Archives September 2021

By 2025, Gen Z will account for about 27% of the workforce. Now is the time to start attracting Gen Z talent to your company. These guidelines provide a helpful place to start.

Flexible Schedules

Research shows that Gen Z workers value flexibility in their work schedules.

Allowing more flexibility in scheduling can broaden your applicant pool and make your business more appealing to younger candidates. Today’s gig economy has highly flexible job opportunities, which will be competing for Gen Z talent.

Educational Assistance

College tuitions are continuing to rise. The average college-educated Gen Z stands to bear a hefty amount of debt upon graduation. Providing an educational assistance program is one way your company can bring in more Gen Z employees.

Tuition reimbursement is most beneficial to workers who haven’t finished school or want to go back. By offering this benefit, your company agrees to pay for a portion of their higher education costs.

Another option is student loan repayment assistance, which allows your business to cover a fixed amount of a worker’s student loan payments each month.

Prioritizing Diversity

Gen Z is one of the most racially and ethnically diverse generations. Gen Z’s entrance into the workforce will push many companies to introduce new DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives.

Centering diversity in your hiring process, training, and workplace culture is a worthwhile goal on its own, and if successful, it will allow your business to attract a higher volume of job candidates.

Comprehensive Benefits

To attract talented Gen Z workers, you may need to overhaul your employee benefits.

One 2019 study by Yello shows that medical insurance is the #1 benefit that Gen Z values in a job, closely followed by vacation and paid time off.

Especially in today’s competitive hiring market, offering a well-rounded benefits package can be the deciding factor for adding Gen Z talent to your staff.

Mental Health Awareness

It shouldn’t be a surprise that Gen Z is actively concerned with issues of mental health. A 2020 study by the CDC found that about 63% of adults aged 18-24 experience depression or anxiety.

Unlike in past generations, today’s young adults also tend to be open about struggles with mental health.

Prioritizing mental health in your company’s health coverage, sick leave policy, and employee wellness programming is a great idea. This will provide a more welcoming environment for Gen Z professionals.

Recruit IT Staff with ABBTECH

One of the most convenient ways to attract qualified Gen Z workers is through ABBTECH’s staff augmentation services.

ABBTECH is a tech staffing and recruitment agency that recruits IT talent for placement in your workforce. Contact ABBTECH today and locate temporary workers to fill open IT positions.

When companies recruit IT staff, they’re not just looking for people who check off the boxes on the list of required technical skills. The qualities of the best IT professionals are well-rounded individuals with key skills in communication, collaboration, and problem-solving.

The below qualities are what set apart the top IT professionals from the rest of the crowd.

Wide Net of Technical Knowledge

Besides the required set of knowledge for their job, an IT professional benefits from a great knowledge of related technologies.

Having an interest in web and mobile app development may not directly impact a career in network administration. But this interest does contribute to your general understanding of computer science and can give you valuable perspective in your role.

Always Curious

Those who are dedicated to learning, growing, and staying curious make the most talented IT professionals.

When facing an obstacle, the best IT professionals are eager to identify the underlying issue and recommend a complete solution rather than settling for a quick, incomplete fix.

Creative Thinker

A creative approach to troubleshooting and problem-solving is one of the most valuable skills an IT worker can bring to the table.

IT workers have to deal with the day-to-day workings of complex information systems. This means they often have to think outside the box and try new approaches until they find something that works.

Strong Communicator

It may be believed that IT personnel are not required to communicate often in their daily work. In reality, communication skills are essential for success in the IT industry.

You need to be able to talk about technical topics with colleagues. You will also need to translate those issues into more accessible language for non-tech-savvy coworkers and customers.

Teamwork Abilities

Jobs in IT often require individuals to collaborate with others in a team environment. Whether you’re a helpdesk technician or a QA analyst, you’ll likely be called upon to work with others on a project.

Willing to Ask for Help

In many IT jobs, a refusal to seek help can lead to huge structural problems or security issues.

An IT worker who understands the importance of their tasks will ask for help rather than put the well-being of their company at risk.

Find Open IT Positions with ABBTECH

Submit your resume to ABBTECH to start connecting with temporary work. There are opportunities in small businesses, government agencies, startups, and Fortune 500 corporations. ABBTECH is an IT staffing agency that matches you with promising contract and long-term tech jobs. Once you get in touch, we’ll work with you to find the right position for your skills and talents.

Updating the company handbook may be the last thing on your mind in a post-pandemic world. However, it’s a task you shouldn’t overlook. Below are 3 things to add to your handbook.

The changes brought about by COVID-19 have necessitated new and improved policies for many companies. Adding the following items to your handbook will help your company stay up-to-date in today’s changed work environment.

Add a Remote Work Policy to your Handbook

Remote work is becoming commonplace. Many employees are seeking the opportunity to work from home on a part-time or full-time basis. This is 1 of 3 things to add to your handbook. A remote work policy can help your company maintain consistency when fielding these requests.

You should designate the terms under which employees can work remotely, including the process for seeking approval. It may also be helpful to tie in information about how relocating will (or won’t) affect your pay and benefits as a remote worker.

The policy can be as loose or strict as you want it to be. What’s essential is that it can be applied fairly across the company.

Add Security Standards to your handbook

If your company is sticking to a remote or hybrid work model for the foreseeable future, it’s a good idea to add new security standards. This is another of 3 things to add to your handbook.

These may include setting restrictions on the devices that can be used for work-related communications, requiring employees to use VPNs, and mandating that all remote work take place through secure networks.

Establishing work-from-home security protocols will help prevent security breaches and encourage employees to stay vigilant about protecting company data when they are physically outside of the office.

Add Disaster Preparation to your handbook

The COVID-19 pandemic required workplaces in all sectors to make sweeping changes overnight. With little time to strategize in advance, businesses had to move their operations online and transition to a remote work model.

Companies can stay prepared for future upheavals by developing a disaster response plan for inclusion in their company handbooks. This is the last of 3 things to add to your handbook.

This plan can address scenarios such as natural disasters, power outages, emergency evacuations, and other situations that call for immediate changes to business operations.

Acquire Top IT Talent with ABBTECH

Struggling to find and hire talented workers in today’s competitive markets? With ABBTECH on your side, you can fill open IT positions with qualified candidates who align with your company’s values.

ABBTECH’s strategic staffing solutions allow your company to grow by recruiting and hiring IT talent. Reach out today and discover what ABBTECH can do for you.

Follow these tips to negotiate and improve your chances of turning your next offer into your dream job.

Show Gratitude

First things first: make it clear that you are grateful for the job offer.

Although you should hold back from formally accepting until you’ve finished the negotiation process, it’s good practice to express your thanks for the opportunity right away.

Be Confident (Not Confrontational)

Project confidence with your language and actions during negotiations. Instead of beating around the bush, be direct in your requests and honest about the kind of job you want.

With that in mind, it’s also important to make a positive impression on the hiring manager. Throughout negotiations, you should be friendly and approachable. Treat the negotiation as an open dialogue, not an argument.

For this reason, it’s best to keep negotiations limited to in-person or phone conversations. Email and other written communication can make it difficult to convey tone. You may come across as demanding rather than determined.

Set Priorities

Once you decide to negotiate an offer, it’s critical that you set some priorities.

It’s rare that employers give candidates everything they want in a counteroffer. You can stay prepared for pushback by deciding what aspects matter the most to you. That may be a higher salary, better perks and benefits, specific working hours, or something else.

Understand Their Limits

Negotiations are a two-way street. In order to approach the employer with a reasonable counteroffer, you need to understand what they are (and aren’t) capable of delivering.

If you’re discussing an offer with a startup or small business, you will not have as much room to bargain as you would with a large corporation that has more resources.

On a similar note, federal government jobs and many university positions come with a set pay grade. While you can negotiate within the set range, there is a ceiling to how much you can request in compensation.

Familiarizing yourself with these limitations in advance will help you during discussions about salary, benefits, work environment, and the terms of employment.

Quantify Your Value

To make a case for receiving a higher salary or more extensive benefits, you need to demonstrate the worth you’ll provide to the company.

If possible, you should pull information from past jobs, including salary data, performance reviews, and other metrics that indicate your value as an employee.

Start Your Job Search with ABBTECH

Want to make your job search easier? Contact with ABBTECH and start matching with the best IT job opportunities in businesses and organizations of all sizes.

A tech staffing firm based in Sterling, VA with over 30 years of experience, ABBTECH helps talented IT professionals connect with jobs across the United States. Visit our Career Portal to find your next position today.