What Valley tech companies are doing to keep engineers in AZ

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Arizona’s high tech sector is on an incline with startup companies to corporations vying for software engineers to build out their products.

According to the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, software and IT industry job growth is projected to increase 25 percent over the next decade, compared to 18 percent nationally, and in greater Phoenix the city has 32 percent more computer science and software engineering professionals than Austin.

With all the expansion of tech companies to Arizona, locally grown SaaS companies are fully aware of the competitive market and are getting creative to keep the talent we have, and attracting talent from other cities. Employers are touting the quality of life, affordability, little to no natural disasters (except for that one earthquake) and offering perks with a sense meaning.

We asked Valley tech companies what they are doing to fill that talent pool.

Axosoft, the agile project management software company, is steering away from the traditional interview format and revolving mound of resumes and asking applicants to interview them.

Axosoft is holding a “Turning the Tables” event* November 24th and inviting software engineers to come on down and interview them, including the CEO. Engineers are encouraged to ask the tough questions of their employees, eat snacks, meet the CEO and see if it’s a good fit.

“We create an environment that encourages humor, voice, innovation and creativity,” Lawdan Shojaee, CEO Axosoft, said.

Hal Halladay, Chief People Officer at Infusionsoft, said, what helps the company find the right people is “hosting and sponsoring dev-focused events and leverage our employee referral program.”

Gregg Scorseby, CEO CampusLogic, said, they reach out to local universities for young talent and “we’re working hard to attract local engineering talent by connecting with the community and using social media and engineering job sites to find candidates.”

While the free coffee, Xbox and ping-pong is awesome, companies are finding that potential employees are also drawn to the company’s mission as well as perks that serve the whole person.

Scorseby said, “We connect engineers to our purpose and mission and create a fun work environment – they get a sense of our culture and values and that goes a long way.”

Infusionsoft has the The Dream Program where a full-time “’Dream Manager’ challenges employees to step out of their comfort zone, see beyond their current reality and accomplish their personal and professional dreams. Employees have done things like develop a new app, publish a book, get a promotion, travel the world and get out of debt to name a few examples,” Halladay said.

For employees with busy schedules and need to get a workout in, Axosoft has a gym on site and offers an average of twelve health classes per week including yoga, cross fit and meditation.

What is your company doing to attract or maintain talent at your company? Send your comments to staffwriter@aztechbeat.com

*Axosoft’s Turning the Table event is on November 24th from 9:00 to 4:00 p.m. at their HQ. Sign up here to interview them for a job.

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