A beginner’s luck? Or a no judgment strategy | Memoir of a Sourcer
Written by Alexey Geht
Senior Talent Sourcer
Reading Time: 5 min
3.5 years ago (who is counting) I started my gig as a Tech Talent Sourcing @AddedValue sourcing for tech candidates in the startup nation (Israel).
I came with 0 knowledge in technical sourcing but with 2 years of experience in Talent Sourcing in other industries armed with a Boolean green belt, a wizard wand, and a huge hunger to learn the difference between Java and Javascript 🙂
So I jumped into the deep water and started to search for top-notch software developers. BUT I had no prior experience or knowledge with the local market so I didn’t know what companies are considered “hot” or “sexy” in the local silicon valley.
My first year was actually reading the JD and having a kick-off meeting with the hiring manager, understanding the requirements –> the technological stack, years of experience, education, etc.. and search for relevant Developers based on these criteria.
I didn’t judge profiles based on their place of employment, not because I was that open-minded Sourcer, I just didn’t have any idea (Ok Ok, I did some market research and I did have some idea but it was very far from understanding the market trends).
So long story short, I started to get a pipe of candidates. Some of them were very good, some less, but the projects were successful and also the feedback from the clients.
Let’s jump 3 years into the future (the time is now, right?). So now I know pretty well the market, the different frameworks, databases, and programming languages. I know how to spot a good developer on GitHub or Stackoverflow and generally speaking I know what profiles my clients want to see.
Somehow I feel in the last year or so that I’m shooting my own leg when I filter tons of developers from my search based on a prejudice that came with the knowledge.
I don’t say that it is not important and place of past employment does matter a lot, but somehow we should be able to start every search with a clear mind and give developers that fit the requirements a fair chance, even if they didn’t work at the hottest company.
I’d love to get your input on this topic, really curious about what is your personal approach is and if your search is different now compared to the time you started.
May the source be with you!