It’s arduously hard to find the ‘best’ engineers, harder to hire them, and the hardest to keep them all attached to a group cause. This is because engineering is a complicated field, even outside academic boundaries. These intellectual and technical complications can make it difficult for you to land the hotshots for your next project.

If you feel like your engineer employees or candidate engineers just aren’t the right fit, then you should probably trust your gut feeling and go through a rigorous analysis. And if you find that your engineering team has flaws, then you should question your hiring process. So, to be able to hire better engineers next time, here are some mistakes you shouldn’t repeat:

You Prioritise Degrees

True, degrees, CV’s, entry tests, and interviews have their worth in the market. It’s also safe to say that an MIT graduate would, on average, be better than a school dropout. But that is not always the case. A few years ago, we only thought of proper graduates as engineers. 

Now, however, virtual learning, diploma courses, and even self-teaching are producing some world-class engineers who are far better than the stereotypical Ivy League prodigy with a well-defined qualification. But if you remain focused on long resumes and big names, you’ll miss out on a gold mine full of talented engineers who can bring much more to the table! 

Your Definition of the Best is Incomplete

Is your definition of the ‘best’ only comprising of work-related skills? If yes, then here’s a big truth bomb: you’re ignoring half of the picture, which consists of workplace ethics.

A lack of professional behaviour, no matter how discreet it may seem, is a big red flag all employers should be wary of. And many times, it becomes quite visible during the hiring or probation phases. 

Employers that turn a blind eye to their misbehaviour may not realise right away, but this unprofessionalism actually costs a lot to your company. Your time, resources, projects, and the potential of other employees, can be negatively impacted by a single bad fish. 

Therefore, you should ensure that your hiring team considers the best of both social and engineering skills. A rich blend of these two makes an engineer the ‘best’ in the truest sense.

Your Branding Could be Better

Okay, that’s a bit harsh, but honestly, that’s what the best engineers will probably say when they come across your vacancy announcement. 

The bigger the catch you want, the juicier your bait needs to be. Your branding needs to explain why a top-class engineer, who can have literally any job in the world, should choose to work for you. And this doesn’t just mean the salary and bonuses and everything money-related. 

More than that, you need to bring something new to their professional experience. You need to brand your project as something that’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for those engineers who are especially picky when it comes to choosing you as their next workplace. 

Suppose you brand them commonplace projects with mediocre goals and no specific sense of accomplishment. In that case, you may pretty much forget about having the best of the field knocking at your door. That’s when a job advert is different to a job description followed by a post on a social platform with “i’m hiring”.

 

You Aren’t a Good Fit

Sometimes, you’ll be able to attract and hire presumably the best engineers. True, they are the best ones in their own way, but things start to fall apart as time goes on. Finally, you realise that they are simply incompatible for carrying on with the project for much longer. 

This happens when your idea of the ‘best’ differs from who is actually best for your project. This may not always be your fault though. Sometimes, it may take time and multiple trials for you to find the right engineers for your job!

Conclusion

Everyone wants the best, but not everyone knows how to achieve it. Here are four key indicators to tell you when you’re going in the wrong direction when choosing the best engineers. By applying them to your hiring process, you may be able to understand the dynamics of getting top-notch engineers to work for your next venture.

Here at Responsum, we are a team of experts that have years of experience in finding the perfect candidates. Book a call to discuss your employment needs. 

 

Author: Mohammed Adris is a co-owner & director at Responsum Global. He has over 8 years’ experience matching the top building services engineering talent with the best employers. He has over 50 written success stories. He’s active on LinkedIn, is a host on The Building Services Podcast, and a regular writer on The Building Services Blog. He’s a dad of 2 & a petrol head.

 

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