Understanding What Drives People Can Help You Seduce Senior Engineers to Join Your Company

Problem

In recent times the worldview in which money is the key factor in recruiting people has largely been replaced by the one that champions autonomy, purpose, and mastery. Senior engineers, like many others, would choose purpose and passion over six figures. If your company is not being able to offer senior engineers a competitive salary, perhaps it can tailor benefits to suit their needs and aspirations.

Actions taken

• We would identify all the places where we could learn about and get in touch with potential candidates for a senior engineering position. That would include meetups, career fairs and tech conventions targeting more experienced professionals.
• We always try to have an honest conversation during the interviewing process and ask a candidate straightforwardly what is most important to him/her. As these questions are often personal, a more relaxed setting will generate more genuine answers. We do this outside the office, usually during lunch sessions, that are the integral part of our hiring process.
• If we are unable to offer a competitive salary to a senior engineer we would try to compensate with benefits. These benefits should address his/her specific needs and aspirations.
• We are receptive of the specific needs that people have and tailor benefits to suit them. Some of the benefits could be applied to all employees but not all of them would end up using those benefits. In other instances we would have to select a group of people to whom benefits will apply like sending only tech leads to a conference.
• We would offer our senior engineers a possibility of mentoring as they feel rewarded by the ability to share their knowledge and experience.

Lessons learned

• There are many places where you can meet experienced professionals, including career fairs and networking events that are specifically targeting senior engineers.
• To better understand a person's motives and values initiate an honest conversation outside the office setting.
• Different people have different needs and will consequently seek different benefits. Tailoring benefits to address their specific needs is crucial in providing a competitive package for potential employees.
• We have identified two main motives that drive senior engineer forward -- personal growth and mentoring possibilities. We offer them trainings to further enhance their knowledge as well as the possibility to share that knowledge and experience with their junior colleagues.