Hiring skilled engineers is crucial for fast-growing tech companies, yet hiring managers often waste time interviewing unqualified candidates. Without a structured approach, companies risk hiring the wrong people or losing valuable engineering hours to ineffective interviews.
The Cost of Bad Hiring Decisions
Let’s say a mid-level engineer earns around $150,000 base salary per year. If an early-stage software company avoids hiring ten underperforming engineers that would turnover, it could save over $1.5 million. This estimate does not even include the savings from avoiding turnover costs. Per Gallup (2019), the cost of replacing an individual employee can range from one-half to two times the employee’s annual salary — and that’s a conservative estimate.
The Solution? Structured Interviews
Recruiters don’t need to be engineers to add value, but they must ask the right questions. Structured interviews help:
- Filter out unqualified candidates early
- Reduce bias and improve hiring decisions
- Save engineering teams hundreds of hours
What Makes an Interview Structured?
A structured interview follows clear, research-backed guidelines, such as:
- Asking the same job-relevant questions to every candidate
- Using past behavior questions to assess problem-solving and communication
- Implementing rating scales for objective decision-making
What to Focus On When Hiring Engineers
The best engineers demonstrate:
🚀 Proactive Learning – Staying ahead of new technologies
🧠 Complex Problem-Solving – Breaking down technical challenges
💬 Effective Communication – Collaborating across teams
Final Thoughts
Structured interviews are a game-changer for early-stage companies.
By improving the way we assess candidates, we can save time, reduce hiring mistakes, and build stronger, more effective engineering teams.
Want to dive deeper?
Read the full article here: Here We Grow Again
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