Hiring in tech can have an element of risk as skills are scarce, tech evolves quickly and the difference between good employees and great ones can be felt in an entire team. Most employers plan for salary, onboarding and tools which means that the true cost of a bad hire can be underestimated.
Here at Apache Associates we work with hiring managers who want to fill positions quickly without compromising on quality hiring. In this article we are going to take a look at what a bad hire can cost in tech and ways to reduce the risk.
What Is A Bad Hire In Tech?
A bad tech hire isn’t necessarily someone who doesn’t have the technical ability but they may lack:
· Communication or collaboration skills
· Experience in the real demands of the role
· Knowledge of your tech stack, pace or product limits
· Motivation, ownership or delivery
· Cultural alignment in your current team
Essentially a hire who doesn’t deliver the outcomes you expected within a reasonable timeframe may be considered a bad hire in the IT industry.
What Is The Cost Of A Bad Hire?
1. Financial Cost
The most obvious cost of a poor hire choice is the costs you pay for, which may include salary, NI, benefits, recruitment fees, ad spend, onboarding time, equipment, software licences, training and management. Even in a short time frame these costs can add up quickly.
2. Lost Productivity & Delayed Delivery
Tech teams are dependent on one another, if one person underperforms the impact can affect other team members. In this instance projects slip and deadlines move with senior engineers taking time to fix issues. This can also lead to lower product quality with bugs, performance and reliability issues as well as delayed roadmaps with capacity gaps. This cost could be higher because it affects launch time, customer satisfaction and end revenue levels.
3. Morale & Retention
A bad hire can create frustration as highly skilled engineers have career options, with repeated disruption leading to lower engagement and a slower pace. Teams could see more internal conflict or workarounds with valued staff carrying others. Replacing experienced staff is harder than filling a new vacancy and is more expensive.
4. Internal & External Reputation
Poorly skilled employees can affect your reputation as hiring managers lose confidence in the hiring process, stakeholders see tech as a blocker, customers may notice issues or delays and your employer brand can suffer if staff turnover increases. Your reputation matters as candidates and your team talk as do your clients.
How To Avoid A Bad Hire
Get The Job Description Right
Job descriptions often list tasks but a better strategy is to focus on the role’s outcomes. For example, set out what success looks like at 3, 6 and 12 months with clear KPIs to help narrow down candidates and improve assessment.
Assess The Right Skills Correctly
Avoid relying on CV keywords or generic interviews and use multiple strategies:
· Structured competency interviews
· Practical technical assessments
· Scenario questions around stakeholder management
· Pairing or problem solving sessions
The goal is to find out how candidates work not just their knowledge or experience.
Test Communication & Collaboration
Many hiring challenges in tech can be based around poor communication therefore look for candidates who demonstrate strong and clear explanations of complex concepts, the ability to handle feedback as well as ownership, accountability and escalation judgement skills.
Work With A Specialist Tech Recruiter
Working with a specialist IT recruitment agency like Apache Associates can really help with successful new tech hires. As a team we focus on:
· Vetting role requirements & team fit
· Insights on salary, availability & skill demand
· Candidate screening
· Transparent, quality shortlists for interviews
Our recruitment process reduces wasted interview time and increases the chances of a successful long term hire.
A bad hire in tech can affect timelines, team performance, customer satisfaction and future hiring success. However, most bad hires are preventable with a recruitment process that is built for the tech market. If you’d like support in hiring IT roles quickly and confidently with the best candidates, our recruitment team is here to help. Simply get in touch to speak to us about your vacancy.