5 Hacks to Confidently Speak Tech with Talent

In this post, I want to share five essential hacks that will allow you to speak with talent confidently. Whether you're a tech recruiter, sourcer, or hiring manager, effective communication with technical skills is critical. However, tech jargon and concepts can sometimes feel overwhelming. The good news is that there are techniques you can use to understand and discuss technology fluently. I've distilled these down to 5 core hacks that anyone can implement. Let's dive in.

Hack #1: Know Your Company's Tech Stack

The first hack is to understand your company's technical stack and architecture intimately. This will allow you to comprehend the technologies and tools your engineering teams use day-to-day. When a new job request comes across your desk, create a list of all the technologies mentioned. Extract anything related to languages, frameworks, databases, libraries, cloud platforms, etc.

Next, organize this tech stack by front-end and back-end. This will provide a high-level view of how your company's applications are built and deployed. Finally, identify any gaps or unclear areas of your company's stack. Use these knowledge gaps as opportunities to connect with engineers and tech leads to learn more. The benefits of mapping your organization's tech stack are two-fold:

1. You will understand the day-to-day challenges engineers face. This allows you to speak credibly about projects and progress.

2. You will grasp why particular technologies are used. This context is invaluable when sourcing candidates. In short, know your company's technical architecture inside and out. Use job descriptions as clues to fill in gaps continually.

Hack #2: Master Relevant Technical Skills

Once you've mapped your company's stack, master the critical skills mentioned. For example, if your organization uses C# and Angular, dive deep into those technologies. Understand key concepts, frameworks, principles and best practices. You don't need to become an expert in IT, but solid comprehension will build tremendous confidence.

Here are some tips:

• Learn basic terminology: Master essential vocab for required programming languages and libraries. Know what terms like "frameworks", "databases", and "O.S" mean. Engineers will notice.
• Watch tutorials/courses: At Techlingo , we developed courses that cover the fundamentals of the IT world of IT recruiters and sourcers .
• Exploring documentation: Developer docs may seem intimidating but usually have high-level overviews. Skim through critical docs for APIs/languages they use at your company.
• Ask engineers: Schedule time with engineering teams to explain concepts or demos. Most love sharing knowledge. The IT landscape is vast, but you only need to master concepts related to your company's stack. Focused learning goes a long way.

Hack #3: Craft Engaging Job Descriptions

Most job descriptions are dry, generic, and full of inflated claims about the company. This turns off experienced engineers. To create genuinely engaging Job descriptions, focus on specifics:

• Lead with the problem: Describe complex technical challenges your engineering teams face. This builds intrigue and positions the role as high-impact.
• Provide context: Give details about why certain technologies or architectures are used. Helps candidates assess fit.
• Ask for help: Say you need help solving specific problems. Avoid arrogant "rockstar" language.
• Use detailed tech stack: Include the frameworks, languages, and tools required for the role based on your understanding.
• Precise titles: Generic titles like "Full stack developer" are a dime a dozen. Use exact language like "React Developer (Typescript, GraphQL)" to convey speciality.

Engineers want to tackle complex problems with technologies they love—structure job descriptions to this interest.

Here is an example of a fantastic job description . Notice something in this job description? It doesn’t look like a job description at all.

Hack #4: Build Relationships with Tech Talent

Next, you need to foster connections with talented engineers outside your company proactively. This allows you to:

• Learn more about their world. What tech are they using daily? What challenges do developers face?
• Introduce exciting people to your company and roles. Make great connections. Some might work for your company one day, and others won’t, and that’s part of the game.
• Strengthen your employer brand. Engineers will see your company as a developer-friendly place to work.

Here are some tips for cultivating meaningful relationships:

• Work in their world: Comment on engineer posts on Twitter, GitHub, LinkedIn, etc. Ask smart questions. Provide thoughtful feedback. Demonstrate you understand their position.
• Speak their language: Use terms you've learned correctly. Engineers notice when recruiters make an effort to communicate knowledgeably.
• Listen: Avoid pushing jobs. Have genuine conversations about projects, challenges, and goals. Identify ways you can add value.
• Share insights: Because you understand your company's tech stack, share relevant knowledge. Engineers appreciate recruiters who educate. You can invest time in nurturing authentic connections with developers. It's a long game that ultimately pays off.

Hack #5: Bridge Your Company and Talent Worlds

Finally, actively work to connect talented engineers with relevant teams and challenges at your company.

Here are some ideas you can implement today:

• Host tech talks: Organize talks where your engineers share creative solutions with the external community. Great exposure.
• Sponsor meetups: Cover space and food for local developer meetups focused on your stack. Have engineers attend.
• Promote open roles internally: Enable your engineering managers to advocate available roles to talented people in their network.
• Highlight challenges: Show engineers at events/conferences your company's technical challenges. Rally helps solve them. Essentially, it bridges your organization and the external tech community. You'll soon be known as a connector of talented people and exciting opportunities.

Go Forth and Speak Tech Fluently!

There you have it - 5 hacks to confidently discuss technology like an insider. Master your company's tech stack. Learn relevant skills. Craft engaging job descriptions. Build relationships. Connect your company with the community. Implementing even just one of two of these tips will immediately boost your tech credibility. You'll be having nuanced discussions with engineers in no time!

That's it for today.

What resonated with you most? Are there any other methods you've found effective? Let me know in the comments!

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