Braving Hiring Challenges in the Ad Tech Industry

The shift to the post-pandemic world happened a bit more gradually than hoped. This shift sparked up an already-frenzied ad tech hiring market which has pushed recruiters to re-evaluate their talent management strategies and approaches.

Over the course of two years, the labour market has experienced a roller coaster ride. First, the rise in unemployment prompted by this unprecedented Covid-19 crisis and then the great resignation in 2021. Covid’s impact has also been felt in the ad tech industry. The already frantic ad tech hiring is seeing a surge in the job openings but supply and demand are so out of proportion that there are more jobs than the candidates in the market.

This can be attributed to the fact that ad tech is a very niche segment and hiring the right talent has become an excruciating task. Way before Covid-19, technology and new job functions have played a disruptive role in shaping the hiring landscape. Digital innovation has brought dynamicity to the way businesses hire talent and companies are focusing on strategising and adjusting their goals to meet the new normal – hybrid and remote working. 

The need for skilled employees and talent diversity has paved the way for the adoption of new technologies and pushed recruiters to re-evaluate their talent management strategies and approaches.

Also read: Rethinking Hiring Strategy and Talent Retention Post-Covid-19 (allthingstalent.org)

To stay ahead of the hiring challenges in the year 2022, the two most important trends that will shape the ad tech hiring landscape are:

1. Adoption of technology: Pivoting to the remote working model has certainly been a challenge for the companies, but remote/hybrid structure is the future of working. A majority of the workforce is now accustomed to the work from home or work from anywhere model. This opens up a whole new bag of opportunities for the companies as they now have access to a diverse talent pool with a vast skill set. Location flexibility is an important factor for candidates these days, lack of a remote/hybrid model may lead to a higher attrition rate. Remote hiring provides a faster turnaround time made easier by scheduling and conducting online interviews, collecting feedback, etc.

Being a tech-first company, at AdPushup we are leveraging the technology to the fullest – from remote hiring and onboarding to virtual campus hiring drives. We recently conducted a day-long massive virtual recruitment drive for the Publisher Development function – our team interviewed over 500 people and we rolled out 30 offers. This achievement was made possible because of technology.

2. Hire for attitude/potential, train for skills: In a fairly new and niche industry like ours, we don’t have many folks who are experienced in this field. We specifically look for people who fit our culture and have the right attitude and then we train them for skills. Some of the values that we look for are intellectual humility, a sense of we than me, teamwork, and a keen interest in solving problems for the publishers and delighting them.

Cultural workforce transformation in 2022

We are in the post-pandemic world now which in reality is 2022 but in spirit, we are already in the future! The changes that were meant to happen in or after 2025 have already happened and the pace of change has picked up at lightning speed. 

“In a fairly new and niche industry like ours, we don’t have many folks who are experienced in this field. We specifically look for people who fit our culture and have the right attitude and then we train them for skills.”

Based on these changes, as an organisation, we are also adopting the new will of the world. The new generation doesn’t want old school traditional command and micromanagement, or just a paycheck but they want holistic growth. That’s why we now see ‘the great resignation’ in full swing even in developing countries. These trends tell us that in order to work with the younger generation, traditional approaches will need to go away. 

Leveraging generational shifts at AdPushup

• People don’t just work for a paycheck, they want a purpose. We give meaningful roles, offer freedom and autonomy to try new things, and fail fast. People join us because they enjoy the role itself.

• People are no longer pursuing job satisfaction, they are pursuing development. We make sure that when an employee joins AdPushup, we build their careers. We focus on their development and growth. We have many employee first policies for self-learning. Employees have a budget they can utilise for any skills they want to learn. We have also partnered with qualified organisational psychologists who regularly take their pulse and help them in personal development through one-on-one coaching.

• People don’t want a manager who fixates on their weaknesses, they want to be known for their strengths. In 2022, we are focused on building a strength-based organisation. We are focusing on building our employees’ innate talents and supporting their individual growth. We also plan to leverage collective intelligence by tapping into all the employees’ strengths and innate qualities so that it’s a win-win for all. This way, employees are more engaged and as a company, we get their best selves. 

Not only this, we are currently in the process of building and defining our culture that will focus on increased autonomy and freedom along with responsibility. The aim is to make a value-based culture so that people are invested in theirs and the organisation’s growth rather than just following orders from the top.

A lot of focus is also on training the managers and leaders on creating psychologically safe spaces so that ideas and mistakes are shared openly and there’s increased creativity and innovation. In a space like AdTech, if we don’t keep innovating, we lose the game. Hence, it becomes pivotal for us to create psychologically safe spaces. 

Also read: This B2B Marketplace Is on a Hiring Spree With Eyes on GCC Markets (allthingstalent.org)

We are also looking at creative ways to engage employees in remote settings. From Fun Fridays to Drinking Dialogues with Directors to having group therapies to deal with existential crises, Covid anxiety, feelings of languishing and dread, etc. are being carried out company-wide with the help of qualified professionals. 

What makes AdPushup a great place to work?

At AdPushup, we follow an “employees first” approach, supporting employees’ pursuits and taking care of their well-being. In 2021, AdPushup was certified as a ‘great place to work’ organisation, assessed on two qualifying criteria – Trust Index and Culture Audit. This recognition is a testament to AdPushup’s vibrant and thriving culture that values competence, transparency, and autonomy. We have taken up special measures to ensure a rewarding and thriving work environment (especially during the pandemic) such as online intensive induction and onboarding, psycho-social support, counselling and mental health care, online fun activities, building a balanced work from home culture, flexibility to employees, buddy program for new joiners, women’s safety measures, training and policies, transparent and factual data-based evaluations, constant feedback mechanism, and proactive HR communications.