How to Hire an Algo Developer

One of the most common conversations we have at Vertus centres around the difficulty in hiring Algo Developers.

Our clients often come to us with vacancies in this space but only after initiating the search realise how challenging it can be.

The main reason for this? The narrow talent pool.

There’s simply not enough talent to go round. Which limits your chances of hiring the best, and in some cases, hiring at all.

The meat on the bones

The role you’re hiring for isn’t easily done. It’s an incredibly specialist, complex and sometimes stressful job.

It’s done by people who have years of experience and are in high demand. And therefore rattling off a quick job spec with little detail or scope about the role won’t suffice in tempting anyone.

It’s also important to understand the context of what a limited talent pool means. In most cases, the people we approach aren’t unemployed.

They work for your competitors. They may be happily employed and not even considering another role. But one thing’s for certain, they won’t move company to do the same role under the same conditions without good reason.

That good reason might be there. But leaving it to chance without telling them what it is won’t win their favour.

This is what makes the wider context so crucial in running a successful search.

What’s the project? Why would it be interesting for them? Why is it important to the business? What will their input create? What can they go on to achieve? What have previous incumbents gone on to do? What competitive difference can you offer for their career? Can you offer a better salary? A brilliant bonus? Awesome perks?

The entire framing of your job needs to be done with the candidate in mind. Everything in marketing is about the person reading.

And in the world of selling jobs, the most important person is the job seeker. In this case, if they’re not seeking, you need to create intrigue and entice people’s imagination.

Setting the scene

Getting exposure to certain departments in your business is one of the key differentiators for many Algo specialists. That’s because the opportunity to broaden their skillset will help the evolution of their career.

The two paths open to an Algo Developer are purely tech driven roles, and those which work more closely aligned to the business and traders/quants.

There’s, typically a transition from IT driven roles to business aligned as a Developer moves through their career. Showcasing that transition can help you fill the position more quickly.

You can also chart the path others have taken from Developer to Director. Involving those who’ve done it in the interview process is also a very smart idea. They can give first hand detail on how they’ve achieved it, and how the interviewee might do the same.

It’s no secret, roles is this space are among the most well paid, and also the most interesting.

Don’t be shy when it comes to delving into the detail of why your role might be both. Allowing your recruiter to give fuller details of the financial rewards could make or break your search.

Imagine calling someone and presenting them with an alternative job to the one they have now.

Then imagine trying to convince them without giving them any information which could pique their interest.

That’s what your recruiters job is. Being up front and detailed will make a huge difference.

The interview process

One of the most common pieces of feedback we receive from candidates is that the interview process is overly lengthy.

It’s natural to want to make sure you put them through their paces and giving them every chance to impress.

But remember, you’re trying to impress too. Algo Developers are in high demand. That means the people you’re interviewing are almost certainly already employed.

Hiring the best of them means thinking about their experience as much as possible.

That starts from having the most detailed conversations with your recruiter, and goes all the way through to the day they start.

Most companies want candidates to conduct technical tests or practical coding examples. But having more than a 4 stage interview process can be seen negatively. Especially if each of those stages take hours and hours to complete. Are you being reasonable with their time and thinking about their experience at every stage?

The best recruiters will help you hone your process.

One of the biggest differentiators we see in the interview process is drawing out the detail of the project at hand.

Is it greenfield? What could it do for the candidate with this experience on their CV? Which asset class is it? Is there the possibility to introduce them to new skills which might give them a competitive difference later in their career?

How the best in the game excel

It’s a simple truth that the longer it takes you to hire someone, the more the troubles can build up for you internally.

It’s not in your interests to let your hiring process drag on and negatively impact internal projects which could harm the success of the wider business. Ultimately if you need someone, you need them quickly.

Delays in recruitment cost time and money. So it pays to take notice of other processes to spot areas of improvement for your own.

Our clients that have the most success in hiring Algo Developers take various steps to achieving both.

They understand how important the role is, and pay commensurate with that weighting. That means they offer great financial reward but also the softer touch parts of a benefits package which can make a huge difference.

Can you offer flexibility in working hours? Can you work from home during part of the week? What benefits are on offer which could make their lives better?

You’re not just competing with other jobs on the market, you’re competing with the one they have now. The one which they’re likely to be happy in, feel comfortable, like their team and feel at home.

Don’t be afraid to ask your recruiter for input too. They’ll know what will create interest in your job and company. They can consult on what other companies offer, and help you find points of difference to make your process smoother and more timely.

Great recruiters map the market constantly in their day job. Not just for candidates but businesses too. They know who the best are, and what makes them so.

Struggling to hire people in the Algo space is common. And so feeling the strain with a lack of candidates is normal.

It’s also something you can change with the right impetus.

One of the best tips I can give you is to work with a recruiter who can give you the proper consultation and the benefit of their years of experience in the market.

To see how we can help with hiring Algo developers, contact us here.