In the demanding and fast-paced world of software development, being given the green light for a potentially lucrative new project can be both exhilarating and daunting. As a hiring manager, you are presented with a formidable challenge: constructing the best software development team your organization has ever witnessed. The mission is not only to gather the best in the field but also to ensure that this ensemble hits the ground running. The stakes are high and the pressing question that keeps you awake at night is this: what makes a team excel while others flounder?

Exceptional software development teams share several distinguishing traits. Among these, a shared vision, robust communication, a clearly defined hierarchy, and a well-rounded skills base are the key factors that contribute to a team’s success. Identifying these traits can guide you in sourcing the ideal candidates and effectively pairing individuals to create a synergistic team.

1. Common Vision: The Foundation of Successful Teams

For a team to function seamlessly, the team members must feel a genuine sense of belonging. This sense of unity propels individuals to work towards a common goal and fosters a healthy team environment. Remember, each team’s chemistry and dynamics are unique, much like the gears of a clock; some teams naturally operate like a well-oiled machine, while others need an extra push to work as an efficient, cohesive unit. For such teams, engaging in team-building exercises or reshuffling team members can ignite the sense of unity, leading to a boost in productivity.

Moreover, it’s crucial to consider the individual team-playing abilities and preferred work environments of each candidate during the hiring and team assignment process. Failing to do so could result in incompatible team compositions. For instance, a candidate who thrives in small groups may find themselves lost and unproductive in a larger setting.

2. Effective Communication: The Lifeblood of Agile Development

In any project, communication stands as the backbone of success, but in the agile development world, it’s absolutely paramount. Agile methodology, by nature, necessitates high degrees of collaboration and superior communication skills. Modern project management portals like Jira have simplified the process of communication and collaboration, but ultimately, the effectiveness of communication comes down to individual styles and capabilities. Hence, it’s essential to assemble a tech team that communicates effectively and understands the nuances of project management communication.

3. Comprehensive Skill Set: Maximizing Efficiency and Productivity

The division of labor and the specificity of roles and responsibilities is a critical determinants of a team’s success. But what if a project requires the simultaneous application of multiple skills, which only a single team member possesses? This scenario is not uncommon in development teams and underscores the importance of redundancy in skills and expertise. Solutions to this problem can range from recruiting candidates with the necessary skills during the hiring phase to promoting continual learning within your existing team, especially if your team is already well-balanced and productive.

When recruiting temporary on-site talent, these challenges are further amplified. It’s crucial to find team members who can seamlessly integrate and perform at their peak from day one. In such situations, partnering with IT and tech staffing services providers such as iTech can be extremely beneficial. With the capability to source the ideal candidates from anywhere in the world, we build cohesive, productive teams ready for on-site deployment. In fact, many of our development teams have previous experience working together, ensuring that you benefit from a team with great dynamics and the precise skill set required for your project.

Using IT Staffing Services to Assemble the Best Software Development Team

Operating from Dallas, our staffing service providers at iTech serve clients across Texas and throughout the nation. We invite you to reach out if you’re seeking assistance in recruiting IT staff or building the perfect team of software developers for your upcoming project.

Are you ready to discover if our IT and tech staffing services can meet your company’s needs? Take the first step towards building a high-performance software development team with iTech.

The post The Traits of the Best Software Development Teams first appeared on iTech.

When dealing with staff augmentation contracts, you need to work with a qualified attorney who can clearly articulate the terms of the relationships the contracts codify. Temporary onsite tech staff can be privy to sensitive data, processes, and technology. So you must protect your intellectual property, proprietary technology, and company interests as a whole.

Using a Contract to Protect Proprietary Technology and Trade Secrets

Companies spend millions of dollars on trade secrets and proprietary technology development. If that information were to become public, it could result in massive economic harm.

That is why it’s essential that your contracts include a non-disclosure clause prohibiting staff from revealing or sharing such information. Your contract should be very specific in what can and cannot be disclosed.

Including a Non-Compete Clause in Your IT Staff Augmentation Contract

Some companies will include a non-compete clause in their contracts. This type of clause prohibits an individual from working with a competitor during their time with your company and even for a certain timeframe after your business relationship ends. This prevents former temporary employees from sharing (intentionally or unintentionally) sensitive information after going to work for a competitor.

A non-compete clause must clearly articulate what constitutes a competitor, either by name, by industry/specialty, or by geographic region. This portion of the contract should also specify a reasonable timeframe for the non-compete prohibition.

It’s important that this section of your contract is realistic and reasonable. Otherwise, it may fall into the realm of “unenforceable” in the event that you were to take the matter to court. For instance, a judge would be extremely unlikely to enforce a contract that prohibits a software developer from working for any other tech company for a period of 10 years. Conversely, a judge may be very willing to enforce a contract that has a non-compete clause that prohibits an employee from working for a specific, direct local competitor for a period of 12 months after the business relationship concludes.

Non-compete clauses can be quite useful for protecting your company’s data, processes, and other in-house knowledge that could be acquired by a temporary team member.

Protecting Your Company from Vulnerabilities and Breaches

Tech companies face the challenging task of preventing breaches and limiting vulnerability. This becomes exponentially more challenging as you add more employees. And don’t forget about all of those new devices, constantly evolving technologies, and an ever-changing realm of hackers, viruses, malware, and bots.

For this reason, it’s important that you have a contract that spells out your company’s bring-your-own-device policies, along with any requirements or restrictions surrounding hardware, software or procedures. This will ensure that the temporary team member does not introduce any new vulnerabilities, which could be very costly to your company.

Finding the Right Temporary IT Staff

Connecting with the right temporary tech staff can be a tremendous challenge in this hyper-competitive business environment. Many risks can be mitigated by finding individuals who are honest, ethical and well-compensated. This is precisely what you’ll get when you trust your temporary IT staffing to iTech, as we specialize in staff augmentation for tech companies and tech departments across the nation.

We compensate our talent at a very competitive rate and work aggressively to ensure that we find team members who are committed and ready to meet your needs. Contact iTech today to find IT staff to suit your precise needs and requirements.

The post Why Do I Need a Well-Written IT Staff Augmentation Contract? first appeared on iTech.

But recent months have seen a significant shift, as developers and IT professionals in India and other regions of the world have started earning a wage that’s comparable to their North American developer and IT expert counterparts. As a result, the tech industry has seen a major jump in competitiveness and overall demand.

[bctt tweet=”According to U.S. News, the software development field will see 19 percent growth – that’s 135,500 new jobs – by 2024.” username=”iTechUS”]

According to U.S. News, the software development field will see 19 percent growth – that’s 135,500 new jobs – by 2024. That’s just in the United States; hundreds of thousands of additional positions will be added globally in the coming decade. What’s more, the tech industry has very rapid turnover, with many developers and IT managers staying on board with a company for just a year or two.

The result is a hyper-competitive tech sector that has left many company leaders wondering whether they’re offering fair, competitive pay for IT professionals and developers. As in most fields, you get what you pay for. If you’re offering a less-than-competitive pay rate, there is a good chance that you won’t get job candidates as experienced and skilled as you would with a higher wage.

[bctt tweet=”A lower-than-average pay rate can actually cost far more than you save.” username=”iTechUS”]

A lower-than-average pay rate can actually cost far more than you save. This can have a fairly significant impact on your bottom line, especially when you consider that underpaid talent is less likely to stay with your company over the long term. According to DevSkiller, the cost of recruitment for a single position can top $31,000, and lost productivity over the course of the 43 days (on average) that it takes to find a new tech professional can easily surpass $33,000.

How Do I Know if I’m Offering Competitive Pay for IT Professionals and Developers?

[bctt tweet=”It’s crucial that you compare your pay rate to the rate for similar positions, which require a similar skill set and experience level.” username=”iTechUS”]

Research is essential if you’re attempting to determine what figure constitutes a competitive pay rate. It’s crucial that you compare your pay rate to the rate for similar positions, which require a similar skill set and experience level.

Location also plays a major role in determining what constitutes a competitive pay rate. Therefore, you’ll need to investigate this issue on a regional level too. The cost of hiring an IT professional in City A may be significantly less than what you would expect to pay in City B, which may have a much higher cost of living.

You can also gain some great insight from the prospective candidates. Your employment application should include a line for “desired salary.” This gives you a feel for what the talent believes would be a fair pay rate. Of course, there will be some variation depending upon experience and skill set, but enquiring about desired salary can generate some very useful data.

Pay Rates for Permanent vs Temporary IT Staff

As you research tech industry pay rates in your region, you’ll need to be certain that you’re examining the same type of position in terms of the timeframe. It’s unwise to compare pay rates for a permanent position to a temporary position, as there are some significant variables, including:

• The cost of accommodations for temporary talent;
• The cost of travel for temporary staff;
• The cost of health insurance for permanent staff;
• The cost of paid vacations and paid sick days for long-term employees; and
• The cost of the company’s 401K contributions for permanent talent.

There are some very different considerations when comparing the going rate for temporary versus permanent IT staff and developers. It’s important that you acknowledge this differential when evaluating pay rate.

Your comparison should also account for onsite staff versus remote staff. Workers who are expected to work onsite tend to earn a bit more due to the time and cost associated with commuting, whereas remote talent can be happy earning a bit less since they don’t incur costs associated with a commute.

Accounting for Other Variables When Hiring IT Staff

Many companies believe they’re offering a competitive pay rate for IT staff and developers, but in reality, they’re on the low end of the wage spectrum. How could this happen? Well, it’s actually a bit more common than you may realize.

As iTech CEO Kishore Khandavalli explains, many companies turn to recruiters and IT staffing firms when hiring tech talent, but they can end up in a situation where they fail to appreciate the real cost of hiring a developer or IT expert.

“The company may be paying $100 per hour and they may assume that the talent is receiving $75 per hour. but it’s possible that the recruiting company could take a larger-than-expected piece of the pie. So the talent may only be receiving $40 per hour, which is far less competitive. For this reason, it’s critical that you, as a company, ask questions and determine precisely how much the talent is receiving,” Khandavalli explained.

Ensuring that your company offers a competitive pay rate to IT staff and developers can actually lead to significant savings in the long term, as you’ll see greater productivity, improved tech team morale and a higher quality of work. Finding the right team members can be a challenge, but that’s where iTech can assist, as we specialize in helping companies find IT staff who will mesh well with your company and meet your needs.

If you’re ready to hire IT staff, start the process of recruiting by contacting the team here at iTech.

The post Is Your Company Offering Competitive Pay for IT Professionals? first appeared on iTech.

With an estimated 20 million software developers worldwide and over 250 programming languages and countless specialties, it’s easy to see how difficult it could be for a hiring manager to find the right person for the job.

IT hiring is not easy. When you hire a commercial electrician, you know that they have what it takes to get the job done. But this is not necessarily the case for a developer. There are numerous software developer types, and if you hire one at random, there’s a good chance they may lack the skills required to get the job done.

One developer’s specialty may be quite different from another’s, which presents big challenges to hiring the right developer for your exact needs. Even hiring managers who are extremely well-versed in the types of software developers and their skill sets may encounter struggles during the hiring process. So what are the most common mistakes involved in hiring software developers, and how can you avoid or overcome them?

Mistake: Failing to Identify the Best Approach for the Project

There are many strategies for approaching a software development project. If you fail to properly identify the best development strategy before you begin the hiring process, you may end up with a less-than-ideal end result.

Let’s say your company needs to develop a new, custom-tailored inventory tracking system. There are many choices involved in developing this sort of interface, including the platform and operating system, programming languages, hardware, and beyond. And not all platforms, hardware, and programming languages are created equally. What’s possible and practical with one programming language may not be viable with another. Each language has its own unique set of capabilities, weaknesses, and advantages; as such, you should choose the right one for your platform and needs.

Given the many approaches to success (or the potential for failure, depending on your perspective), it’s essential that your project managers establish their approach for the project before hiring developers. In some instances, your company may benefit from an IT consulting firm for insight into the best software development strategy to reach your goals.

Mistake: Failing to Draft Comprehensive (And Accurate) Project Specs

The project specs sit at the very heart of the hiring process and are the largest variables when developing an accurate job description. If you fail to articulate your project’s scope and approach, finding the right talent becomes far more challenging. [bctt tweet=”The project specs sit at the very heart of the hiring process, and are the largest variables when developing an accurate job description.” via=”no”]

Problems arise because many companies recycle project specs, using similar specifications as a starting point and altering them slightly to suit the new project. But this can cause some major problems, as you may have project specs that lack the necessary level of detail and accuracy. If you use such specs to build your job descriptions and use those descriptions as the basis of your developer search, you could end up hiring developers who just aren’t right for the project.

Therefore, it’s critical that hiring managers work with their development team leaders to ensure that the appropriate time and effort is invested into crafting detailed, accurate development project specs. Only then can you proceed by hiring developers with the experience and skills required to get the job done on time and within budget?

Mistake: Failing to Consider the Rest of the Development Team

Software development is often a team effort, with the best and most efficient software development teams operating in a highly efficient and productive manner. However, if you fail to consider the team properly—including how individuals will fit in with the rest of the team—you could end up with mismatches. Team dynamics matter. Soft skills and other non-technical skills can have a tremendous impact on the quality of the work and the end result. Dynamics aside, there’s also the matter of coordinating expertise in your software development team to ensure consistent and smooth workflow.

Asking the following questions upfront will help ensure effective team composition:

• Does a candidate’s experience complement the team, ideally both creating much-needed redundancy and expanding the team’s collective abilities?
• Does the individual have experience working within a team of a similar size that has used your preferred development methodology?
• Are you hiring for cultural fit? This is a major consideration, as a strong match between the company/team and the individual can go a long way toward promoting productivity and success.

Addressing these points will increase your chances of finding the right person for the job. If you’re seeking help with the software developer hiring process, consider turning to a team of professionals. At iTech, we specialize in IT consulting and temporary IT staffing. We invite you to contact us to learn more about how we can help you find IT staff that will suit your company and its needs.

The post How to Avoid Hiring the Wrong Types of Software Developers first appeared on iTech.

[bctt tweet=”The most diverse companies are 35% more likely to surpass industry medians and averages in terms of performance. –McKinsey” username=”iTechUS”]

In fact, skill diversity and simple skill redundancy can be quite useful, as you’re more likely to have a team member who can fill any gaps that arise during your workflow. So what makes a software development team diverse and multifaceted? And what does this mean for your hiring process?

The Benefits of a Development Team With Experiential Diversity

Experiential diversity is really important in the software development world, as there are some key insights that can only be found through personal experience. For example, a mistake can give you ideas for improving a process or adapting a methodology to suit your team’s workflow. Experiential diversity also leads to more effective strategy development, and when necessary, problem-solving. This provides you with an opportunity to obtain valuable feedback from individuals with more unique viewpoints and perspectives.

The Benefits of a Development Team With a Varied Skill Set

The best teams of developers possess experiential diversity and a wide variety of skill sets, which can be extremely successful and effective. If your team’s members have a broad range of skills—and a high redundancy of those skills—you’ll enjoy improved flexibility in roles and workloads. You’ll also have a far smoother development process.

A high degree of redundant skills will also increase your chances that work can continue if a key team member is absent, because you’ll have another person who can fill the gap. This is critical if you’re going to meet your project’s timeframe and cost projections, while maximizing productivity.

The Benefits of Multicultural Software Development Teams

Multicultural development teams can operate very effectively, provided you overcome any language and communication barriers. Most companies that stay focused on trainings and measures that promote good communication are able to overcome many of the obstacles in this area.

Multicultural software development teams have a distinct advantage, as each individual brings a unique viewpoint and knowledge base to the table. This is especially advantageous when developing a platform, software program or application that will be used worldwide. Your team will likely have valuable insights that can lead to a far more balanced, user-friendly end result. This can include knowledge of different product marketplaces, different development techniques and strategies, along with a unique cultural understanding that can result in more effective UI and a richer UX.

[bctt tweet=”Multicultural software development teams have a distinct advantage, as each individual brings a unique viewpoint and knowledge base to the table.” username=”iTechUS”]

A diverse group can promote personal and professional growth in many different areas, while also elevating development projects to the next level. A Harvard Business Review study found that the most successful multicultural development teams dealt with challenges through adaptation, structural intervention and managerial intervention.

[bctt tweet=”The most successful multicultural development teams deal with challenges through adaptation, structural intervention and managerial intervention. –HBR” username=”iTechUS”]

A multifaceted software development team can enjoy the best of all worlds. But building a multifaceted team is far easier said than done. Talent management executives and even many hiring managers struggle to build a truly diverse, multifaceted team. This is particularly true if they fail to fully appreciate the importance of hiring for cultural fit and soft skills. Tech skills are just one piece of the equation. The task also becomes far more challenging when dealing with temporary staff.

Fortunately, this is one area where iTech can assist. We specialize in providing temporary IT staffing services for clients across the United States. We place tremendous emphasis on helping you build a multifaceted group. Whether you need just a couple of developers or multiple teams, we invite you to contact iTech today to discuss your tech staffing needs.

The post What are the Benefits of a Multifaceted and Multicultural Software Development Team? first appeared on iTech.

The need for new staff can arise at random, which underscores the importance of having an established integration process in place. Imagine this: Your company has received an unexpected wave of new projects and opportunities, which is wonderful. However, now you’re prompted to call in temporary resources. You’ll need a couple of full teams and a few supplementary developers to augment three existing teams. It’s really your only option if you want to accept these unexpected but potentially lucrative projects.

How will you go about integrating these resources into your staff? You understand the importance of employee integration, particularly when it comes to maximizing productivity. If an individual doesn’t understand their role or if a new team member hasn’t found their place in the workflow, achieving even moderate productivity can be a challenge. Yet you’re on some tight deadlines. So precisely how do you finish on time and within budget? Do you need to make special considerations during the recruiting and hiring process? Or is this just a project management challenge?

One Solution: Employee Integration Teams

The best companies will have an employee integration team, spanning all departments and divisions. This team works to develop onboarding and integration protocol and resources for new talent. Integration can be quite complex in many cases, as new arrivals must get acquainted with the project and workflow. New staff are also challenged with finding their place within the team dynamic. It’s a task that can be difficult when joining one of the larger agile development teams (with a couple dozen people or more!)

Your employee integration team should work to ensure that you have a designated guide who can handle the introduction, integration and training process in each division and on each development team. This guide will be the new team member’s point person for questions and orientation, which leaves other team members free to proceed as planned.

This is one benefit of hiring an entire team of temporary onsite staff instead of individuals: You can avoid many of the more time-consuming aspects of the employee integration process. In many cases, this group of temporary developers already has what it takes to perform well together. Alternatively, they may all be adept at forming a strong team dynamic quickly. They simply need the project specs, and can get to work creating whatever it is that you need developed.

How to Integrate Temporary Staff into Your Company Quickly and Efficiently

There are a number of measures that your company can implement to ensure that all staff—temporary and permanent alike—go through a brief but highly effective integration process. Consider the following points when evaluating your company’s ability to accommodate new team members, particularly those who are onsite as temporary resources.

• Hire for cultural fit. Always. So many hiring managers ignore the issue of cultural fit, despite the mountains of anecdotal evidence surrounding its importance. Cultural fit refers to the individual’s ability to mesh with not only their team members but the company culture as a whole. If your company is very relaxed, liberal and collaborative, with no dress code, a pet-friendly office that frequently allows staff to work from home or the nearby coffee shop, then it can be a poor fit for someone who prefers a more traditional office environment. This person may find the relaxed environment rather distracting and the highly collaborative team dynamic could feel stifling. This may also occur if someone who’s accustomed to a very relaxed, cooperative development team relocates to work in a more rigid, independent environment. Cultural fit must be addressed during the recruiting and hiring process, as it’s far more challenging to make it work if you hire the wrong talent. You could find yourself attempting to place a round peg in a square hole.
• Ensure your managers maintain continuous, hands-on working style. If you only meet with management once a week, then temporary staff may need to wait days before they get some vital pieces of the puzzle. An environment with managers who interact with talent on a continual, as-needed basis will yield much faster, smoother integration.
• Make the project specs available to new team members and encourage them to ask questions. The new talent must have a full and complete understanding of the project specs, whether you’re architecting a massive enterprise software program or developing a relatively simple mobile app. In fact, the talent should already be familiar with those specifications, as savvy recruiters and hiring managers use specs as the basis for the job description. Therefore, the essentials should have been discussed—at least in a more general sense—during the recruiting and hiring phase. Once you’ve provided the talent with the specs, allow them sufficient time to absorb the information and be ready to address any questions that arise. A careful spec review is key, as it will prevent confusion and errors down the line. Give your developers time to ramp up to full speed, as rushing gives rise to mistakes.
• Make an effort to prepare your existing staff. It’s not uncommon for your internal team to feel a bit threatened by the introduction of new talent. You may receive a bit of “push back” as your in-house team feels as though the temporary staff are encroaching upon their territory. This is more apt to occur if your team is not prepared in advance, so make a concerted effort to explain why the decision was made to call in additional resources. It’s also helpful to discuss what to expect over the coming weeks.

Hiring managers seeking temporary staff for the first time should confer with others throughout the company to determine if the aforementioned measures are in place. And if those measures are not present, could they be implemented in relatively short order? This will ensure a prompt and smooth employee integration process for your temporary team members.

If you’re seeking an experienced IT staffing firm who can help you find the temporary talent that you need to succeed, turn to the experts at iTech. Our developers and other tech professionals know precisely how to get results in today’s hyper-competitive world. We invite you to contact us today to begin the process of finding IT staff.

The post What’s the Importance of Employee Integration for Temporary Staff? first appeared on iTech.

This means you’re faced with lots of choices millions of developers, dozens of programming languages and countless developer specialties. And this says nothing of soft skills, which play a major role when building a development team. A brief examination of the numbers makes it abundantly clear that you need to carefully evaluate a developer’s skills in order to ensure you’ve found the right person for your project.

The top development teams tend to have a broad collective skill set, with a high degree of redundancy or overlap among individual skill sets. While many focus on technical skills, it’s also important to place great emphasis on soft skills, such as leadership tendencies and strong collaborative capabilities.

If you’re a hiring manager or team leader who’s tasked with assembling the ideal development team, you must have an accurate and effective developer skill assessment strategy. So where do you begin?

Performing a Soft Skill Assessment

Assessing soft skills is a bit more subjective than the evaluation process for technical skills, which tend to be far more black and white. This makes soft skill evaluations a bit more challenging in some ways, especially when you consider that soft skills are difficult to evaluate.

Soft skill assessment should examine a number of areas, including the following:

• Team player skills in a large group and small group setting;
• Leadership and self-motivation capabilities;
• Comfort level when working independently;
• Organizational skills;
• Problem solving and analytical capabilities;
• Adaptability and flexibility;
• Conflict resolution skills; and
• Communication skills (online, over the phone and in person).

There’s no simple, straightforward test for soft skills and often, the most effective evaluations are performed over an extended period of time. For this reason, peer reviews and recommendations from former employers can offer lots of useful insight into an individual’s soft skills. Others may opt to simply ask the candidate about their strengths and weaknesses.

As a hiring manager or team leader, the objective is to ensure that your group has a diverse set of soft skill strengths and weaknesses. For instance, if you pair a group of strong leaders with under-developed conflict resolution skills, then you’re apt to see clashes. Team members should possess skill sets that are complementary of each other, with teammates counterbalancing each others’ strengths and weaknesses.

Performing a Developer Skill Assessment for Technical Capabilities

Evaluating an individual’s tech skills can be rather complex, as most hiring managers and recruiters have found that traditional programming tests are very limited in terms of their usefulness. And for developers who work as part of a large agile development team, work samples may be hard to come by. That’s because a single person may not be able to say they’re solely responsible for a particular element or aspect of the project.

So how do you perform a tech skill assessment for developers? Well, it can be beneficial to begin by asking the talent about their skills and proficiencies in various programming languages. This provides you with a good starting point. It can be beneficial to create a standardized form, with a list of skills and programming languages, with tick boxes that allow the individual to rank their skill level for each line item.

From there, it’s most effective to assign test projects which allow the candidate to demonstrate their skills in a tangible, easy-to-evaluate manner. It’s generally best to give all candidates the same project or assignment so as to make the evaluation process more uniform (and subsequently, a bit easier.)

Ideally, you should have a development team leader or other tech-savvy expert evaluating developers, as a typical recruiter or hiring manager will lack the insight required to perform an effective assessment. This is one area where you can benefit from working with an IT staffing firm such as iTech, since our team specializes in sourcing and placing developers and other tech talent with companies across the nation.

At iTech, we know how to assess talent. We can form a new team or supplement an existing team with individuals who are apt to be complementary. And you won’t need to divert valuable resources away from current projects (as is commonly required, since you need someone with programming expertise to effectively evaluate a developer.) We are available to provide consulting and staffing services for clients who are in search of the ideal team of developers. We make sure the team is well-suited to your unique project and its specs. And with our temporary staffing services, there’s no long-term commitment, which is ideal for companies that require help on a one-time or periodic basis. We invite you to contact iTech today to find IT staff for your next project.

The post The Importance of Developer Skill Assessment first appeared on iTech.

Many erroneously believe that the added complexity of hiring someone who lives in a far-off location is not justified, especially when the talent would need to cross international borders. However, the impact of hiring a less-than-ideal candidate can be far greater. You may see a lower quality of work, poor team dynamics and time overruns.

This leads to less-satisfied customers, lower productivity levels and ultimately, significant harm to your bottom line. This can far outweigh any added time and effort it takes to recruit global talent. This is an ideal point to mention that, contrary to popular belief, the process of recruiting global talent is not necessarily more costly, nor is it inherently more time-consuming. And when you work with the right tech and IT staffing company, they’ll oversee these matters on your behalf.

H1B Visa Sponsorship, Relocation and Other Considerations When Recruiting Global Talent

When hiring staff from far-off locations whether they’re from out of state or another continent you will have additional considerations. This is particularly true if the individual is a citizen of another nation. In these cases, you’ll need to consider things like visa sponsorship and the individual’s ability to work in-country.

One of the most common U.S. work visas is the H1B visa, which requires the individual to have a company that’s willing to serve as a sponsor. The sponsor basically says, If you allow this individual to enter the country, I will employ them. The process of getting an H1B visa can be rather complex, but most companies that go this route will agree that it’s worthwhile. What’s more, many tech workers can work remotely with relative ease, so this is always an option in cases where you require help straight away, but have yet to secure a visa for your talent. Depending upon the nation, it can also be possible for the talent to enter and work in-country on a temporary basis until they secure a visa.

You’ll also need to address the issue of travel and relocation, as hiring globally entails some unique obstacles. These obstacles are in addition to all of the usual talent acquisition challenges that you can expect to encounter. In the case of hiring temporary onsite staff, it’s fairly standard for companies to foot the bill for their accommodations and travel. Companies that routinely hire temporary staff may opt to acquire condominiums or homes that can be used to accommodate talent and their immediate family members.

For a permanent (onsite) position, it’s logical that the worker may choose to relocate to your region. This can be associated with a slight delay between the individual’s hire date and their official start date something you must account for in your planning. Many companies even offer to cover some or all of the person’s relocation costs. This practice is becoming more commonplace within the tech industry, due to the high demand for tech solutions and the comparatively small talent pool. In fact, the competitive nature of the industry has prompted many companies to start offering hiring bonuses.

There’s also the matter of evaluating for cultural fit and soft skills. Cultural and language differences can pose some obstacles, so it’s important that you’re aware of any potential challenges and develop a plan to address them. This plan can include everything from team-building workshops to English lessons for those who need a bit of help with it. Often, language barriers are fairly minimal, as many learn English as a second language starting at a very young age. What’s more, immersion is one of the best methods for improving communication skills in another language. So most barriers in this area can be overcome with some basic instruction and immersion.

At first glance, it may feel as though the extra effort and added expenditures fall into the realm of less than ideal. But the bottom line is this: when you’re hiring the best person for the job, these added considerations are more than worthwhile because you see such a tremendous difference in work quality and overall productivity. So the return on investment is usually quite significant.

Recruiting the Best Possible IT Talent for the Job

One way to recruit globally is to work with IT staffing services companies like iTech. We are committed to finding and hiring the best person for the job, regardless of location. You’ll be provided with the ideal candidates individuals with talents and skill sets that can far exceed those that you might see in the best local candidate. This is especially true for companies that are located in a region that lacks a thriving tech industry. A business in Boston or the San Francisco Bay Area may have access to local talent that is amongst the best of the best. But the top programmer in or around Livingston, Montana may be only moderately skilled.

This is a scenario where it’s useful to work with a company such as iTech. We handle all aspects of the recruiting and pre-hiring process. In some cases, this can include H1B visa sponsorship if the best person for the job happens to be a citizen of another nation. Our insourcing practice is unique: We hire talent worldwide and dispatch those experts to work onsite for clients on a temporary basis. You’ll have access to resources precisely when the need arises. You’ll also have the ability to leverage your existing onsite resources as needed. That’s something you don’t get with standard outsourcing arrangements.

If you’re seeking to hire IT staff, such as temporary software developers or a team of IT professionals, iTech is ready to assist. We invite you to contact our team today to discuss your staffing needs.

The post Should You Be Recruiting Global Talent? first appeared on iTech.

In fact, in 2016, the top five most costly HIPAA settlement fines reached into the millions, ranging from $2.14 million to $5.55 million. Those dollar figures say nothing of other related problems, such as lost business due to a perceived breach of trust. The number of healthcare data breaches constituting a HIPAA violation has increased consistently since record-keeping started in 2009. This makes HIPAA a very real healthcare technology concern; one that has impacted IT staffing in some significant ways by transforming the approach to mobile apps, software development, IT and data management (amongst many other areas.)

Balancing HIPAA Compliance and Technology

HIPAA adds complexity to any tech project that involves medical records, personal data or other protected healthcare information (PHI). Rapid technological advances are challenging IT professionals and developers to maintain compliance with HIPAA regulations. The impact on the hiring process and your project as a whole can be significant since you’ll need to comply with a wide range of regulations that, if violated, will lead to a major fine. This is true whether you’re revamping IT infrastructure or developing enterprise software for a healthcare client. To appreciate the impact on your staffing efforts fully, it’s vital that you have a good understanding of precisely how HIPAA violations occur.

Many are shocked by the number of fairly commonplace issues that can result in a HIPAA violation, such as unauthorized access/disclosure, theft, loss, improper data disposal, hacking or an IT incident. Some of the most common scenarios include:

• Altered network settings that result in accidental online availability of private data;
• Lost or stolen tablets, laptops and smartphones with access to PHI;
• Unauthorized server access, resulting in a data breach;
• Improper or insufficient control over permissions, resulting in unauthorized access;
• A poorly-developed BYOD policy, resulting in violation of HIPAA regulations;
• Hacker- or malware-related breaches; and
• Sensitive data that accidentally remains unencrypted.

There have even been cases where companies may be forced to hire a forensic tech team in an attempt to determine if a breach occurred and it’s not always possible to make a definitive determination.

HIPAA and Hiring Strategies

To avoid HIPAA violations, many company leaders and hiring managers seek out developers and IT staff with prior experience in healthcare technology. But finding an individual with this very specific type of experience can be a tremendous challenge one that routinely leads to project delays.

“HIPAA compliance is a necessary evil; one that must be addressed during the staffing process,” explained iTech CEO Kishore Khandavalli. He added, “Many hiring managers go astray by looking for a tech expert who has done it before; someone with lots of HIPAA compliance experience. But with this approach, they’re looking for a needle in a haystack. They’re searching for someone who is local and available to work. That same person also needs HIPAA experience, the right tech skills and they must represent a good cultural fit. That’s a needle!”

The end result is a lengthy, time-consuming search that often proves fruitless. It’s not uncommon for the project to be delayed while the company’s hiring managers and staffing recruiters search for the right talent; talent who can ensure that software or tech systems are HIPAA-compliant. And hiring managers may face additional obstacles if they’re seeking temporary software developers, as some staff favor long-term opportunities.

Instead, the team at iTech – a firm specializing in IT staffing solutions – takes a different approach when seeking talent for healthcare clients, where HIPAA compliance is critical.

“We’ll seek out a person who has all of the necessary skills, but perhaps they lack a bit of the functional knowledge surrounding HIPAA. That’s where you bring in a HIPAA consultant to fill in those gaps. This ‘divide and conquer’ approach can be extremely effective. You can then avoid a scenario where you need to delay and derail the entire project because you lack the right staff,” Khandavalli explained, adding that this strategy is typically preferable over the alternative: hiring the most qualified local talent, who may be a poor overall fit for your company. Pairing a developer with a subject matter expert can ensure you have the right people, with the right experience, working to get the job done. And location matters naught since iTech specializes in finding temporary talent who will work onsite at your company’s offices.

A similar approach can also be used when finding developers and IT staff for other industries that are subject to stringent guidelines; namely, the financial sector. There is a fair amount of overlap in the special accommodations required for HIPAA compliance and compliance with financial industry regulations. This is good news for hiring managers, who can choose from a broader range of candidates. Many companies who do business in the EU are also seeing an increased need for GDPR-savvy tech staff, so that’s yet another area where this strategy may be prudent.

At iTech, we specialize in helping you overcome this and other talent acquisition challenges. We’ll help you seek out the right temporary onsite staff to help you achieve your goals and objectives. Temporary staff allow you to meet your deadlines in a cost-effective manner, while also leveraging your in-house resources.

If you’re interested in learning more about iTech’s IT staffing services, you’re invited to contact us to learn more.

The post How to Comply With HIPAA by Hiring the Right IT Staff first appeared on iTech.

Hiring managers and company leaders are faced with this dilemma on a regular basis. Reviewing a developer applicant’s suitability is about so much more than just matching up key phrases from your job description to the applicant’s resume. A comprehensive resume review is critical, and it requires a fair amount of technical knowledge on the part of the reviewer.

The hiring process is complicated further because companies must consider more than just the individual’s tech skills and experience. Let’s take a look at what else you should look at, and these factors affect the resume review process.

How Do You Review a Software Developer Resume?

There are many different issues to keep in mind as you review a developer’s resume. Consider the following:

• Is the candidate proficient in the programming languages that are required to complete your project?
• Has the candidate worked on projects that are similar both in terms of nature and scale?
• What development methodology does the candidate utilize?
• How do the applicant’s past development projects compare to your software development needs? Does the individual have experience developing the functions and features that you require?
• Has the developer worked on apps or software programs in your unique business niche? (i.e. if you’re in the healthcare sector, you want developers with experience in healthcare).

These key points must be evaluated whether you’re hiring for a full-time or part-time position, a temporary or permanent position.

Going Beyond the Developer’s Resume

While it can be useful to evaluate the talent’s experience and proficiencies relative to your unique requirements, a good fit requires more than just the right skill set. This is particularly true for temporary staff or short-term staffers, who are expected to achieve maximum productivity right out of the gate.

Cultural fit is critical to the hiring process. Cultural fit refers to the alignment between your company’s personality and environment and the talent. For example, you might have a candidate who is accustomed to a very relaxed environment where staff work flexible hours, bring their pets to the office, wear casual attire and often work remotely. If you seek to hire that individual to work in an office that’s more formal, with precise office hours, a ban on pets, more formal dress code and an all-around more rigid environment, then you may see a failure to thrive. For this reason, an increasing number of companies are turning to tech and IT staffing firms for help finding the right person for the job.

Another essential element relates to the talent’s team player capabilities, or lack thereof. Some developers thrive in a small, highly collaborative group, where the team members work very closely throughout the project. That same individual may feel lost if he or she is plopped in the middle of a large team. Although the situation would still be collaborative, but would also requires a high degree of independence and a good understanding of the big picture. An experienced IT staffing services provider will appreciate the need for alignment between your current staff and the candidate whom you’re considering. This is one of our many areas of expertise at iTech.

iTech specializes in consulting and insourcing as we search worldwide for the best talent and then dispatch those experts to work onsite for clients on a temporary basis. So you’re not getting the best local talent; you’re getting the best talent anywhere. Not every client needs temporary staffing, but many companies can see a significant benefit from this strategy. If you’re among them and are ready to hire IT staff, then we invite you to contact iTech to learn more.

The post Software Developer Resume Reviewing Tips first appeared on iTech.