With the high-paced digital transformation, employing the best tech talent has become more critical to companies now than ever before. Yet, attracting talented senior developers, especially top senior developers, can be extremely challenging given the fierce competition for talent.

According to the research we conducted in Turkey, the frequency of job changes among software developers has increased significantly over the last ten years. The length of stay in the same job decreased from 37 to 13 months, declining by 2/3 over the ten-year period.

As Devskiller shared in one of the articles, the tech industry’s turnover rate is around 13.2% which exceeds that of any other sector (10.5% on average). Employers are having trouble attracting and keeping developers at their organizations due to the high demand for these tech professionals.

Attracting top senior developers can be especially difficult. Competitive compensation packages with high salaries are no longer the main drivers behind a senior candidate’s career pursuit.

So, how do you attract the best tech talent?

Strategies For Attracting Top Software Developers

Empower employees with flexibility and freedom

Empower your employees by offering a flexible working environment and creating space for freedom and creativity.

Most software developers, especially at a senior level, prefer a remote working environment because it offers the flexibility to define your work schedule and working style, setting up the workspace that fits you best. This creates space for personal connectivity and deeper focus.

Another equally important factor that senior software developers pay attention to is the autonomy given in the projects. Enabling your teams in the decision-making process boosts employee morale and engagement, increasing productivity. Therefore, it’s important to reassure that software developers will be trusted to get on with the role, treating them as partners, not underlings.

No one likes to be micromanaged, and the talented senior software developers are no exception. Offer your talented team autonomy to be creative with the projects you give them, fueling an innovative spirit within the organization.

In cases where your company doesn’t offer remote work, you’ll have to be extra creative with how you’ll compensate for the absence of that working option. You can offer flexible working hours or additional perks, such as longer vacations, that will show the importance you give to the employees’ work-life balance. Although it might not be as eye-catchy as a remote work option, it’ll increase your chances of attracting senior software developers seeking flexible work environments.

Create learning opportunities that support career growth

Provide learning opportunities that will help careers to take off. According to the research from LinkedIn, 59% of tech professionals joined their companies with the aim of building a stronger career path, and 45% left their companies due to the lack of those opportunities. Undoubtedly, this is of high importance for talented senior developers.

By investing in employees’ professional development, you’re helping them get closer to achieving their career goals. Offer learning opportunities that inspire and engage, creating meaningful experiences for software developers throughout your ranks.

You need to do your best to support software developers in their careers. They’ll be looking elsewhere if they don’t find those opportunities at your organization.

You can support career growth in different ways by offering courses, on-site training, education reimbursements, and more. These measures will ensure that you stay competitive in the battle for tech talent, helping you not only source top tech talent but also retain it for a long time.

Focus on what’s important in your job description

To attract top senior developers, you’ll need to write a compelling straight-to-the-point job description. Developers receive many job offers daily, barely spending a few minutes looking through them. With many job options and limited time, senior developers skim through the job descriptions, focusing on the important bits of information.

Here’s when you can grasp their attention.

As you write your job description, clearly mention the role’s main responsibilities with the personality traits and communication style you’re looking for. This will help you find candidates who best fit the role, making it easier for them to apply if they feel like there is a good match.

To attract the top tech talent, you’ll also need to point out what sets you apart from other companies. Inspire them with a vision, hold onto a clear purpose, and set challenging goals.

In today’s world, senior developers are looking for more than a competitive paycheck and a fancy title. They’re searching for work that brings meaning and has a well-defined purpose.

Provide plenty of resources

While senior software developers might be at the top of their field, there’s always room to grow. Give them access to the resources they need to do their jobs well with the option of providing additional tools if necessary.

To catch the attention of top senior developers though, you should give them the opportunity to use the latest technologies in the market. Top developers generally have extensive experience with different technologies. Therefore, they might be on the hunt for something new.

Many developers also have shown a strong preference for open-source languages and frameworks. Therefore, by providing an opportunity to work with cutting-edge open technologies, you’ll be able to attract top senior engineers with an innovative mindset.

With the fierce competition for tech talent, offering competitive compensation packages is not enough

With the fierce competition for tech talent, offering competitive compensation packages is not enough to attract top senior software developers.

They’re looking for flexible work environments that support their career ambitions, providing professional development and growth opportunities. They’re no longer motivated by high paychecks; they’re looking for a challenging and meaningful work.

Attracting top senior software developers is a challenging task indeed, but with the right strategies, you’ll increase your chances of finding the most suitable candidates. Empower senior developers with flexible working hours and freedom to be creative in the projects you assign to them and provide plenty of opportunities for career advancement. Before you know it, senior developers might start knocking on your door!

It’s no longer companies searching for the best talent but talent searching for suitable companies.

But how do you attract suitable candidates with all the noise currently in the tech talent market?

Attracting software developers, especially top senior developers, is no easy task. But TalentGrid can make this process significantly faster and smoother.

 

TalentGrid is a platform that matches software developers with companies all over the world based on their skills and criteria. With the growing network of 40K+ developers from Eastern European markets and matching technology, TalentGrid helps companies find the developer they’re looking for fast and seamlessly without the hustle of traditional headhunting.

By creating an account on the TalentGrid platform and submitting your open tech roles, you won’t have to worry about headhunting, contacting, informing, and updating the candidates, – TalentGrid will do that for you!