Finding the right role takes more than applying online. Learn how to position yourself, where to look, and what to watch out for.
Understanding how recruiters work gives you a significant advantage. Most IT roles are not filled through job board applications alone. Here is what actually happens on the other side of the hiring process:
Over 90% of IT recruiters use LinkedIn as their first stop. They search by job title, skills, location, and keywords. If your profile is not optimized, you are invisible to the people who fill the most desirable roles.
Staffing firms maintain databases of candidates they have worked with before. When a new role opens, recruiters search their own systems first. This is why building a relationship with a recruiter pays off long before you are actively looking.
Recruiters use advanced search techniques to find candidates across LinkedIn, GitHub, Stack Overflow, and job boards. They search for specific technology combinations, certifications, and experience levels. The more specific and accurate your profiles are, the more likely you are to appear in these searches.
Employee referrals remain the highest-quality source of candidates. If you know someone at a company you want to work for, a warm introduction is worth more than a hundred cold applications.
Your LinkedIn profile is often the first impression a recruiter has of you. Here is how to make it work in your favor:
Profiles with photos get 21x more views. Use a clear headshot with good lighting and a neutral background. Business casual works well for IT professionals.
Do not just list your current title. Include your specialty and key technologies: "Senior Cloud Engineer | AWS & Azure | Kubernetes | Infrastructure as Code" gets far more recruiter clicks.
Write 3-5 sentences about what you do, what you specialize in, and what you are looking for. Include relevant keywords naturally. This section is fully searchable.
Add up to 50 skills and prioritize the ones most relevant to your target roles. Get endorsements from colleagues. Recruiters filter by skills constantly.
Turn on "Open to Opportunities" in your settings. You can make this visible only to recruiters, not your current employer. This dramatically increases inbound messages.
Engage with content in your field. Share articles, comment thoughtfully on posts, and publish your own insights. Active profiles rank higher in LinkedIn search results.
Many IT professionals have never worked with a staffing agency, or they have had a mediocre experience and written off the entire industry. Here is what to expect when you work with a reputable firm:
A typical engagement with a staffing agency looks like this: initial phone screen (15-30 minutes), skills assessment, resume review and optimization, submission to matching roles, interview coordination, offer negotiation, and onboarding support. The best agencies stay in touch throughout your assignment and beyond.
Not every job posting is what it seems. Learning to spot warning signs saves you time and protects you from bad situations.
If the posting is full of buzzwords but never explains what you will actually do day-to-day, the company may not know what they need. You will likely end up doing everything.
"10 years of experience in Kubernetes" when the technology is newer than that. Wish-list postings signal a company that does not understand the role or is fishing for unicorns at below-market rates.
In many states, salary transparency is now required by law. Companies that still refuse to share ranges may be underpaying or planning to lowball you after multiple interview rounds.
This phrase sometimes means "we are understaffed and you will work long hours." Ask about team size, on-call expectations, and work-life balance during the interview.
If you see the same role posted every few weeks, it could mean high turnover, unrealistic expectations, or an offer process that falls apart repeatedly.
A 6-round interview process for a mid-level developer role signals poor internal alignment. Companies that respect your time usually make decisions in 2-3 rounds.
When dozens of qualified candidates apply for the same role, the differentiators are not always technical. Here is what sets top candidates apart:
Studies consistently show that 70-80% of jobs are filled through networking, not public applications. Attend meetups, join Slack communities in your tech stack, contribute to open source, and stay in touch with former colleagues. Your next role is more likely to come from a conversation than a job board.
Both contract and permanent roles have real advantages depending on your career stage, financial goals, and lifestyle preferences. Here is an honest comparison:
Pros: Higher hourly rates (often 20-40% more than equivalent salary), diverse experience across companies and industries, flexibility to take breaks between assignments, faster hiring process, exposure to different tech stacks and teams.
Pros: Stability and predictable income, employer-paid benefits (health, 401k match, PTO), career progression within a single organization, deeper relationships and institutional knowledge, equity and bonus potential.
You will need to manage your own benefits, taxes (if 1099), and retirement savings. Gaps between contracts can be stressful. Some companies treat contractors as second-class citizens with limited access and no team inclusion.
Lower take-home pay compared to contract rates. Less flexibility to change projects or environments. Layoff risk during downturns. Salary negotiations can be harder once you are already employed at a company.
Many of our placements start as contract-to-hire. This gives both you and the employer a trial period. You get to evaluate the company culture, team dynamics, and actual day-to-day work before making a long-term commitment. The employer gets to see your work quality and cultural fit. If both sides are happy, conversion to permanent typically happens at the 3-6 month mark.
Our recruiters specialize in IT placements and have access to roles you will not find on job boards. Let us help.