Credit unions are more reliant on technology than ever before, serving members that seek on-demand access through a variety of platforms. Therefore, financial services organizations face stiff competition when hiring top information technology (IT) talent.

Combine that with a shortage of unemployed IT professionals, the new remote work environment, and inflation, and it becomes difficult to find and retain top IT talent.

How can credit unions stand out in this competitive landscape?

A CUNA Technology Council white paper found seven strategic solutions to challenges in IT hiring:

1. Hire and retain as a team but focus on each candidate and employee as an individual. Understand what’s important to candidates and tailor incentives to attract them.

2. Invest like never before in the talent that matters to success. Pay top of market, or over top-of-market, for positions critical to your organization, and support that team with managed services.

Some technology leaders recommend retaining top staff members, even if it means investing more money in a smaller team. Paying top dollar to valued staff typically results in strong output from those employees.

3. Investigate whether the real skill gaps may be adjacent to IT. Project management, for example, is absolutely critical.

4. Think about doing the unthinkable. This includes partnering with headhunting firms, marketing IT positions, pursuing people who aren’t looking for new roles, and providing relocation packages for people folks who bring a special skill set.

5. Re-evaluate your roles. Understand how roles shift, how employees evolve, and how leadership’s vision accounts for change.

6. Look beyond skills. You can develop and train people on core skills and technologies. Competencies are more a part of who someone is and how that person operates.

7. Make professional growth visible and tangible. Ensure that everyone understands their opportunities for career evolution and development.