Three Tips For Hiring An It Professional

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Hiring an IT professional can be tricky. While technical skills are the focus, considerations must be given to other attributes and experiences. The interview is the time to ask the targeted questions yielding critical information needed to make an informed decision.

Our hiring managers at ITAMG, an IT asset disposition and data destruction firm, have put together three important tips when hiring an IT professional.

1. Have your interview questions prepared. A starting point can be found in Careerbuilder's Top Interview Questions. Your questions must be thoughtfully prepared to cover a variety of subjects. While asking about relevant experience is critical, other questions about interpersonal skills must be covered, such as, “how do you handle conflict, and provide an example of how you handled a difficult situation at your last job.

2. Provide an atmosphere where the candidate feels free to open up. Greet the candidate with a firm handshake and a smile. Make small talk at the beginning of the interview. Never lead the candidate. Questions like, “Well you didn’t have any problems with ...
... your last manager, did you?” does not allow the possibility of an honest answer. Instead go with this, “In your last position did your manager give you a lot of freedom or was she more of a micro manager? How did you like working under those conditions?”

3. Consider where you need this individual to be one year down the line. While not every IT professional will have the charisma of the best salesperson at your company, you don’t necessarily need him/her to. You do need someone, though, that can work with your team. Additionally, if you are looking to groom someone into a supervisory role, consider if this individual’s interpersonal skills will lead to success or failure.

When hiring an IT professional, technical skills will always be the main focus. Through proper interview preparation one can take steps to identify these types of skills in a candidate. Never leave the interview without determining if the candidate has the interpersonal skills needed for the position. Ask your questions, and let the interviewee do the majority of the talking to ascertain if this candidate will succeed in your firm.