In recruitment, there are challenging roles. Then there are “unicorn” roles—positions that require such a specific combination of skills and experience that they seem almost impossible to fill. When a leading Los Angeles patent law firm approached Opus Resourcing to find their founding Data Science Engineer, we knew we had a unicorn on our hands.

The brief? Find someone who could drive AI innovation, build large language models (LLMs) from the ground up, and ideally understand the intricacies of patent law. No pressure.

The Challenge: Where Two Worlds Collide

Patent law and cutting-edge AI engineering rarely intersect in a single professional’s background. The firm had previously struggled to source this role, and it wasn’t hard to see why. They were essentially looking for someone who could:

• Build and fine-tune LLMs specifically for patent applications
• Drive AI innovation in a traditionally conservative legal environment
• Understand patent law complexities well enough to create meaningful AI solutions
• Serve as a founding engineer, establishing the technical foundation for future AI initiatives

Previous attempts to fill the role had stalled. Traditional legal recruiters didn’t have access to data scientists. Tech recruiters didn’t understand patent law. The firm was caught between two talent pools that rarely communicate.

The Opus Approach: Discovery Before Deployment

Rather than immediately diving into the market, we took a different approach. We conducted two in-depth discovery sessions with the firm’s leadership to truly understand:

• What “AI innovation” meant in the context of their specific patent practice
• Which technical skills were non-negotiable versus nice-to-have
• How much patent law knowledge was actually required versus could be learned
• What the growth trajectory for this founding role looked like
• How this hire would integrate with existing teams and systems

These sessions were crucial. They helped us refine the scope and responsibilities of the role, moving from a vague “data scientist who knows patents” to a precise profile of the candidate who could genuinely succeed in this position.

Strategic Market Mapping: Thinking Beyond the Obvious

Armed with clarity, we developed a comprehensive market map that looked beyond traditional sources. Our target list included:

Legal Tech Companies building patent-specific AI products—engineers who already understood the domain challenges and had experience applying machine learning to patent data.

Patent Law Firms with emerging AI initiatives—data scientists who had already made the leap into the legal world and understood the cultural nuances.

Technology Companies focused on natural language processing for technical documents—engineers whose experience with complex, jargon-heavy content would translate to patent applications.

Academic and Research Institutions working at the intersection of IP and AI—researchers ready to transition their theoretical knowledge into practical applications.

This wasn’t about posting a job description and waiting. It was about proactive identification of the handful of professionals in the world who fit this unique profile.

The Results: 100% Hit Rate

Within six weeks of engagement, we had achieved something remarkable:

• Four candidates presented to the client
• 100% interview rate—every single resume we submitted resulted in an interview
• One successful hire who is now building the firm’s AI foundation

The 100% interview rate wasn’t luck. It was the result of truly understanding what the client needed, knowing exactly where to find it, and presenting only candidates who genuinely matched the brief. No spray-and-pray. No “close enough” submissions. Just precision.

Why Exclusivity Mattered

This assignment was conducted on an exclusive basis, and that exclusivity was essential to success. It allowed us to:

• Invest deeply in understanding the firm’s needs without competing against multiple recruiters flooding the same market
• Protect candidate quality by controlling the narrative and ensuring candidates weren’t approached by multiple firms simultaneously
• Move with speed and confidence, knowing we had the time and space to do the work properly
• Maintain confidentiality around the firm’s AI strategy and hiring plans

The Bigger Picture: Legal Tech Talent is Different

This case study illustrates a broader truth about legal tech recruitment: traditional approaches don’t work. The talent firms need to drive AI innovation, build proprietary technology, and compete in an increasingly tech-driven legal landscape doesn’t come from traditional sources.

Success requires:

1. Deep discovery work to understand what firms actually need versus what they think they need
2. Cross-industry market intelligence that spans legal, technology, and research sectors
3. Technical fluency to assess candidates’ capabilities in emerging technologies like LLMs
4. Strategic patience to find the right person rather than settling for available candidates

A New Playbook for Legal Tech Hiring

As law firms increasingly invest in proprietary AI and data science capabilities, the demand for these unicorn profiles will only grow. The firms that succeed in building internal tech capabilities will be those that approach recruitment strategically, partner with specialists who understand both worlds, and resist the urge to compromise on quality.

Finding a founding Data Science Engineer with patent law knowledge in six weeks might sound impossible. But with the right approach, even unicorns can be found.

---

At Opus Resourcing, we specialise in solving impossible hiring challenges at the intersection of law and technology. If your firm is building AI capabilities and struggling to find the right talent, let’s talk about how a strategic, exclusive approach can deliver results.

Book a Call With James Here

Uncover the reasons behind the legal game of Musical Chairs: Why law firms keep hiring the same marketing & BD talent and what it means.

In the world of legal recruitment, there’s an unwritten rule that has governed hiring practices for decades: when a senior marketing or business development position opens up, firms simply reshuffle the same pool of talent. It’s musical chairs at the highest level, with roughly 90% of Director-level roles in business development and marketing filled by candidates moving from one law firm to another.

But what happens when the music stops and firms realise they’re all sitting in the same chairs they occupied years ago?

The Innovation Gap

Recently, Opus Resourcing was approached by one of the world’s leading law firms with an unusual brief. They needed a Director of Business Development and Marketing, but they explicitly didn’t want the usual suspects. Why? Because they’d recognised something that’s been quietly apparent for years: innovation in marketing and business development within the legal sector is lagging behind other industries.

While sectors like technology, finance, and professional services have embraced marketing automation platforms, AI-driven client insights, predictive analytics, and sophisticated MarTech stacks, many law firms are still relying on traditional relationship marketing, branding, content management and manual processes. The gap is stark—where other industries are using AI for competitor intelligence, personalising client communications at scale, leveraging CRM systems to identify cross-selling opportunities, and deploying marketing automation to nurture leads efficiently, legal marketing often remains trapped in legacy approaches.

When you continually hire from the same talent pool, you perpetuate the same thinking and the same technological limitations.

Why the Status Quo Persists

The musical chairs phenomenon exists for understandable reasons. Legal is a unique sector with its own compliance requirements, professional standards, and cultural nuances. There’s a comfort in hiring someone who already speaks the language, understands the partnership structure, and knows how to navigate the sensitivities of working with senior lawyers.

But this comfort comes at a cost: stagnation.

The Fresh Perspective Advantage

Our client recognised that breaking this cycle required courage. They needed someone who could bring:

• Innovative marketing strategies proven in more progressive sectors
• Modern business development techniques that go beyond relationship-based selling
• Digital-first thinking that meets clients where they actually are
• Data analytics / AI capabilities to drive decision-making
• Change management experience to help transform traditional approaches

These skills don’t require a legal background to be effective. In fact, not having one can be an advantage, allowing the candidate to challenge assumptions and ask “why do we do it this way?” without being constrained by “that’s how it’s always been done.”

The Search Beyond Legal

By opening the search to candidates from asset managers, financial services, consultancies, and other professional services sectors, we’ve been able to present our client with genuinely diverse perspectives. These candidates bring tested methodologies from environments where marketing and business development innovation is essential for survival.

The result? Our client is now considering candidates who can drive genuine transformation rather than incremental improvement.

A New Model for Legal Recruitment

This assignment represents a potential shift in how progressive law firms approach senior recruitment. Rather than viewing industry experience as the primary qualification, forward-thinking firms are prioritising:

1. Transferable skills and proven innovation over sector-specific experience
2. Strategic thinking and transformation capability over knowing the current landscape
3. Fresh perspectives over familiarity with existing practices

The Bottom Line

Musical chairs might be a fun party game, but it’s a poor strategy for building a competitive edge in an increasingly demanding market. The legal firms that will thrive in the next decade are those willing to break the cycle, look beyond their immediate sector, and bring in talent that can genuinely move the needle.

Sometimes the best person for the job is the one who doesn’t look like every other person who’s had the job before.

---

 

Challenging Convention in Executive Search

In technology executive search, the most transformative searches often begin with a client brave enough to ask an unconventional question. Recently, a forward-thinking property sector client approached Opus Resourcing with precisely that kind of question: “What if the CTO we need isn’t in our industry at all?”

The Property Tech Paradox

Property represents one of the world’s largest asset classes, yet when it comes to digital innovation—particularly AI integration and e-commerce sophistication—the sector has lagged notably behind. Our client, a progressive organisation in the property space, had identified a critical challenge: the traditional talent pool within their industry simply didn’t possess the blend of skills their transformation required.

They weren’t looking for someone who understood property technology as it exists today. They needed a leader who could bring the digital maturity, AI expertise, and customer-centric thinking that other sectors had already mastered—and apply it to reimagine what property could become.

Why Traditional Searches Fail Innovation

Most C-level technology searches follow a predictable pattern: identify candidates with direct sector experience, prioritise those who “understand the business,” and hire from within the established talent pool. It’s safe. It’s logical. And increasingly, it’s limiting.

For organisations seeking genuine transformation, this approach often perpetuates the status quo. If everyone in your talent pool has solved the same problems in similar ways, how do you access breakthrough thinking? How do you leapfrog competitors when you’re all fishing in the same pond?

Our client understood this paradox. They needed confidentiality—both to protect their strategic intentions and to explore candidates who might not otherwise consider a move into property. This required a retained search approach that could operate discreetly while casting a deliberately wide net across unexpected sectors.

The Cross-Pollination Strategy

We began by analysing not where property sector CTOs typically come from, but where the specific capabilities our client needed had already been proven at scale. Four sectors emerged as prime hunting grounds:

• Travel & Global Accommodation – The travel and accommodation sectors have pioneered digital transformation at a massive scale, managing complex inventory systems, dynamic pricing algorithms, and personalised user experiences across global markets. Leaders in this space understand the intricacies of connecting physical assets with digital platforms, managing marketplace dynamics, and creating seamless booking experiences—challenges that directly parallel the evolution of modern property technology.
• E-Commerce – E-commerce leaders have perfected digital customer journeys, personalisation engines, and seamless user experiences at scale. More importantly, many have navigated complex mergers and acquisitions, integrating disparate technology platforms while maintaining business continuity. They understand rapid scaling—taking organisations from startup to enterprise, managing exponential growth in users, transactions, and data. These executives have built platforms that handle complex transactions and create emotional connections through digital interfaces—all challenges that forward-thinking property companies now face.
• Fintech – Financial services underwent their digital revolution years ago, developing AI-driven decisioning, predictive analytics, and regulatory compliance within innovative frameworks. Fintech CTOs understand how to balance innovation with risk, scale platforms rapidly, and leverage data as a strategic asset—precisely the maturity property sector needs.
• SaaS Platforms – Software-as-a-Service leaders have built scalable, multi-tenant architectures with obsessive focus on metrics, user adoption, and continuous improvement. They think in terms of platforms, not projects—a mindset shift that’s essential for property companies building digital ecosystems rather than point solutions.

The Executive Capabilities That Transfer (And Why They Matter More)

What we discovered through this executive search reinforced a crucial principle: at the C-level, sector-agnostic leadership capabilities often outweigh industry-specific knowledge. The senior leaders we engaged brought:

• Strategic Architecture Thinking – The ability to envision and build integrated digital ecosystems, not disconnected tools. This comes from experience creating platforms that scale across diverse use cases.
• Practical AI Implementation – Not theoretical AI knowledge, but hands-on experience deploying machine learning for personalisation, prediction, and automation in production environments with real customers and real consequences.
• Digital-First Product Mindset – Understanding that technology isn’t a support function but the core of how modern businesses create value. This perspective is second nature in e-commerce and SaaS, but still emerging in property.
• Change Leadership – Perhaps most critically, the ability to transform organisational culture alongside technology. Every executive we considered had led teams through significant digital transformations, building the technical and human capabilities simultaneously.

The property sector knowledge? That could be learned. These foundational leadership capabilities couldn’t be taught quickly—they required years of building, failing, iterating, and succeeding in digitally mature environments.

What Made This Approach Succeed

Several factors enabled this cross-industry strategy to work:

• Client Courage – Our client’s leadership team is committed to evaluating candidates on capability rather than sector resume. They were willing to invest time in helping the right person understand property, rather than trying to teach digital maturity to a property veteran.
• Compelling Vision – We could offer senior executives something rare: the opportunity to be genuinely pioneering. Rather than incrementally improving an established e-commerce platform, they could architect digital transformation in a sector hungry for innovation.
• Retained Partnership – The confidential, retained nature of this executive search allowed us to have exploratory conversations with exceptional C-level leaders who weren’t actively looking to move, and certainly weren’t scanning property sector job boards. We could build relationships, share vision, and ultimately present opportunities that aligned with career-defining challenges.
• Rigorous Assessment – We didn’t simply look for “digital skills.” We evaluated how executives had navigated ambiguity, built teams in transitional environments, and balanced innovation with pragmatism. We assessed cultural fit alongside strategic capability.

The Broader Lesson for Traditional Sectors

This search illuminated something larger than one successful placement. It demonstrated that traditional sectors facing digital disruption have a strategic choice: compete for the limited pool of digitally sophisticated leaders within their industry, or access the deeper talent pools of sectors that have already navigated similar transformations.

Property isn’t alone in this challenge. Manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, education—numerous industries are discovering that the CTOs, Chief Digital Officers, and innovation leaders they need may currently be optimising checkout flows, building AI recommendation engines, or scaling SaaS platforms.

The competitive advantage increasingly belongs to organisations brave enough to look beyond industry boundaries. To ask not “who has done this role in our sector?” but “who has solved the problems we’re facing, regardless of where they solved them?”

When to Consider Cross-Industry Recruitment

Cross-industry searches aren’t appropriate for every role, but they become essential when:

• Your industry is in the early stages of a transformation that other sectors have already navigated
• The skills you need are scarce within your traditional talent pool
• You’re building something genuinely new rather than optimising existing systems
• Leadership and cultural transformation are as important as technical delivery
• You can articulate a compelling vision that attracts candidates to the challenge, not just the sector

For senior technology leadership in particular, the ability to think differently—to bring fresh perspectives unburdened by “how we’ve always done it”—often delivers more value than deep sector expertise.

The Path Forward

As we concluded this search, our client didn’t just gain an exceptional CTO. They demonstrated to their organisation, their board, and their market that they’re serious about transformation. They sent a signal that innovation, not convention, would drive their future.

For Opus Resourcing, this assignment reinforced our belief that the best recruitment outcomes emerge when clients are willing to challenge assumptions and recruiters are willing to do the difficult work of translating vision across industry boundaries.

The future of work is increasingly fluid, with talent flowing across sectors toward compelling challenges rather than remaining confined within industry silos. Organisations that recognise this reality—and have the courage to act on it—will access levels of capability and innovation that their more cautious competitors simply cannot reach.

Innovation doesn’t come from hiring people who think like everyone else in your industry. It comes from bringing in leaders who’ve already solved tomorrow’s problems in yesterday’s cutting-edge sectors.

---

Opus Resourcing specialises in strategic technology executive search across sectors, with particular expertise in identifying and engaging transformational leaders for complex, confidential searches. If your organisation is facing a talent challenge that requires looking beyond traditional boundaries, we’d welcome the conversation.

Book a Call With James Here

Solving the AI Talent Gap in LegalTech & Law Firms

AI is no longer a future trend for legal work — it’s here now. Contract review, predictive analytics, compliance tools, document automation: law firms and LegalTech companies are investing heavily in AI to drive efficiency and deliver better value to clients. But while the opportunities are large, many organisations are being held back by a more human problem: hiring the right people.

---

Why Finding AI Talent Is So Hard in Legal

1. Tech talent shortages are real and growing
   Globally, 76% of IT employers report difficulty finding skilled technology workers according to Staffing Industry Analysts. Demand for AI, machine learning, and data science roles is rising sharply, while many traditional roles are shifting or becoming automated (Deloitte).

2. Legal adds its own complexity
   Legal tasks involve sensitive data, strict compliance, complex regulatory frameworks, and high risks. Legal professionals aren’t just using AI — they must do so in a way that respects confidentiality, avoids bias, and meets professional standards (Stanford Law).

3. Skills are shifting fast
   Many of the technical skills in AI and related fields have short half-lives. What was cutting edge two years ago may now be basic or outdated. Organisations that don’t keep up risk hiring talent whose skills are already slipping behind (Deloitte).

4. Internal hiring functions are under pressure
   Between stretched budgets, limited networks, and the challenge of sourcing passive (not actively looking) AI talent, many legal organisations are struggling to keep up. A Thomson Reuters study highlighted how legal departments face persistent budget, staffing, and technology constraints.

---

What Seems to Go Wrong

• Slow hiring cycles — unclear role definitions and limited talent access slow everything down.

• Misaligned expectations — technical hires without legal awareness (or vice versa) cause friction or derail projects.

• Compliance pitfalls — poor hiring decisions around AI can introduce bias, regulatory risk, or reputational harm (Troutman Pepper).

---

What Makes the Difference

The firms who succeed in building strong AI capability are those who take a strategic approach to hiring, not a reactive one. That means:

• Using specialist search methods to reach hidden talent pools

• Leveraging market insights to set realistic expectations and avoid overpaying

• Keeping hiring cycles short (around 31 days is achievable)

• Focusing on long-term fit — technical expertise balanced with cultural and domain awareness

This is where the right recruitment partner adds measurable value. Instead of being purely transactional, a consultative partner aligns hiring strategy with business goals and reduces the risks of costly mis-hires.

---

The Road Ahead

AI is no longer optional in legal. Whether automating tasks, enhancing research, or developing client-facing products, the firms that invest in the right people will shape the industry’s future.

The winners won’t be those who simply adopt technology first, but those who hire the talent to apply it best.

---

Ready to Build AI Capability in Legal?

At Opus Resourcing, we specialise in sourcing world-class AI, data, and product talent for LegalTech providers and law firms. With over 50 years of combined experience, an average 31-day time-to-hire, and a 95% repeat business rate, we know how to connect ambitious organisations with the people who make innovation possible.

📅 Let’s talk about your hiring needs: Book a call with James

If you’re taking the next step in your tech career this year, and you’re already aware of a glaring gap in your employment history, don’t panic. You’re not alone and probably not at as much of a disadvantage as you’d think. Realistically, career timeline breaks are very common.

Around 62% of employees say they’ve had a gap at some point in their career. Sometimes gaps result from personal circumstances, health issues, or deciding to dive back into your education. Other times, they’re a side-effect of something you can’t control, like the pandemic, or a change in your company’s hiring strategy.

It’s natural to feel anxious about “explaining” these gaps to your next employer, particularly when the current job market is so competitive. But with the right preparation, discussing an employment gap doesn’t have to feel like revealing a shameful secret. Sometimes, your story can make you more compelling to a potential employer.

Here’s how you can confidently ensure you’re ready to explain breaks in your career.

The Job Market Reality: Gaps Are Commonplace

The traditional “linear” career path is becoming somewhat outdated. Today’s tech employees don’t always progress steadily from one role to another. Most people have career moments when they need to pause, pivot, or change something.

Career timeline breaks are now standard due to shifting priorities, unexpected life changes, or the need to regroup.

It’s not because people today are lazy, but because their lives and priorities don’t always follow a tidy path. The good news is that most employers understand. They’re increasingly open to hearing career pause explanations that are open, honest, or backed by a specific purpose.

However, some business leaders expect a more “in-depth” explanation than others. In certain industries, particularly where hiring cycles are extending, you might need to explain yourself repeatedly. Still, they will likely listen if you present your story with confidence, clarity, and a sense of growth.

The Types of Employment Gaps and Their Specific Challenges

Employment gaps in the tech industry happen for many different reasons. The reason behind your break shapes how you talk about it, and understanding that from the start can help you feel more confident and less stuck. For instance:

Family-Related Gaps (Like Parental Leave Or Caregiving):

You might worry that employers will question your availability or commitment, but don’t overlook what you have gained. During these gaps, you may have gained empathy, learned how to stay organised under pressure, and mastered navigating emotional situations.

Health-Related Gaps (For Yourself Or Someone Else):

Gaps related to health can be difficult to talk about. You don’t necessarily have to share personal details if you have to take time out to focus on your wellbeing (or your family). Focus on the fact that you’re ready to re-engage in the tech workplace. Sometimes, you might also be able to draw attention to how the experience made you more resilient or motivated.

Education Or Retraining Gaps:

This is one of the easiest types of career break explanations to frame. Upskilling shows initiative. Make sure you link what you’ve learned to the job you’re now pursuing. If you’ve switched industries or roles, you can highlight how you had to step back, reorient, and develop new skills to ensure you were ready for the next stage in your career.

Voluntary Breaks

Taking a break for yourself doesn’t make you less committed. It can lead to renewed energy and perspective. If you gained life experience, worked on a personal project, or just recharged, talk about what that gave you, not just what you stepped away from.

Layoffs and Economic Downturns

These are more common than ever, especially post-pandemic. What matters is how you used the time. Did you network, consult, take a course, or explore new roles? Share that. Employers respect candidates who take setbacks and stay proactive.

Pre-Interview Strategies: Addressing Gaps on Your CV

If you’re worried about explaining employment gaps, remember you don’t necessarily have to wait until you’re face-to-face with an interviewer to address the issue. Your resume, cover letter, and even your employer brand online can clarify your career story.

Updating Your Resume and Cover Letter

The first step is updating your CV to reduce the focus on your career gaps. If you’ve had multiple career timeline breaks, consider a skills-based or functional format. That way, you can focus on what you can do and what you’ve achieved rather than “when” you did certain things.

If you need to follow a chronological layout, try mentioning the years when you accomplished certain things rather than exact dates. It’s also worth highlighting your proactive work during those tech career gaps.

Maybe you completed a certification online, volunteered for a local community group, or did some freelance work part-time. Combine your updated resume with an effective cover letter.

You can acknowledge the gap in your cover letter, briefly explain its reasoning, and then focus on what you gained. Finally, explain why you’re excited and ready to explore the new opportunity.

Optimising Your Online Brand

Most companies will check your online profiles when considering you for a role, as well as your CV and cover letter. Usually, that means tracking down your LinkedIn account. The good news is that LinkedIn allows you to add career pauses (with reasons) to your profile.

You can label the break (e.g., “Parental Leave,” “Career Transition,” “Professional Development”) and include a short description.

However, you choose to label your breaks, make sure your message is consistent across platforms. If an employer sees a professional gap on LinkedIn that is explained differently in your resume, it can raise unnecessary questions.

Think About the Applicant Tracking Systems

Most employers use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to filter CVs before a human sees them. These systems can flag unexplained CV employment history gaps, so prepare accordingly:

• Use keywords from the job description
• Fill in the gap periods with anything relevant, learning, volunteering, or consulting
• Avoid large blank spots with no explanation at all

A well-structured resume helps you pass the first round and sets the stage for a more confident conversation later.

Discussing Gaps Confidently During an Interview

Interviews are often stressful enough without the added worry of having to explain your career timeline break. But you don’t need to dread the question. All you need to do is ensure you’re prepared to explain your story confidently.

Prepare a Clear, Honest Explanation

Reflect on your employment gap before entering an interview (or logging in to one). What was happening during that time? What did you learn? How did you grow?

You don’t need to go in with a defensive mindset. Instead, think about how you can give the interviewer a clear, honest insight into what’s happened throughout your career.

Don’t avoid the question; explain yourself clearly and honestly. The PAR method can help with this (Problem, Action, Result):

• Problem: Briefly state the reason for your gap.
• Action: Explain what you did then, the skills gained, courses taken, and personal development you achieved.
• Result: Discuss how you’re better prepared and ready for this new tech role.

Emphasize Transferable Skills and Current Value

Whatever the reason behind your tech career break, there’s a good chance you picked up some valuable skills. They may not be obvious technical skills, like new data analysis abilities or a new certification. However, they could still be worthwhile.

You might have learned how to communicate more effectively when travelling worldwide. Maybe you became more resilient and emotionally intelligent when caring with a sick family member. Perhaps you learned how to manage your time more effectively.

Draw attention to the transferrable skills that make you a great choice for your chosen role. Pivot back to the present whenever possible, too, talking about the relevant experience you already gained in other roles or all the new abilities you have to bring to the table after a period of learning.

Tackle Concerns Head-On

There’s a chance that your tech interviewer might have some concerns about your gap, particularly if you’ve been out of the industry for a while. They may worry that your skills have become outdated or you’re unaware of the latest industry changes.

Address those concerns directly. Talk about what you’ve done to stay current, whether taking online courses, updating your certifications, or attending industry events. Maybe you’re following relevant thought leaders online or networking with professional peers.

You could even do some pre-interview homework to be extra prepared. Please read about the topics affecting your industry online and be ready to share your thoughts and opinions. That shows your future employer that you’re staying proactive.

Turning Career Gaps into Strengths

One of the best things you can do now is stop thinking of your employment gap as a setback. If you view it as a black mark on your CV, you will also present the wrong perspective to interviewers.

The key to success is reframing the narrative. Look at your professional gap not just as time away from work, but as a valuable chapter of your life. Find ways to:

• Introduce New Skills: Highlight all the skills you’ve developed, from technical skills to soft skills like agility, resilience, or just strong communication skills.
• Show Proactivity: Reassure future employers that you weren’t just sitting back and relaxing during your break. Discuss how you explored volunteering opportunities, took online courses, built your network, or worked on yourself.
• Connect to Company Values: Show how your growth during your break aligns perfectly with the company’s mission. For instance, volunteering for your local community could resonate with a company focused on positive impact.
• Show Clarity: Sometimes, stepping back from work helps you see the bigger picture clearly. If you used that time to reassess where you want to be and confirm your priorities, share that with your potential tech employer.
• Demonstrate Commitment to Growth: Even if you fell behind on training during your gap, show your potential employer that you’re keen to learn and grow now. Tell them about how you’re seeking out new courses, mentoring opportunities, and development strategies.

Address your employment gap from a positive, confident perspective, and it’s much less likely to drive potential job offers out of your hands.

Embracing Your Complete Career Story

Explaining gaps in your employment can feel daunting. You don’t want your future employer to overlook you because your career path hasn’t been linear.

Fortunately, most tech employers now expect to interview candidates with career gaps. They’re not opposed to hiring people with breaks in their employment. They want you to explain the situation clearly, highlight what you gained from it, and show them that you’re ready for the next stage in your growth.

Your career journey, including its pauses, reflects your resilience and adaptability. Embrace your complete story confidently, and let it propel you toward new opportunities.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton

The tech workplace is still in flux. The initial scramble to implement remote work policies during the pandemic has diminished, but now there are deeper decisions to make. How do companies balance business needs with an ongoing employee demand for flexibility?

83% of employees worldwide still want hybrid work. They’ve tasted flexibility and autonomy, and they want more. At the same time, companies are worried about maintaining collaboration, productivity, and company culture in the age of hybrid work.

There’s no easy solution.

Finding the right strategy is equally complex worldwide, as candidates continue to prioritise flexibility and work-life balance.

Ultimately, if you want to attract and retain the right talent in 2025, you’ll need to quickly develop your RTO roadmap.

The Current Landscape: Flexibility Everywhere

The tech workplace today has changed dramatically. Once, remote and hybrid work was just an emergency response to a complex situation; now, it’s what talented candidates expect.

Of course, hybrid maturity varies worldwide.

In the UK, about 28% of adults follow a hybrid schedule. In the US, more than 50% of employees are hybrid workers. According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics data, 37% of Australians worked from home at least once a week throughout 2023, a significant increase from the pre-pandemic level of just 13% of full-time workers.

Adoption is even higher among knowledge-based professionals, with 96% of Australian knowledge-based workers working hybrid or fully remote and 69% of employers now offering hybrid work arrangements.

The main reason for the shift is a change in candidate priorities. Employees don’t just want a wage anymore; they want to work with companies that don’t treat their health, well-being, or personal priorities as an afterthought.

However, while empowering, hybrid models can be complex. Flexibility is liberating for some employees, while others struggle to find a balance between their work and home lives. At the same time, leaders struggle to preserve the benefits of in-person collaboration in a hybrid setting.

The Business Case for the Office Return

On the surface, the demand for hybrid work seems great for businesses. They benefit from happier employees who suffer less burnout and feel more engaged. Plus, many companies have found that hybrid work can reduce operational costs at scale.

However, hybrid work also has challenges.

Although teams embrace technology to help bridge communication gaps, collaboration still thrives in the office. A Stanford University study even found that teams working in physical offices generate 15% more ideas than remote workers.

When tech employees share a physical space, interactions are more organic and dynamic. Quick hallway chats turn into game-changing ideas, and a junior employee gains invaluable mentorship by brainstorming with a seasoned professional.

Equity among team members can also improve. Many leaders struggle to give remote workers the attention they offer in-person staff. Proximity bias can be a real problem, particularly for companies with larger teams.

However, it’s not just human connections and company culture that benefit from RTO mandates. Physical spaces cost money. Globally, companies spend billions on real estate, furniture, utilities, and infrastructure annually. These spaces weren’t designed to house people; they were built to enable focus, collaboration, and innovation. Walking away from those investments is difficult, particularly when budgets are tight.

The Talent Perspective: Shifting Priorities

From the perspective of tech employees, things that used to be considered perks (flexible hours, remote options, and autonomy) are now crucial. A Guardian global survey found that work-life balance is the most important factor for any employee choosing a role, even ranking higher than salary.

Demand for flexibility is even higher among certain cohorts. Millennials and Generation Z employees crave mental wellbeing, meaning, and freedom in their roles. They want to design professions that work for them, rather than just accepting jobs that pay the bills.

Burnout is rampant, and candidates view companies that offer flexible and remote work options as more willing to actively support their mental health. They’re also more likely to see those companies as innovators in terms of diversity, equity, and inclusion. When companies can hire team members from anywhere, they align teams from numerous different backgrounds and walks of life.

Simply ignoring that employees today choose workplaces that align with their lives (not the other way around) isn’t an option. That’s why so many rigid return-to-office mandates have failed, causing massive turnover, workplace tension, and higher recruitment costs.

Developing Your RTO Strategy: Decision-Making Ideas

Simply asking employees to return to the office full-time won’t work for most tech employers.

The truth is, no single model fits every team, role, or person. The companies that get the right results are the ones that don’t just roll out rules. They build flexible frameworks grounded in trust, data, and understanding. Here’s how to start building your strategy.

Ask yourself why it matters before asking people to show up at a desk. What value does the office add for them, not just for the business?

Some types of work thrive in an in-person environment. Employees who need to interact regularly with colleagues or customers, or mentor other staff members, benefit from real-world human connections. But not every task requires a dedicated desk.

Deep-focus work, writing, coding, and data analysis can often be done better from the quiet of home. Define which tech roles need an in-office environment, and exactly how frequently team members need to be in the office to get the best results.

Once you’ve gathered the “what” and the “why,” you can start shaping a flexible model that respects both business goals and individual work styles.

Remember, your RTO policies don’t have to be carved in stone; they can evolve with your people and your tech business.

RTO Policy Implementation: Ideas for Success

A good return-to-office policy on paper means nothing if it lands flat in practice. Implementation isn’t just about sending out emails and updating your online schedule. Here are some top tips for initiating an RTO mandate that doesn’t drive your top people away.

Start Small with Pilot and Phase-In Approaches

Change in the tech workplace is easier to manage when it’s delivered in small doses. Rather than rolling out a full company-wide policy overnight, start with pilot programs. Select a few diverse teams and test various hybrid models.

Remember, different teams may work better with other frameworks. The product team could excel with two in-office days a week, while the marketing team prefers a fully remote setup with regular monthly sync-ups. Track what works, and use that to guide you.

Communicate with Clarity

There’s no such thing as too much communication during times of change. But clarity is everything. Don’t just announce policy changes, tell the story. Share the why and the reasoning behind your decisions. Share the trade-offs, the data, and the goals.

Be transparent about what you know and what you’re still figuring out. This kind of honesty builds trust and can help ensure your tech employees feel more “involved” in the process.

Invest in Tools that Support Flexibility

If you’re asking people to work in new ways, you need to give them the tools to do so correctly. This could include smart scheduling platforms, digital calendars, virtual collaboration tools, and desk booking and space management systems.

Experiment with project management tools and cutting-edge communication solutions designed to bring people together in inclusive, immersive video meetings. Ask your team members what kind of technology they need to work more effectively wherever they are, and give your business leaders the resources to track performance metrics for all employees.

Measure What Matters and Keep Evolving

A return-to-office strategy shouldn’t be a one-and-done decision. It should be alive, and adaptive, informed by real results and honest feedback.

Track what really matters:

• Are people engaged?
• Are teams collaborating better?
• Has productivity improved, or dropped?
• Are we losing good people because of our policies?

Use surveys, retention data, performance insights, and regular pulse checks. Build a rhythm of reflection. Adjust when needed. The best leaders in 2025 aren’t chasing perfection—they’re staying curious, agile, and open.

The right RTO strategy shouldn’t actually be about “going back”, but about moving forward. The workplace and your employees will continue to change, and there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to keeping both your stakeholders and your teams happy.

The only way to thrive is to experiment. Use data and insights to guide your decisions, and resist the urge to stunt flexibility to avoid complexity.

Recognise that productivity doesn’t always come from presence, and remember that putting your employees’ needs first often pays off more than you’d think.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton

A massive 83% of employees worldwide say they prefer hybrid work models to traditional workplace schedules, but many businesses are still struggling to make flexible models work for them.

What began as an emergency response to an unprecedented crisis has now solidified into a long-term expectation for tech employees worldwide. Professionals have discovered the benefits of flexible schedules – better work-life balance, lower travel costs, and less stress- and they don’t want to go back to the way things were.

Unfortunately for business leaders, offering hybrid work options is easy enough, but ensuring teams stay productive, engaged, and aligned is much harder.

Many tech employers are walking a tricky tightrope. On the one hand, employees crave autonomy more than ever, while managers need to maintain collaboration, innovation, and constant performance. Fortunately, there are ways to navigate the challenges of hybrid work effectively. You need to be proactive.

The Current State of Hybrid Work in 2025

Employees and business leaders both agree that work needs to be more flexible. According to Zoom, four out of five executives say the future of work will be hybrid. However, actual adoption of hybrid work policies varies across the globe. In the UK, about 28% of adults are hybrid workers. In the US, 52% of remote-capable employees work in a hybrid environment.

Worldwide, everyone seems to be making the shift, but this transition does come with growing pains. Companies are still struggling with:

• In-office vs. remote tension: While some employees thrive in remote settings, others miss spontaneous collaboration. Leaders struggle to create policies that don’t feel arbitrary or unevenly applied.
• Team cohesion: Distributed teams often feel fragmented, with a noticeable dip in informal bonding and peer learning.
• Technology gaps: Not all organisations have closed the digital divide, leaving some employees over-reliant on outdated tools or overwhelmed by disconnected platforms.
• Productivity measurement: Many companies still default to activity tracking rather than outcome-based performance, creating inefficiencies and misaligned expectations.

Plus, hybrid expectations vary widely among tech employers. Senior leaders sometimes prefer more in-office time to maintain visibility and influence. Gen Z and working parents (millennials) value location and schedule flexibility more. There’s no one-size-fits-all that works for everyone.

Why Hybrid Work Matters to Your Talent Strategy

Embracing hybrid work can be challenging, so some tech leaders are tempted to avoid changing anything. But ignoring the growing demand for flexibility could be dangerous. The truth is that flexible work solutions deliver:

Competitive Advantages in Recruitment

As tech companies fight for scarce talent, hybrid work becomes a major selling point. Studies show that up to half of all graduates in the UK wouldn’t even consider applying for a job that forces them to be in an office five days a week. Offering hybrid work allows companies to appeal to a wider range of candidates. Plus, it can help expand talent pools by attracting talented professionals located further away from a local office.

Enhanced Employee Retention and Engagement

Hybrid work models regularly improve employee satisfaction and loyalty. According to one survey, employees working for a company that supported hybrid work scored 6% higher on engagement levels compared to the UK average. Those required to return to the office full-time scored 7% lower. Additionally, Stanford found resignation levels fell by 33% for companies that shifted from a full-time in-office to a hybrid work model.

Improved Diversity and Inclusion

Hybrid work arrangements are also excellent for promoting inclusivity and diversity in the workplace. A tech company with a hybrid strategy can appeal to a wider range of talented professionals and avoid overlooking candidates with specific schedule requirements. Greater diversity and inclusion generally lead to higher profits and creativity, too.

Common Pitfalls in Hybrid Work Implementation

Hybrid work benefits employers and employees alike. The problem is that implementing hybrid strategies isn’t always simple. The most common hurdles tech companies deal with include:

Poor Communication

Communication can start to suffer when people rely on digital tools rather than face-to-face interactions. Employees waste time struggling with complex video conferencing tools, miss important messages or emails, and feel left out of the loop, which can cause productivity and engagement levels to fall.

Proximity Bias

It’s much easier for managers to build relationships with and recognise tech employees they see daily. Sometimes, this leads to in-office staff getting preferential treatment over their colleagues. One study found that about 96% of executives admit that they notice in-office efforts more than the contributions of remote workers.

Technology Adoption Challenges

Hybrid work is really only possible with technology—cloud-based platforms, productivity apps, and communication tools. However, not everyone feels comfortable using these tools straight away. A lack of training and integration can mean that tools aren’t used properly, and efficiency begins to wane. User-friendly platforms are a must.

Management Resistance and Traditional Mindsets

As evidenced by countless companies implementing “Return to Office” mandates in recent years, not everyone is comfortable with the idea of hybrid work. Some managers and stakeholders simply don’t believe employees can be productive outside of the office. Others struggle to measure productivity and performance without resorting to tracking things like “hours in the office”.

Corporate Culture Dilution

Preserving a cohesive and supportive company culture can be difficult for a company embracing hybrid work. Some employees can feel disconnected from business values and goals, which leads to a breakdown in collaboration and problems with morale. Business leaders need to make a clear effort to keep everyone involved in the company culture.

Five Strategies to Make Hybrid Work Productive

Demand for hybrid work in the tech space isn’t going to disappear. But there are ways to tackle the most common challenges that affect businesses and their teams.

Here are some of the most valuable strategies you can try.

1.    Switch to Outcome-Based Performance Frameworks

The number of hours an employee spends at a specific desk doesn’t really matter to your tech company’s overall success. The outcomes they achieve, whether they’re working in an office or from home, are what really count.

Rethink how you track and measure performance. Focus on how productive team members are, how often they innovate, and how regularly they contribute to real business goals. Look at what they’re accomplishing rather than logging their locations and time spent.

2.    Design Intentional Collaboration Strategies

Collaboration is crucial in any tech workplace, but it doesn’t happen spontaneously in a hybrid environment, at least not as often. Business leaders need to focus on intentionally bringing teams together. Establish schedules for how frequently teams should meet in group meetings, video conferencing sessions, or in-person meetings.

Schedule regular check-ins between managers and people who regularly work remotely. Make sure hybrid workers know which tools to use for different types of collaboration. For instance, they might work on documents in real time on Google Workspace or chat with colleagues via Slack.

3.    Integrate Seamless Technology Solutions

Technology is the glue connecting hybrid teams, but everything falls apart if staff members don’t know how to use it. The ideal tools for your teams will be the ones that feel natural and intuitive. Look for platforms that integrate communication, project management, document sharing, and more into a single pane of glass—a new “digital workplace.”

Ensure staff members know how these tools work with training sessions and workshops, and ensure they have someone to contact whenever they face technical issues.

4.    Provide Management Training for Hybrid Leadership

Keeping hybrid teams motivated and aligned requires different leadership skills. Managers and supervisors need to know how to share feedback regularly with out-of-office workers, and how to foster inclusivity and cohesion between different groups.

Upgrade your training resources, focusing on skills that will benefit hybrid teams, such as digital communication, emotional intelligence, and adaptability. Listen to the feedback given by hybrid employees about their management preferences.

5.    Reinforce Company Culture Across Distributed Teams

Your tech company culture shouldn’t disappear when schedules are more flexible. You’ll need to proactively reinforce your values, share your vision, and highlight your mission to everyone. Host virtual events, create recognition programs, and keep communication constant and transparent.

Find ways to strengthen relationships between all kinds of employees with virtual team-building sessions, social interactions, and even gamified experiences. Ensure everyone feels like they belong to the same cohesive family.

How to Attract Top Talent with Your Hybrid Model

Once you’ve ironed out the perfect approach to managing your hybrid team, the next step is using your model to attract new tech talent. Be intentional with how you highlight your approach to flexible and hybrid working by:

• Showcasing Flexibility in Employer Branding: Highlight your hybrid approach on your careers page, social media platforms, and in employee testimonials. Showing flexibility is one of your values, not just something you’re experimenting with.
• Update Job Descriptions: Be clear and transparent in job descriptions. Vague references to “flexibility” are confusing. Clearly outline how your hybrid policy works, and whether you’re willing to negotiate on schedules.
• Showcase Success in Interviews: Use interviews as a platform to demonstrate how hybrid work operates in practice. Share stories of team collaboration, remote onboarding wins, and how employees thrive in your model.
• Optimise Onboarding: Make sure your onboarding process is structured to support people working outside of the office. Set up remote orientation videos, guides for technology configuration, and digital learning resources.
• Use Feedback to Refine: Don’t just assume you’re grabbing the right attention with your efforts. Use post-survey interviews and candidate reviews to constantly improve your approach.

Make Hybrid Work Your Competitive Advantage

Hybrid work models aren’t experiments anymore; they’re quickly becoming the new operating system for modern workforces. Success, however, depends on more than just embracing flexibility. You need to design your hybrid model to work for you.

If you take a proactive approach now, reworking your approach to everything from recruitment to employee management, you’ll set yourself up for success in the years ahead. The future of the tech industry will depend on adaptability and the ability to balance freedom and autonomy with accountability and consistency.

Struggling to build your hybrid team? Let’s talk about how your hybrid model can attract top talent, reduce friction, and drive better business results.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton

The Skills-Based CV: How to Champion Your Capabilities in a Changing Market

 

Everything about work is changing, from what the modern tech office looks like, to how employers assess and recruit candidates. Companies and recruitment teams are rapidly recognising that the old-school CV isn’t as reliable as it once was.

Documents listing job titles and certifications year-by-year don’t always tell the full story about how successful someone can be in a role. On the other hand, 94% of organisations say that the people they hire based on skills (rather than traditional credentials) often excel in their roles.

But if companies hire based on skills now, how do you ensure your CV still stands out? You need a skills-based resume or “functional CV” that shines a spotlight on your capabilities and potential.

Whether you’re actively searching for a new role or preparing for the future job market, here’s how to build the ultimate skills-focused resume.

Why You Need a Skills-Based Resume in 2025

The tech industry is experiencing yet another period of change. The half-life of professional skills has plummeted to just four to five years, and by 2030, around nine out of ten employees will need new skill sets. This means a tech candidate’s most valuable currency in the job market isn’t their years of service or last job title, but their constantly expanding skills.

Nearly three-quarters (72%) of employers say they now prioritise skills assessments over traditional CVs. McKinsey also found that hiring for skills is five times more predictive of job success than hiring based on education.

Technology is driving a lot of the change. AI tools and applicant tracking systems (ATS) now scan resumes in milliseconds, looking for core competencies. If your tech experience isn’t packaged correctly, it might not even surpass the first digital gatekeeper. Plus, there are regional pressures shaping hiring strategies.

In the UK, automation is expected to impact up to 30% of jobs by 2030. Despite high applicant volume in Canada, 40% of employers struggle to find qualified talent. Meanwhile, Australia’s booming tech sector is creating demand for cross-disciplinary skill sets, and in the US, the labour market has split. High-skill jobs are growing, while middle-skill roles are vanishing.

All of this means one thing: if you can clearly show what you’re capable of, beyond the boundaries of job titles, you’ll be ahead of the curve.

Core Components of an Effective Skills-Based Resume

Figuring out how to create a skills-based resume or functional CV can initially be complicated. Most of us are used to structuring these job application documents in a certain way. Fortunately, once you understand what you must include, it’s pretty easy to make the shift.

Here’s what a skills-focused resume should include:

A Skill Summary and Professional Profile

This is the elevator pitch at the very top of the page. In a few sentences, you introduce your tech employer to who you are. Outline your core strengths, your values, and what you bring to the table. This section reads like a confident LinkedIn bio, for example:

“Flexible and outcomes-focused tech professional with an extensive record in [things you’ve accomplished]. Skilled in translating data into insights, working with automated and AI-driven tools, and experimenting with new platforms.”

Try to sprinkle keywords from the job listing into this section. For instance, if the role mentions “adaptability” or “data literacy,” try to include those words.

Skills Categories

Skill categories will comprise the core of your new skills-based resume and should be grouped into logical themes. That might include:

• Technical Skills (e.g. Python, CAD software, Google Analytics)
• Soft Skills (e.g. problem-solving, communication, leadership)
• Industry-Specific Skills (e.g. UX design, clinical compliance, agile methodology)

Each group should list specific, measurable competencies. Where possible, show proficiency levels (“Advanced in Adobe Premiere Pro” or “Working knowledge of SQL”) or context (“Used Figma to prototype and test UX flows for a SaaS platform”).

Accomplishments

This is where you bring your skills to life by sharing real results and outcomes. Use the “Challenge Action Result” (CAR) method to write your achievement statements, such as:

“Transformed underperforming email campaign (Challenge) by introducing segmentation and A/B testing (Action), leading to a 47% increase in open rates and a 23% boost in conversions (Result).”

Always quantify your results whenever possible. Numbers tell hiring managers you understand what success looks like.

Supporting Experience

You can still include work history and experience in your new skills-focused resume. Just don’t make it the main focus. A simple list with a job title, company name, dates, and a few statements about what you accomplished in the role should be enough.

Follow this with relevant education and certifications, listed in reverse chronological order. Remember to mention whether you’ve done any recent tech specific online courses, micro credentials, or bootcamps that make a difference to your proficiency for the role.

Optional but Valuable Additions

Depending on your field and experience, you might want to include:

• A Project Portfolio: Perfect for creatives, developers, and marketers. Link to samples or GitHub repos.
• Professional Affiliations: Associations, groups, or networks that reflect industry engagement.
• Volunteer Work: Especially powerful if it reflects leadership, initiative, or skills used in a new context (e.g. leading fundraising, managing events, tutoring in tech literacy).

Overall, your skills-based resume should reflect your evolution, value, and potential. It tells employers, “Here’s what I can do, and here’s how I’ve already done it.”

Optimising Your Skills-Based Resume for ATS

Once you’ve built a powerful, skills-first resume, you need to ensure it reaches the right people. For many tech job seekers, that means learning how to bypass the ATS (applicant tracking system) that companies use to filter applications.

Most large and mid-sized companies (and an increasing number of small ones) use ATS software to scan CVs before a human ever lays eyes on them. These systems sort, filter, and rank resumes based on keyword matches and formatting cues. If your resume isn’t optimised for ATS, it might not make it through to human beings, even if you’re perfect for the job.

First, you need to know that not every ATS is AI-powered, but they are automated. The software looks for alignment with the job description: specific keywords, qualifications, and relevant skills. These systems are tricky, as they can sometimes filter out the best job applicants.

To avoid that fate:

• Use natural, targeted keywords from the job listing, especially in your skills and professional summary. But don’t keyword-stuff. Instead of writing “project management project management project management,” say something meaningful like, “Led cross-functional teams through the full project lifecycle using Agile methodologies.”
• Stick to clean formatting. ATS can struggle with tables, graphics, columns, text boxes, and headers/footers. Save the design-heavy version for human readers, but always keep a plain text or Word version for ATS upload fields.
• Keep job titles standardised/standardized. If you were a “Customer Happiness Hero,” consider renaming it to “Customer Service Specialist” with the original title in parentheses.
• Test your resume with tools like Jobscan, Resume Worded, or SkillSyncer to see how well it matches target job descriptions.

Remember, optimising for ATS isn’t about gaming the bots; it’s about learning how to speak their language while still telling the right story for human employers.

Tailoring Your Skills-Based Resume for Different Situations

One of the strengths of using a skills-based resume to apply for tech roles is that these documents are highly adaptable. You can adjust the structure and content based on what’s happening for you right now. For instance:

If You’re Changing Careers

Draw the most attention to your transferrable skills. Maybe your retail experience sharpened your communication, leadership, and problem-solving abilities. These are all fantastic for project coordination, tech support, or HR roles.

Frame your skills in the language of your target tech role or new industry. Directly address any leap: “After a decade in hospitality, I’m pivoting into UX design, where my customer-first mindset and attention to detail are major assets.”

If You Have an Employment Gap

Most people will have a gap in their employment history at some point during their career. That’s particularly true following the pandemic. You don’t have to ignore the gap to stand out when applying for a new tech role with a skills-based resume.

Use your resume to focus on what you maintained or developed during that time: online courses, freelance projects, parenting, caregiving, volunteering. These experiences build organisational, empathy, resilience, and digital literacy skills.

If You’re a Recent Graduate

If you’ve just finished a course or certification and don’t have much experience in prior tech roles to mention, lead with your academic projects, internships, and extracurriculars.

Did you manage events for a student society, coordinate team projects, or build an app for your final-year assignment? That’s an experience worth highlighting. Employers today are looking for emerging skills like data fluency, adaptability, and AI literacy. Lean into those.

Remember, different industries focus more on specific skills. In tech, focusing on technical proficiencies, collaboration, and agile workflows makes more sense. In creative roles, your innovative nature and portfolio (even if it’s a personal project portfolio) can be valuable.

Getting Ready for the Era of Skills-Based Hiring

The tech job market continues to change at a record pace. Today’s hiring managers and employers now value capabilities over credentials, and a skills-based resume gives you a valuable way to present your experience in a relevant and powerful way.

Remember, you don’t need a perfect timeline or a linear story. What matters is that you can show what you’ve learned, how you’ve applied it, and where you want to grow next. The skills-based format gives you room to do that, whatever your next step.

So update your resume, focus on your skills, and remember to keep adapting.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton

Career Growth vs. Stability: Making Informed Decisions in Today’s Market

 

One of the biggest questions keeping tech professionals up at night this year is: “Do I chase growth and new opportunities, or hold onto stability?”

There’s no easy answer. Many people feel stuck between the urge to level up their career and the need to feel more secure.

In the UK, hiring is slowing, while employment costs rise. In America, hiring cycles are growing longer and longer. Australia is dealing with critical skill shortages, and in Canada, economic shifts are forcing companies to rethink their long-term plans. Everyone is struggling.

It’s no wonder that 72% of job candidates say job hunting harms their well-being. Finding the right role is incredibly difficult, but staying put isn’t always the best bet, particularly as companies move forward with AI and automation.

So, how do you ensure you’re taking steps to support you and your priorities this year?

The Realities of the Job Market Today

From a big picture perspective, the current job market is complicated and continues to change fast. In the UK, changes to tax and the minimum wage affect recruitment strategies. Job vacancies are disappearing fast, and pay growth is cooling.

In the United States, it takes candidates an average of five months or more to find a role, and the challenges are even greater for those with limited skill sets. In Australia, the conversation is still about skill shortages, particularly in major sectors like healthcare and cybersecurity. All the while, tech companies worldwide are rethinking the skills they need.

With AI and automation reshaping everything, you may soon struggle to keep up if you haven’t updated your skillsets. According to CIPD, nine in every ten employees must reskill by 2030. There are still opportunities in this market – if you know where to look for them – but putting growth on hold for stability is becoming more tempting.

Defining Career Growth vs Stability

So, what does it mean to choose between career growth and stability?

Let’s talk about career growth first. Growth in a tech career doesn’t necessarily mean chasing bigger wages or promotions. For many candidates, the focus is more likely on stretching skills, learning new tools, exploring different responsibilities, or gaining exposure to technologies as they emerge.

Growth could mean pursuing a new title, exploring more innovative companies, or even pivoting into a different connected field with transferrable skills. It could also mean developing resilience in the face of change.

Career stability is about predictability. It means finding a job that feels steady, regularly pays the bills, offers dependable benefits, and comes with a leadership team that doesn’t change every couple of months. It may not be as challenging or rewarding as pursuing growth, but it gives you balance and supports your life, particularly if you have personal commitments to consider.

Most tech professionals don’t realise that growth and stability don’t always have to be mutually exclusive. Sometimes you can find both – a role that gives you peace of mind and learning opportunities. But that also sometimes means making compromises. For instance, a fast-paced start-up might offer great development but little work-life balance.

Assessing Your Personal Risk Tolerance

Deciding whether you will pursue growth or stability starts with assessing your personal tolerance to risk. Often, most people begin with a financial assessment. Do you have savings you can rely on if something doesn’t work out? Are you managing hefty student loans, supporting a family, or paying a mortgage? How hard would an income gap hit you?

If your budget is tight, you might prefer to focus on stability. Your position in your career, or “career stage”, matters too. If you’re starting in the tech industry, you might have more room to experiment. You might feel more pressure to climb if you’re in the middle of your career.

Don’t forget your personal circumstances, either. Are you the primary caregiver for kids or parents? Do you have the flexibility to relocate or work long hours? Sometimes, it’s not about what you want professionally but what you can realistically manage right now.

Your mental and physical health count too. If you’re already stretched thin or burned out, making a high-risk career leap might not be right.

Try asking yourself a few honest questions:

• If this role didn’t work out, how long could I stay afloat?
• What kind of pressure am I already under outside of work?
• Do I feel energized by uncertainty, or does it stress me out?
• What does “too much risk” feel to me, and have I felt that before?

This isn’t about fear. It’s about clarity. When you understand your limits and values, making decisions you won’t regret later is much easier.

Strategies for Growth-Seekers in Unstable Times

If you decide it’s time to grow your tech career, you might be in for a rocky road. But you can still manage the hurdles carefully, strategically, and proactively.

Target High-Demand Skills

Start with your skillset. Building skills that matter to today’s tech employers is the fastest way to ensure you stand out and boost your chances of getting a new role.

Focus on a blend of relevant hard skills, AI proficiency, data analysis, digital literacy, and soft skills like communication and resilience. Find out what skills are showing up on job descriptions if you don’t know where to start. Remember, you don’t have to earn entirely new certifications either. Micro-credentials and online courses are great ways to learn.

Demonstrate Your Adaptability and Learning Mindset

Your personal brand matters in a growth-focused job search. That doesn’t mean becoming a thought leader overnight; it just means being visible and intentional.

Polish your LinkedIn profile to highlight what you’ve accomplished lately, the types of projects you’ve been working on, and your interests. Share industry insights or project takeaways that show you’re engaged and curious. Let recruiters and hiring managers see your learning mindset.

Look for Growth Inside Stability

Remember, you don’t have to choose between a fast-moving startup and long-term security. Some larger, well-established companies offer internal mobility, leadership development programs, and innovative opportunities, with the bonus of a reliable paycheck and benefits.

Strategies for Stability-Seekers That Don’t Sacrifice Growth

Before committing to a “stable” job, ensure it’s built to last. A big name or long history doesn’t guarantee security anymore. Look into a company’s financial reports, recent news, and industry trends.

• Are they hiring or downsizing?
• Are they investing in innovation or cutting corners?

Stability often exists in sectors that weather economic storms well, such as healthcare, education, utilities, and public services. But even within those, evaluating how each organisation supports its people during tough times is important.

Find Employers Who Promote From Within

Some companies commit to offering long-term careers. Look for tech businesses known for internal mobility, learning programs, or leadership development tracks. These environments allow you to stay in a secure role while gaining new responsibilities, skills, or even a promotion.

During interviews, ask about the path to promotion or for examples of people who have grown their careers internally at the company.

Invest in Transferable Skills and Specialist Skills

You don’t need to jump roles every year to keep growing, but you do need to stay sharp. Focus on building transferable skills like project management, communication, digital literacy, and emotional intelligence. These abilities add value in any workplace.

They make you more effective where you are now and more agile if circumstances change later. If you want to boost your chances of a promotion, specialist skills can be helpful too. Consider earning specific credentials that will make you crucial to a company’s growth.

Nurture Your Professional Reputation

One of the most valuable forms of career insurance you can invest in is your professional network. Even if you’re not job-hunting actively, make sure you stay connected. Attend industry events, join relevant associations, and build relationships with mentors.

The more you connect and expand your professional reputation, the more valuable you become to companies searching for tech talent.

Career Growth vs Stability: Making Your Decision

It’s time to decide once you’ve taken stock of the current market and reflected on your priorities. What do you want to focus on right now? Remember, you can change your mind later, but for now, ask yourself some key questions:

• What are my non-negotiables in a role? This could include flexibility, culture, benefits, whatever you need to feel happy in a tech role.
• What does success look like for me in 2–5 years? Try to picture it. Is it a bigger title? More freedom? Work-life balance? A sense of purpose? Let that vision shape your next move.
• How does this choice align with my long-term goals? Which path will open more doors for you down the line, or give you a sense of fulfilment?
• If it doesn’t work out, what’s next? Do you have a backup plan if your current choice doesn’t pan out as expected?
• How will this impact my mental health and overall well-being? Always put your health and well-being first. Your next step should support you, not just your career.

Remember, no decision has to be final. Careers are long and nonlinear. All you need to do is decide what’s right for you right now. If you’re struggling with that, remember that tech recruitment companies are always available to help you.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton

It’s easy to misjudge the benefits of introverts in the tech workplace. However, introverts aren’t what most people think. They’re not disengaged, aloof, or against the concept of working as a team.

They’re thoughtful, empathetic, and highly capable. Research suggests that introverts might make the best leaders, thanks to their ability to stay calm under pressure and analyse problems carefully.

Ultimately, introversion is a sign of a potentially incredible employee with a brain that’s wired for depth instead of noise.

Here’s why introverts make incredible employees and how you can attract them to your tech team.

The Key Strengths of Introverted Employees

Introvert isn’t another word for “shy” or “withdrawn”. Research shows that introverted people have unique neurological characteristics, which can bring great advantages to the tech workplace.

For instance, introverts often have a larger, more active prefrontal cortex. This is the brain area responsible for decision-making, strategic planning, and complex problem-solving. It allows them to process information more deeply and consider decisions more carefully.

Introverts are also more influenced by the “acetylcholine” neurotransmitter than dopamine. Instead of chasing thrills, they gain satisfaction from introspection, focus, and class mastery.

Introverts also exhibit greater sensitivity in the reticular activating system (RAS), a neural network that modulates attention and alertness. This makes them more attuned to environmental stimuli and better suited to calm, focused settings.

Across industries, introverted employees come with some major strengths.

Deep Focus and Concentration

Introverts are the marathon runners of the working world. Where some may sprint from task to task, introverted professionals excel in environments that allow them to dive deep. Thanks to their unique neurological wiring, they can maintain focus for longer periods.

Introverts are wired for slow, careful processing. Their minds are built to connect dots that other people would usually miss. This makes them adept at solving problems—particularly issues that require careful thought and precision.

Introverted employees’ deep-thinking capabilities boost their chances of finding solutions to issues that aren’t rushed or superficial, reducing the risk of additional errors. They also bring a healthy level of scepticism and reflection to tech teams, which reduces hasty mistakes and helps balance overly confident or impulsive team dynamics.

Attention to Detail

Introverts instinctively seek precision. They watch for errors, whether checking lines of code, proofreading legal documents, or reviewing financial models. Their preference for structure, clarity, and thoroughness means they naturally approach tasks with high care. They are often the go-to people for critical reviews, quality assurance, or anything requiring consistency and reliability.

Attention to detail counts in every industry, but in some, introverts’ abilities can make a massive difference.

Thoughtful Communication Capabilities

Many people assume introverts are “bad at communication” simply because they’re usually not always the first to speak up in tech team meetings. But introverts are brilliant communicators. They don’t dominate conversations or speak on impulse, but they listen actively and ask insightful questions, helping drive conversations forward.

Introverts excel at one-on-one conversations, reflective dialogue, and written communication, particularly in remote or asynchronous environments, making them ideal for the age of hybrid work.

Their communication skills make them great leaders because they focus on amplifying their teams rather than “overshadowing” them.

Independent Work Ethic

Self-sufficiency is one of the most powerful traits that introverts bring to the tech workplace. They don’t need constant oversight or social reinforcement to stay motivated—internal goals and personal standards drive them.

From research experts working remotely to scientists who spend a lot of time on independent tasks, introverted employees are great at handling things alone. They’re not just independent; they’re also excellent at avoiding “groupthink” and are more likely to challenge assumptions, which helps create a more diverse workplace.

Strategies for Recruiting and Retaining Introverted Talent

The myths about introverts being shy, unable to thrive in leadership roles, or disconnected from teams are unfounded—and they’re holding tech employers back. Now more than ever, as the market experiences ongoing disruption and change, companies need more than just confidence—they need cognitive diversity.

So, how can companies recruit and retain introverted talent?

Rethink Job Descriptions

Most job ads today still read like calls for social butterflies and multitaskers. That can deter introverts from applying to tech roles they’d be great for. So, rethink your job descriptions. Instead emphasising social requirements or high-energy environments, highlight opportunities for deep work, and strategic thinking.

Replace vague language like “fast-paced team player” with “creative problem solver”. Be explicit about the meaningful impact of the role. Introverts are often motivated by purpose rather than recognition. Describing how the role contributes to a larger mission or what real-world problems it helps solve will help you resonate with more introverted candidates.

Adjusting the Interview Process for Introverts

Traditional interviews, featuring panels, rapid-fire questions, and high-pressure social engagement, naturally disadvantage introverts. Adapting your interview process to accommodate introverts can help you attract a wider range of candidates (and make better hiring decisions).

Start by helping introverted tech candidates prepare. In advance, communicate what each interview stage will involve.

Alternatively, you could ask candidates to record their responses to interview questions to minimise the pressure of a live interaction. If you’re hosting interviews in person, create a sensory-friendly environment designed to avoid overwhelming your candidates.

Additionally, if you’re running a multi-stage interview process, give them breaks between stages so they can relax and reset.

 

Introduce New Skill Assessment Strategies

Speed-based skill tests and competitive group exercises may spotlight confidence when looking for a great tech candidate. But they don’t always highlight competence. Introverts perform better when engaging and thinking deeply without being forced into artificial urgency.

Switch high-pressure skill assessments out for take-home technical challenges or analysis-focused tasks. These will allow your candidates to demonstrate their precision, thoughtfulness, and problem-solving skills.

If you do need to conduct an in-house assessment, remember that one-on-one discussions are often more comfortable for introverts than group presentations. Plus, they give business leaders a chance to really get to know each candidate’s strengths and weaknesses.

Prioritise Effective Onboarding

The first few weeks in a new role are critical – and often overwhelming for introverts. Thoughtful onboarding can be the key to getting your employees job-ready and boosting your chances of retention. Studies show that introvert-friendly onboarding reduces turnover.

Start by creating pre-boarding materials to reduce first-day anxiety. Clear documents outlining processes, team structures, and expectations give new hires a chance to familiarise themselves at their own pace.

Consider using buddy systems to pair introverted new hires with experienced colleagues who can guide them through the company culture. Additionally, ensure you offer self-paced learning modules to drive ongoing development.

Create an Introvert-Friendly Workplace

Unless your introverted employees will be working remotely 24/7, you’ll need to ensure you give them an office environment where they can thrive. Ensure quiet zones are free from distraction, where employees can invest in focus work with minimal noise.

Incorporating natural materials and plants into workspaces also supports mental well-being, particularly for those more sensitive to environmental stimuli. Introverts can adjust their environment (controlling lighting or sound) or move to a more private space when they feel overwhelmed.

Hybrid working models can also be particularly useful for introverts. They allow them to move in and out of the office when necessary, depending on what they need to do each day.

Adjust Performance Evaluation Techniques

Finally, traditional performance measurement strategies often highlight the most outspoken or visible employees.

Use tools that identify and value different working styles. Evaluate outputs, not personalities. Switch to written feedback options and private, one-on-one discussions to give introverts feedback that feels personalised, and supportive.

Additionally, offer preparation time before feedback sessions or reviews. When given space to reflect, introverts often deliver their best insights – respect that process.

The Quiet Strength of Introverted Employees

Organisations that embrace introverted talent are discovering something important: quieter minds can deliver incredible results. Introverted employees can constantly deliver higher-quality work in tech roles, particularly the ones that require precision and independence.

The benefits go beyond output, too. Companies that design introvert-inclusive hiring practices can improve their employer brand, enhance the diversity of their team, and unlock opportunities for faster innovation in the long term.

By valuing introspection, autonomy, and thoughtful contribution, organisations cultivate more psychologically safe, cognitively diverse teams. After all, the most impactful voice in your team isn’t always the loudest – so don’t underestimate the power of introverts.

If you’re looking for help with your recruitment strategy, get in touch by calling James Shenton Managing Partner for Technology on 01580 857179 or send us an email here.

Book a Call with James Shenton