focusing on skill and ability over qualifications to find the best talent in technology.

Academic qualifications may not necessarily be the most critical aspect in defining the ability of technology professionals today. While many technology professionals build their skillset during school and college, a large proportion of people are learning independently or via online training or specialist platforms.

Following the challenges created from the pandemic, technology employers have had to recreate their working environment and last year presented a range of different ways of working. The location became less important, and businesses began integrating HR technology solutions to maintain momentum with the rising demand for transparent and effective processes. This year represents the first year of a more established flexible working environment.

With an era some refer to as 'the great resignation', investment into HR technology tools will likely continue to increase with further requirements to increase the efficiency of people. During the last year, there have been significant changes in hiring behaviours. Hiring teams are looking at different sources of talent, focusing more on skill and ability and removing any possible bias in recruitment by applying new tech tools.

One of the driving forces for this shift in attitudes towards technology jobs was largely down to many employees feeling burnt out. The last few years were very challenging, but once we reached the recovery stage, pressure mounted on technology teams to build new products to ensure business remained stable and legacy systems improved.

Businesses recognise that the new workforce is more concerned about flexibility, collaboration and empathy. A report from Microsoft indicated that over 50% of developers think their business is not empathetic enough. Organisations need to look further into the hiring process and the areas that impact hiring and retention. This process includes understanding how employees feel in a business, whether an organisation is considered fair and equitable, are employees allowed to voice their opinions have the support they need? Do employees have the opportunity to continue growing and training?

Academic qualifications are not the primary market in the ability of a technology professional today. While many tech professionals develop their skills in education, many are learning the process remotely or on skill-building platforms. As a consequence of this shift in learning, tech recruiters need to widen their search and look beyond traditional systems to explore the best talent available.

It's critical businesses engage in the tech community, develop their brand and connect with relevant tech professionals. Restructuring job ads are also an important aspect to consider. Listing multiple skills and requirements in a job can be overwhelming and can alienate your business from a large number of potential candidates.

In the last few years, companies have had to adapt to significant changes in the business world. HR technology has been pivotal, and workplace automation has become a familiar concept in this post-pandemic working environment. Industry analysts anticipate more changes that enable businesses to make remote working easier, reduce employee churn and drive better efficiency.

The future will likely see a rise in employee behaviours, supporting HR professionals to find skilled talent in a more data-focused and strategic approach. Tech recruiters and hiring managers are adopting new employee assessment platforms, and those that have adopted these solutions are generating a fairer and more accurate assessment process. The candidate experience can improve with more technological change, creating a smoother and more transparent experience for prospective employees.

The pandemic has made technology businesses realise that skills are far more critical in the hiring process than traditional elements like CVs and background experience. In this new working world, the way we hire skilled talent has to progress and move beyond the conventional format of hiring new talent.