Posted about 15 hours by Jonny Grange
Finding and attracting IT talent has become increasingly challenging for businesses of all sizes. Demand for skilled IT professionals continues to rise, while competition for the best candidates remains fierce.
Whether you are expanding your IT department, replacing key staff, or building new teams to support digital growth, securing the right talent is critical.
At Digital Waffle, we work closely with employers every day who are facing the same challenges.
In this blog, we'll share seven practical strategies that will help you attract IT talent more effectively. These approaches are based on real market insights and are designed to give you an edge in today’s hiring landscape.
1. Understand what IT professionals are really looking for
Attracting IT talent starts with understanding what motivates them. It is easy to assume that offering a high salary is enough, but today’s candidates are looking for more than financial reward. Flexibility, career development, and working with modern technologies often matter just as much, if not more.
If your organisation can offer hybrid working options, opportunities for technical upskilling, and involvement in meaningful projects, you are already offering the kinds of benefits that attract high-quality candidates.
Think about what makes your IT roles genuinely appealing and make sure that is clearly communicated in your job descriptions, your interviews, and your conversations with recruitment partners.
When you understand what matters to IT candidates, you can shape not just your job adverts but also your company’s wider employer value proposition to match their expectations.
2. Move quickly and communicate clearly
One of the most common reasons employers lose out on IT candidates is the length of their hiring process. Skilled IT professionals often have multiple opportunities at any given time. Delays between interviews, feedback, and offers can easily result in a good candidate accepting another role before you make your move.
Speed is important, but so is communication. Candidates want to feel respected and informed throughout the process. Setting clear expectations at each stage and keeping in regular contact, even if there are delays, helps build a positive impression of your business.
Review your hiring process to remove unnecessary stages and ensure decision-makers are available to move quickly. If you are struggling to find the time, working with a specialist IT recruitment agency can help keep the process moving and ensure you do not miss out on the right people.
3. Build an employer brand that appeals to IT professionals
Your employer brand is more than just your careers page. It is the overall impression candidates get when they think about working for your business. In a competitive IT market, a strong employer brand can make a big difference to the quality and volume of candidates you attract.
Focus on communicating the aspects that matter most to IT professionals. Highlight the technologies you use, the scale of the projects you deliver, and how your IT teams contribute to the wider success of the organisation. Showcasing real employee stories, especially from your current IT staff, can also be powerful.
If you are unsure how your business is perceived by IT candidates, or if you need support in improving your reach, partnering with a specialist can help you position your brand more effectively in the market.
4. Offer a total package, not just a salary
While competitive salaries are still important, they are only part of what attracts IT talent today. Candidates are increasingly weighing up the whole employment package when deciding between roles.
Think about the broader offer you are putting forward. Benefits like remote working options, support for professional development, clear promotion pathways, and access to interesting projects all contribute to making your opportunity stand out.
Even smaller perks like additional holiday days, well-being initiatives, and investment in up-to-date tools and technologies can be deciding factors.When you present your opportunity, do not just lead with salary.
Lead with the full range of reasons why a candidate would choose to join your organisation and build a future with you. If you're unsure what competitive looks like right now, our IT salary guide breaks down current salary expectations across key roles and experience levels.
5. Expand your search and think flexibly
Limiting your search for IT talent to a narrow location or insisting on rigid work patterns can seriously reduce the number of candidates available to you. In today’s market, many businesses are opening their search geographically and offering flexible arrangements to attract a wider range of skilled professionals.
If your business can accommodate hybrid or fully remote working, it is worth making that clear early on. It instantly makes your opportunities more accessible to a much larger talent pool. Flexibility also sends a positive message about your culture and your willingness to support employee work-life balance.
An experienced IT recruitment agency can also help expand your reach by connecting you to passive candidates — people who may not be actively applying but would be open to the right role if approached professionally.
6. Engage passive candidates, not just active jobseekers
Some of the best IT professionals are not actively searching for new roles. They are busy delivering projects, leading teams, or building systems — but they are still open to the right opportunity if it is presented well.
Reaching passive candidates requires a different approach to traditional recruitment advertising. It demands a network-driven, relationship-led method of engaging talent over time. Messaging needs to be personalised, respectful, and based on a genuine understanding of what the candidate is looking for next.
Recruitment agencies specialising in IT have the relationships, networks, and expertise to connect with passive candidates effectively. Working with a partner (like us) who knows how to reach and engage this hidden talent pool can give your business a real advantage.
7. Create a positive and professional candidate experience
Every interaction a candidate has with your business contributes to their overall impression of you. A positive experience can help secure the hire. A poor experience can easily lead to the candidate dropping out or even sharing negative feedback publicly.
Simple steps make a big difference. Communicate clearly. Keep candidates informed of timelines. Provide honest, constructive feedback. Treat every candidate respectfully, whether you offer them the job or not.
Candidate experience is not just about securing one hire. It is about protecting your brand reputation and ensuring you continue to attract the best IT talent in the future.
Attracting IT talent takes more than advertising a vacancy. It demands a thoughtful, strategic approach that reflects the expectations and motivations of modern IT professionals. Speed, communication, flexibility, brand strength, and professionalism all play key roles.
If you would like support in finding and securing skilled IT talent, Digital Waffle can help. As a specialist IT recruitment agency, we work with employers to connect them with the candidates they need to grow. Get in touch with our team today to find out more.
