hear back from a percentage either way. Once you could speak with someone, it was typically pretty positive, but it was a percentage-based game if you didn’t have a referral.

    What’s your best advice for jobseekers registered on the Hired platform? 

    I had more than one really good experience with the Hired platform. My advice for others would be to trust it, use it, and not neglect common courtesies in terms of speaking with people — that goes for whether the opportunity seems like a good fit or not. 

    What would you tell someone who’s curious about Hired?

    I would 100% recommend it and would use it again. It’s a passive way to cast a wide net. You know that anyone who reaches out to you has a real need and wants to talk to you.

    Any general advice you’d like to give other tech professionals?

    Tech is fun, exciting, and always changing. One thing that shouldn’t change, however, is how we treat each other. To quote my favorite characters: “Be excellent to each other. Party on dudes.”

    About Cisco

    Cisco hardware, software, and service offerings are used to create the Internet solutions that make networks possible. Founded in 1984, Cisco has 5,001+ employees and is headquartered in San Jose.

    Tech Stack

    Python, Spark, Javascript, React, AWS, Kubernetes, Java, Go, Docker, Microservices, Kafka, iOS, Android, Kotlin, Kibana, Datadog, Terraform

    Benefits

    Health/dental/vision/life/disability insurance, 401k plan/matching, tuition reimbursement, paid time off, stock options, employee discount programs, job training, and more. More

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    Tech Candidate Spotlight: Adam Gerard, Senior Software Engineer

    Can you share a little bit about your educational background? 

    My educational background is decidedly mixed. I have 40+ skill or knowledge-based industry assessments/certifications along with more traditional degrees including a bachelor’s and master’s.

    The assessments and certifications (including Hired Assessments) have had the single biggest overall impact so far. They establish my ability, what I know, and how I compare with others.

    What would you like to learn more about?

    Computer Science fundamentals! I plan to go back for a second master’s and pick up more certifications in key specialization areas. They include Hashicorp Terraform, Amazon AWS, Triplebyte, and Oracle Java.

    What led you to pursue a career in tech?

    I have converging interests in computer hardware, IT, logic, language, and machines. I think it’s natural for me to gravitate toward highly technical, thinking-centric, and machine-centric jobs involving the deep use of language.

    How has your skillset evolved over the course of your career?

    I’ve branched out from Java and SQL to JavaScript, then React, Node, Python, Ruby, WordPress, and so on. I’ve been tinkering around with Haskell, Elixir, and other newer languages too. I’ve also recently prioritized various infrastructure and DevOps tools since they are of nearly equal importance and demand in most roles.

    Related: Discover the most in-demand coding skills in the 2023 State of Software Engineers

    Do you specialize in a particular area?

    I enjoy full stack work since it requires integrated, systems-type thinking. There’s often a clear path through the stack that reveals itself in this type of engineering. It’s more difficult to trace the cause and effect with other, more specialized approaches. I also think full stack specializations align well with Agile practices.

    Related: Want to Ace Technical Interviews? A Guide to Prep Software Engineers

    Is your new role different from previous ones?

    Yes, I’ve been hired as a Senior Software Engineer. I’ve steadily earned promotions or have been hired at increasingly more advanced levels over the years. However, this is the first time I’ve been hired outright as a Senior Software Engineer!

    That’s exciting! Speaking of exciting – what are you looking forward to most in your new role?

    It’s a great company doing amazing things with a strong engineering culture and reputation. For instance, Capital One is known for pioneering cutting-edge and world-changing digital and financial products (credit cards, mobile banking, online banking, etc.). I’m thrilled about the opportunity to use more Java and Java Spring too since many of my recent roles prioritized other tools and technologies.

    What was your job search experience like before you joined Hired?

    Hired has been decisive in finding great roles. It’s a better job search platform than Triplebyte and HackerRank (both of which added job search functionalities only after the fact). Recruiters reach out to qualified candidates after a vetting process and with the aid of strong testing tools (Hired Assessments are comparable to those of Triplebyte, CodeSignal, and HackerRank).

    What’s your best advice for jobseekers on Hired? 

    Refine your resume. Be succinct and highlight keywords, technologies, tools, and accomplishments. Take Hired’s assessments too. Supplement them with certifications and strong exam scores from other platforms as well.

    What would you tell someone who’s curious about Hired?

    Definitely give it a try. It’s a platform that connects recruiters from top VC-Startups, Fortune 500, and other great companies with highly qualified candidates.

    Related: How to Get Approved on Hired

    Any general advice for other tech professionals?

    Keep learning and join different practice sites (Codewars, LeetCode, HackerRank). Practice, practice, practice as you interview and search for a job! Pick up respected industry certifications or skill-based assessments to showcase on your resume (Hired.com, HackerRank, Triplebyte, CodeSignal, AWS, Azure, GCP, etc.).

    About Capital One

    Capital One is building a leading information-based technology company. We’re on a mission to help our customers succeed by bringing ingenuity, simplicity, and humanity to banking. Founded in 1988, Capital One has 5001+ employees and is headquartered in Virginia.

    Tech Stack

    Java, Spring, Angular 2, Node.JS, React, AWS, Python, Spark, Scala, Go

    Benefits

    Health/dental/vision insurance, 401K plan, performance bonus, paid time off, employee discount programs, career growth, tuition reimbursement. and more. More

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    Tech Candidate Spotlight: Andre Almar, Site Reliability Engineer

    Why did you choose Hired for your search?

    I liked the simplicity of the platform and processes in general. It’s very easy to fill in your information there. The quality of the companies searching for talent on Hired’s platform is excellent. The whole platform as a whole is great!      

    Related: Meet Hired’s Candidate Experience Team: Supporting Jobseekers Every Step of the Way

    What would you tell someone who’s curious about Hired?

    Try the platform and see for yourself. Personally, I believe it’s much better to have companies reaching out to you as opposed to the other way around. Finding a new job can be a pretty miserable process if you are doing it the “old way.” 

    Hired is similar to other platforms I’ve tried before but the main difference is in the quality of the companies searching for talent. We get to connect with larger companies all around the world!

    What was your job search experience like before you joined Hired?

    It was the “same old” in the sense of me having to reach out to companies, then be vetted by each one with a different test (which is very time-consuming). Hired accelerates this process, which saves time for both sides. 

    If you’re thinking about using Hired or are currently a jobseeker on the platform, my advice is to be yourself and present yourself transparently. Don’t be afraid to show what makes you the candidate you are and what you accomplished during your past experiences.

    Related: How to Get Approved on Hired

    About Site Reliability Engineering

    Companies need Site Reliability Engineers when computer systems are not operating up to snuff. Those interested in this role likely know there is much more to it than just building and maintaining computer systems. These engineers are involved in all aspects of the application, software, and system development. 

    Top industries hiring Site Reliability Engineers

    eCommerce

    Analytics

    Security

    Platform

    Learn more about this tech role. More

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    Want to Ace Your Technical Interview? A Guide to Prepare Software Engineers

    Whether you’re early in your career or a seasoned full stack, back-end, or front-end engineer, technical interviews may be stressful if you feel unprepared. While the most important piece of these interviews is, of course, your technical skills, we have some strategies to help you put your best foot forward. 

    After all, going in with confidence and preparation is the best way to ease those nerves and let your skills shine through. So, what is it you’re getting yourself into? 

    Technical interviews put a (fun?) spin on the typical job search process. In many ways, they let you, as an engineer, do what you do best! Take them as your opportunity to “walk the walk” instead of just “talk the talk.” 

    We’ve collaborated with our partner Educative to bring you tips to level up your technical interview game.

    What this Technical Interview Guide for Full Stack, Front-end, and Back-end Engineers Covers

    1. How to prepare for technical interviews

    Technical interviews take many forms and are known by various names. We break them down. We also give you a multi-week plan to give you plenty of time to work through examples and study up using suggested resources.  

    2. What employers look for in technical interviews 

    We review some of the major concepts and skills interviewers assess specifically for front-end developers, back-end developers, and full stack developers.

    3. Common technical interview mistakes to avoid 

    After spending time reviewing what you should do, we warn you on what to avoid. Find the top three technical interview no-nos in this chapter. 

    4. Helpful resources 

    By this time, you’re well on your way to nailing your next technical interview. Use our compilation of links to more resources to continue studying with a narrower focus.

    5. After the interview

    In this section, we coach you through this post-interview phase, including how to use it to your advantage and other best practices. 

    Ready to download your comprehensive Technical Interview Guide? Here you go! More