Talent Archives | HatchWorks https://hatchworks.com/category/blog/talent/ Your US-based Nearshore software development partner Mon, 08 May 2023 17:20:12 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.2 https://hatchworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/hatchworks-favicon-150x150.png Talent Archives | HatchWorks https://hatchworks.com/category/blog/talent/ 32 32 Tech Apprenticeships and Bootcamps are on the Rise https://hatchworks.com/blog/talent/tech-apprenticeships-bootcamps/ Fri, 28 Apr 2023 14:48:12 +0000 https://hatchworks.com/?p=29507 Technology apprenticeships opportunities and bootcamps are on the rise as more businesses seek to fill critical tech roles with skilled workers. These training courses provide an opportunity for individuals to learn new skills, gain full-time employment, and grow their careers while also meeting the needs of businesses for qualified talent. Here’s a look at why […]

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Technology apprenticeships opportunities and bootcamps are on the rise as more businesses seek to fill critical tech roles with skilled workers. These training courses provide an opportunity for individuals to learn new skills, gain full-time employment, and grow their careers while also meeting the needs of businesses for qualified talent. Here’s a look at why these programs are becoming increasingly popular.

A focused woman studying STEM topics on her computer, representing the increasing popularity of tech apprenticeships and boot camps for skill development in the technology industry.

The rise of tech industry apprenticeships and bootcamps

Apprenticeships and bootcamps are becoming increasingly popular as new workers explore exciting opportunities to train for high-demand careers. With the right support, these alternative career paths provide accessible education, leading to in-depth skills that can form the foundation of a prosperous career.

Apprenticeships offer hands-on experience and the ability to receive career coaching and guidance from someone who has firsthand knowledge and work experience of their desired field.

Bootcamps provide more technology-oriented training opportunities, providing an intensive yet succinct exploration of relevant topics within a particular focus area.

Both options offer time-effective approaches to learning for those interested in career shifts. Ultimately, apprenticeships and bootcamps have become attractive pathways for a wide variety of learners due to their approachable nature, duration advantages, and quality outcomes.

The perks of tech apprenticeships and bootcamps

Vocational training programs offer a unique opportunity for students to gain skills, knowledge, and experience that are essential for job placement and success in their chosen career fields. These external training programs provide hands-on experience, opportunities, and guidance from technology industry professionals, helping students get prepared to become competitively employed within their trade.

Students might take classes in welding, plumbing, heavy equipment operation, or automotive service; or they could pursue certifications and apprenticeships tailored to meet their specific career requirements. This training offers much more than traditional classroom education by giving students the type of training needed to successfully enter a dynamic job market – one in which employers seek applicants with real-world experience and expertise.

A chart depicting the rising costs of college tuition and fees over time, with data adjusted for inflation in 2019 dollars. The data is sourced from The College Board's Trends in College 2019 report. The chart shows a steady increase in tuition and fees from the 1980s to the present day, with a steep rise in the 2000s. The average cost for public four-year institutions increased from approximately $3,200 in 1980 to over $10,000 in 2019.

As of the 2021-22 academic year, average tuition and fees increased by 1.3% to $3,800 for two-year schools; a noteworthy 1.6% increase is observed in regards to in-state students at four-year public colleges who now must pay up to $10,740; lastly, private institutions saw a 2.1%, causing their current rate of tuition and fees to amount up to an astounding total of $38,070!

This year, a notable decrease in enrollment for undergraduate students has been witnessed nationwide, as the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reports that student numbers have dropped 3.1%, in comparison to last year’s figures. This is according to their latest survey conducted on college data across America.

Shockingly, enrollment has dropped 6.6% in just two years and more than 1 million students have been lost as a result. Furthermore, an alarming 17% of existing students stated that they will not return to college next year while 19% remain unsure of their future academic plans – this is all according to the results from Intelligent.com’s survey which was administered to 1,250 undergraduates last April.

How apprenticeships and bootcamps are disrupting traditional education

Tuition reimbursement programs offered by companies are becoming an increasingly popular way for employees to pursue educational opportunities. While these types of courses can be expensive, they are still often cheaper than traditional colleges because they are usually online courses and may have more flexibility regarding class credits and course requirements.

The ability to take advantage of a tuition reimbursement program offers a great opportunity to those employees that would otherwise find it difficult to pursue higher education. It also typically gives employees access to special pricing or other discounted benefits from the school or provider who offers the course.

Bridging the skills gap through hard work and passion

Working hard is often the only way for students to fully absorb the knowledge and skills required to succeed in their desired field. Programs offered at universities and colleges can be challenging, but having a passion for the topic will allow students to push through even the most difficult parts. It also helps to keep in mind that all of the hard work being put in up-front will pay off down the road.

Not only will successful completion of these programs help open doors professionally, but it is also an important milestone personally. Investing in yourself by dedicating your time to becoming knowledgeable and skilled in something you care deeply about is always worth it!

For many companies, the ability to work with tech bootcamps and apprenticeship programs is more beneficial than traditional colleges.  By doing so, employers can ensure that graduates have the skill set and knowledge needed to hit the ground running. These programs allow students to gain both theoretical and practical experiences.

With the ever-changing landscape of the job market, it’s no wonder that people are looking for new and innovative ways to gain the skills they need to succeed. Apprenticeships and bootcamps are increasing in popularity as they offer an accessible and affordable way to learn a specific trade or skill set. 

HatchFutures to the rescue

The philanthropic extension of Hatchworks, HatchFutures is committed to breaking the cycle of poverty by providing exposure to STEM education in the communities we serve. We recognize that some youth may not know the unlimited possibilities of success in technology careers because no one has taken the time to share with them the possibilities. Additionally, even if a young person knows about the possibilities, they are limited by economic resources or commitments to seek out a tech career by going the traditional college route. 

We decided to begin opening the door of curiosity into STEM with our new workshop program: HatchUp your Future. This four-hour workshop will allow us to work with local schools to help students in high school understand the possibilities within the tech industry. The first step for many of the students will be attending this workshop to learn some of the basics of coding through our interactive workshop. 

For those students who show particular interest, we have made commitments to help provide help in finding apprenticeship and bootcamp opportunities locally. We value the education both of these avenues provide students with and have committed to providing internships to many of those who attend such educational paths. 

These programs provide students with hands-on experience that traditional colleges cannot always offer. While apprenticeships and bootcamps can be expensive, many companies are willing to reimburse part or all of the tuition cost. There is a lot of research involved in finding the right program for you, but it will be worth it if you’re passionate about the field. Be prepared to work hard – these programs are not easy, but they’re worth it if you’re dedicated to learning.

Learn more about HatchFutures

Join HatchFutures in its commitment to providing tech apprenticeship and bootcamp opportunities. 

Talk to HatchWorks today to see how we can help you build the team you need to deliver your next software development project.

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Despite a Pending Recession, Tech Talent Is Still in Demand https://hatchworks.com/blog/talent/despite-a-pending-recession-tech-talent-is-still-in-demand/ Wed, 21 Sep 2022 15:26:44 +0000 https://hatchworks.com/?p=28032 Surpassing discussions about a great retirement or resignation, finding the right talent will continue to be the biggest challenge this year. Organizations will still be struggling to find the necessary talent, which will be complicated by tech skills being sought after across multiple industries and countries. Finding talent will continue to be the biggest challenge […]

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Surpassing discussions about a great retirement or resignation, finding the right talent will continue to be the biggest challenge this year. Organizations will still be struggling to find the necessary talent, which will be complicated by tech skills being sought after across multiple industries and countries.

Despite a pending recession, tech talent is still in demand.

Finding talent will continue to be the biggest challenge of 2022

One thing is clear: companies who continue to ignore the reality of the new recruiting landscape will quickly find themselves unable to compete for talent against those that have embraced change.

As a recession is looming, the technology labor market could go from being in a frenzied state of flux to being in a roaring flame, but this is no time to pull back on best practices firms have been building around creating a more adaptable organization to the demands of the business.

The tech sector draws the best-educated, best-skilled talent in the job market, and layoffs provide some respite from a hiring squeeze across the wider economy. Even companies that experienced high-profile layoffs, like Peloton, are still hiring developers and other technical roles.

In fact, listings for tech jobs were much higher in May and April than they were at the same time last year, notes Amit Bhatia, the founding partner of Swordfish Investments. At ZipRecruiter, a job listings site, active job listings for tech industries increased from January to April across all job types, including project management and software development, says ZipRecruiter chief economist, Sinem Boer.

A surge of layoffs

So far this year, listed tech firms, valued at a total of $3.4 trillion, announced hiring freezes or layoffs. Private startups, which are safe from the stock market, are feeling the pinch too, with 29 companies furloughing employees since early April, according to layoffs.fyi, which tracks layoffs across the tech sector.

When companies like Facebook and Netflix stopped hiring or laid off employees, some of those employees frequently found — or joined — startups that might seem risky in comparison with the safety of larger companies.

Another unique facet of the coming downturn will be the widespread availability of gig work — that is, temp jobs without benefits, like driving for Lyft or Uber. When the next recession hits, some jobs might disappear and never return (automation could accelerate this, but that is an article for another time).

With rising inflation and potential future recessions, we could see a starting point for declining turnover rates, as employees become less confident about the outside job market, thereby slowing down job-hopping and increasing job tenure.

As layoffs become more commonplace in the increasingly volatile tech startup landscape, another trend is emerging. A growing number of LinkedIn members are reporting that offers they have received to join a new employer are being rescinded. Coinbase, for instance, has begun pausing all new hires and is also “pulling some accepted job offers.”

The trend to take back job offers exemplifies the turmoil facing the tech sector’s market. Venture capital-backed firms are being hit especially hard as investors abandon risky bets and seek immediate returns.

Resources would still be allocated to technology-related departments, but the strategy would switch for many companies from hiring W2 employees to hiring independent contractors or working with firms that provide staff augmentation. Leading technology organizations will instead leverage high-skilled technical talent, with an emphasis on creating differentiated value for customers and shareholders.

Current list of layoffs

Here are some of the firms that have announced layoffs recently:

Impact on the greater economy

According to the May US job statistics, the US added the fewest jobs since the pandemic recovery began, as small businesses shed workers while larger firms added employees. May numbers had a unique insight: companies with fewer than 50 employees lost 91,000 jobs; those with fewer than 20 saw a fourth straight month of losses. The results suggest that the smallest businesses are struggling to compete with bigger ones in attracting and retaining workers amid a historically tight labor market.

The jobs report continues to break patterns and signal while the unemployed have finally decided to reenter the workforce, the troubling economic signs of a pending recession could mean the volatility in the job market is here to stay.

Amid a variety of corporate challenges, from volatile markets, rising inflation, falling revenues, and an elevated risk of a downturn, companies are slowing hiring, and in some cases, are laying off workers.

Startups and publicly traded companies are bracing themselves for waves of cost-cutting and job cuts in the face of challenging market conditions. Ugly layoffs could erupt across the board, warns one investor and industry observer – from publicly traded tech giants to scrambling startups.

As we saw with the trade war and will continue to see with the looming economic downturn, companies are becoming more and more risk-averse about hiring. Companies in all industries and niches are always hiring to fill roles that generate revenues and are digital, and that remains true during the downturn.

Learn more about HatchWorks Sprint Recruiting

Sprint Recruiting was born from the chaos of traditional recruiting. Our process has become more efficient with each iteration, and our engagement with both the business and candidates increased proportionally. Sprint Recruiting guides our journey to iterative growth as we continue to innovate, iterate, and accelerate from Sprint to Sprint.

Talk to HatchWorks today to see how we can help you build the team you need to deliver your next software development project.

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Should Recruiting Prepare to Go to the Metaverse? Interesting Data from a Microsoft Study https://hatchworks.com/blog/talent/should-recruiting-prepare-to-go-to-the-metaverse-interesting-data-from-a-microsoft-study/ Fri, 12 Aug 2022 17:19:47 +0000 https://hatchworks.com/?p=26489 I remember hearing recruiters discount the impact of Facebook and other social media. Now, I can’t get on any social media without seeing some type of ad advertising Now Hiring or Check out the culture at company X. The tech landscape continues to evolve rapidly and recruiters/organizations who do not move ahead of the S-curve […]

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I remember hearing recruiters discount the impact of Facebook and other social media. Now, I can’t get on any social media without seeing some type of ad advertising Now Hiring or Check out the culture at company X. The tech landscape continues to evolve rapidly and recruiters/organizations who do not move ahead of the S-curve may be left behind. There’s been a lot of hype about metaverse lately in tech news, social circles, and investment discussions. What is this metaverse and should recruiters prepare for it?

In case you are like, what the hell is metaverse, here’s a quick overview of what we know according to CNET.

The metaverse refers to digital worlds in which people will gather to work, play and hang out. Some of those online spaces will be immersive 3D experiences and require fancy goggles to enjoy. Others will play out on a computer screen. The term’s been in flux, and might still keep evolving and renaming itself.

According to Microsoft’s expansive 2022 Work Trends Index, 51% of Gen Z and 48% of millennials expect to conduct a portion of their work in the metaverse in the next two years. Considering these generation groups will comprise more than 80% of the workforce over the next two years, this is a significant tip of the hat for what’s to come. Interestingly, 52% of employees indicated they are open to using immersive digital spaces in the metaverse for meetings or team collaborations as soon as next year!

The future of work may soon be a group of avatars meeting in a virtual environment. Before you laugh, consider prior to 2020, most organizations only allowed 10% or less of their employee base to work from home. After two years of most employees doing 100% of their work in a digital space comfortably at home, the metaverse is just another tool companies should prepare to conquer in both workforce and recruiting strategies.

Consider the camera fatigue most employees have begun feeling. Sure, it’s great to be able to work from home, wear what is comfy, and not have to fight an hour or more of traffic, but sometimes we just want to participate in a meeting without the camera on. The metaverse may allow a new option for team members to join calls and appear engaged without the exhaustion of staring into the computer camera.

What are the impacts on recruiting?

It was interesting to watch both candidates and hiring managers adjust to video interviews at the beginning of the pandemic. Prior to the work-from-home mandate, I found managers would critique the candidates living space, their attire or video etiquette after the video interview. Fast forward two years, hearing a dog or child in the background during a video interview is brushed off with a laugh or joke about the “new normal”.

What can recruiters do to prepare for success in the metaverse?

Immerse yourself first

The best way to lead the change is to go first. Retailers have already begun moving the experience into the metaverse so try learning as a consumer the implications of this new venue might be an easy first step.

If learning classroom style is more your comfort zone, Udemy offers the Metaverse Masterclass for beginners, including VR, AR, mixed reality, extended reality, and metaverse land ownership. There is no minimum requirement for this course, and on completion of the course, students will be able to grasp what Metaverse is actually and how NFTs are shaping its future.

Meta (Facebook) is investing $150M to help develop the next generation of metaverse creators, fund high-quality immersive experiences that transform the way we learn and increase access to learning through technology. I’m quite sure there will be numerous other platforms following suit, providing you an opportunity to learn more and put your toe in the water.

Most Talent Organizations are in more frequent contact with managers compared to their counterparts. It will be up to us to help our managers learn, embrace and engage in this new environment.

“The past two years have taught us that culture will stand or fall with managers. But many … feel powerless to drive change for their team.” – Work Trends Index authors.

Start Planning

William Geldart sees several things changing through the metaverse, including a more instantaneous and impactful interaction between candidates and recruiters. “As a result, the whole recruitment process becomes far less transactional and dehumanized”, he says. “For example, recruiters typically run cold outreach, network to get referrals, or perhaps deal with inbound or job board applications. At the same time, candidates are applying for roles with companies they only really know at a surface level. Bringing recruiters and candidates closer together within the metaverse opens new avenues to engage. And ultimately this could prove mutually beneficial.”

Now is the time to start planning the impacts on your organization and recruiting function. Let’s face it, your HR department will most likely be the last to adopt this platform so engage with your marketing or sales teams to learn how they intend to use the platform. It’ll be much easier working with them to leverage a talent area of your new virtual talent storefront.

Whether you believe the hype or not, organizations will have to respond to the growing interest in the metaverse in some capacity in the not-too-distant future. I expect those organizations that place a value on the impact talent attraction can have with the metaverse will lead the way in new talent acquisition strategies and change the tide in their quest for top talent. The question is, will you be part of the pioneers in this new world or will you be left behind?

This isn’t a question you can wait too much longer to answer.

See you in the metaverse in the not-too-distant future! ✌

Learn more about HatchWorks Sprint Recruiting

Sprint Recruiting was born from the chaos of traditional recruiting. Our process has become more efficient with each iteration, and our engagement with both the business and candidates increased proportionally. Sprint Recruiting guides our journey to iterative growth as we continue to innovate, iterate, and accelerate from Sprint to Sprint.

Talk to HatchWorks today to see how we can help you build the team you need to deliver your next software development project.

The post Should Recruiting Prepare to Go to the Metaverse? Interesting Data from a Microsoft Study appeared first on HatchWorks.

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