“Upskilling, what the hell is that?!” Anonymous If you’re like our unidentified friend in the quote above, here’s the TL;DR (Too Long, Didn’t Read if you don’t know what that is too) from the world’s most famous AI chatbot: Upskilling refers to the process of learning new skills or enhancing existing ones. It’s a way for individuals to improve their employability and stay relevant in the ever-changing job market.  Upskilling can involve formal education, training programs, online courses, workshops, or even self-directed learning. Why is that important for you? For businesses, upskilling ..read more

There’s no shortage of advice for candidates on what they should avoid in an interview—don’t wear street clothes, don’t be rude, don’t don’t. You know the red flags that warn you when a candidate might not fit your team. But what about you, the interviewer? As the gatekeeper who ensures that only the most qualified candidates make it onto your team, how you act in an interview is very important. 53% of job seekers have had at least one negative experience in the hiring process in the past 12 months. And 52% of job seekers had declined a job offer due to poor experience. CareerPlug.com Just as ..read more

Addressing skill gaps is crucial for team productivity and project success.  In CoderPad’s 2024 State of Tech Hiring Survey, a key issue highlighted by almost 27% of the developers was their team’s lack of technical knowledge for implementing projects.  This challenge often stems from non-existent or outdated skills tracking systems. Understanding and mapping your employees’ technical skills is essential not just for forming efficient teams but also for enhancing overall productivity by complementing skill sets. So, how can you effectively identify and leverage the diverse skills wit ..read more

Hackathons, once primarily associated with the tech industry, have become widely embraced across various sectors.  These intensive, time-bound events offer an unparalleled opportunity for employees to collaborate, brainstorm, and develop innovative solutions to real-world challenges. And employees like them – when they’re done right.  I once participated in a hackathon that touted free food, free energy drinks, a chance to win an iPad, an Amazon Echo Dot consolation prize, and the “fun” of staying up for 24 hours to finish your project. Who wouldn’t participate in that hackathon?! Of ..read more

1 out of 2 developers say they want to switch jobs. That means that even in this environment of mass tech layoffs, half of your team would leave if given the right opportunity. Given that only 15% of surveyed developers work entirely on-site now, there’s a good chance this includes your remote team members.  Granted, most developers say they’d leave for a higher salary – something that is very often out of your control to grant. However, you can make it easier for employees to want to stay by simply being a good manager and helping them thrive in the workplace. Many employees have stayed ..read more

Sometimes you stop hiring because you’ve just finished filling out your team. Other times it’s because the C-suite has made tough decisions to cut the hiring budget, which means you can’t hire the people you want (or need). Whatever the reason, it doesn’t mean that you should stop promoting your company as an attractive place to work. Budgets won’t be cut forever, and teams aren’t immune to turnover. Eventually, you’ll either need to grow your team or replace members who have left. But unless you’re taking steps to nurture relationships with prospective candidates even while you’re not hiring ..read more

Interviewing is hard. If it were up to most of us, we’d wave a magic wand that makes the perfect candidate appear in front of us, ready to code. But the realities of searching for a perfect candidate – let alone one that is even good enough – are much more complex. Those complexities multiply for new hiring managers who are thrown into their first interviews with nothing more than a pile of resumes to go by. Do you really want to know the secret to having a great interview process? Make the interview a great experience for the candidate. When it’s easy for the candidate, it becomes easy for yo ..read more

We often have the impression that digital technology does not pollute.  This is usually because software pollution is mainly invisible to the general public thanks to dematerialization (the use of the cloud or online word processing services, for example), which is ultimately only the decentralized materialization of digital services. However, when we use these digital services, we utilize the 3-tier hardware architecture composed of: Devices or terminals: computers, screens, smartphones, smartwatches, etc. Networks: all the cables that allow the circulation of data, routers, relay anten ..read more

Today, diversity and inclusion present a major opportunity for the tech industry. Research shows that a diverse workforce leads to higher performance and more resilient companies — and we’ve all got room to improve where representation, pay, and hiring are concerned.  A 2021 survey of over 2,000 early-career tech workers and 270 business leaders by market research firm Wiley revealed that 68% of polled businesses feel there isn’t enough diversity in their tech workforce. Nearly a quarter said they didn’t know how to address the issue.   Creating a more e ..read more

As the pandemic eases up and people start trickling back to offices everywhere, there are benefits to the in-person connections that result: more spontaneous collaboration, good mentoring, and easier relationship building. Plus who doesn’t love a little office cooler time? But as we collectively open the door to some form of office life, let’s not let the bad stuff from before in with us. That means unnecessary commutes, mandated “optional” happy hours, and – most crucially – truly terrible technical interviewing techniques.  Out of necessity, interviewing – and technical interviewing in ..read more