Are developers getting the short end of the stick?

For those who aren’t as familiar, recruitment and hiring in the tech industry isn’t the same process as what we all are used to. In many other industries, one might land a job after just one or two rounds of interviews. In the tech industry however, things are a lot more complex than that.

When it comes to the hiring and interview process in the tech industry, developers are required to undergo multiple interview stages, anywhere from 3 to 6, all while having to complete tests and coding assignments along the way at each stage. Not only are the tests and assignments gruelling and complex, developers are often juggling multiple responsibilities at home and at work, hence finding time to even complete these tests are challenging. While some companies make the recruitment process easy on both themselves and the developers, others choose to make the process as challenging as possible. I understand the need to find the right person that fits the needs of your company and respect that approach, but it sometimes can get a little ridiculous; putting unnecessary pressure on a candidate that is already stressed enough as it is.

As a headhunter, I can always do my best to schedule and book interviews in a way that would help take off some of the pressure, and make it slightly less stressful for the developer. My job is more than just finding someone’s dream job, it’s about helping the developer get there in whatever way I can. However, developers still have to take out anywhere between 4 to 6 hours of their own time to complete the tech tests given to them by the hiring company. Bearing in mind, that this excludes the interviews themselves. This process can be awfully damaging to developers’ mental health, self-confidence and morale. Whenever I discover that some company’s interview process can be (for example) 6 stages long, I can see why the colour always drains on the faces of the developers I work with.

The developers I have had the pleasure of working with have been more than happy to dedicate their (already limited) time to complete the tech tests, as they want to impress the hiring company with their skills. I applaud their enthusiasm and commitment to always doing the best job they can. However, this amount of effort is being put in during the interview stages, not the actual job itself. There is no guarantee that these developers will even get the offer, or move on to the next stage. It can be really disheartening and demotivating when one puts in so much effort to produce something that is of high quality, only to not get selected for the next round of interviews. Time, effort and money could have been spent in vain. Oftentimes, these developers will end up having more things to deal with on their plate once they get back to their current job, as they had to take time out to get those tests done.

Working in recruitment, I fully understand the need and anxiety around finding the best candidate to fit the needs of the company - the last thing I would want is for the newly hired candidate to leave the company or a regretful hiring decision. There is time, effort and quite a bit of money spent on the entire process and to see it wasted would not be good on the company budget.

It is not to say that the long and treacherous process is unnecessary, in my opinion it does mean that the developers do get the short end of the stick. They have to go through so many hoops to theoretically win someone’s approval, and more often than not get ghosted at the end.

I am a headhunter by profession, but I still champion for the developers I work with and wish they were treated more like the talented humans they are. If more companies see that developers are humans too and deserve more respect, I think the hiring processes need not be so challenging.