How to source and shortlist {role_name}

Where can you find qualified {role_name}?

  • Professional network : Leverage your professional network and reach out to former colleagues, industry peers, and tech community members to ask for referrals.
  • Educational Institutions:
    • Top Engineering Schools: Partner with top engineering schools that offer executive education or advanced degrees in engineering management. Target programs that have strong alumni networks in engineering leadership.
    • Industry-Specific Conferences and Alumni Networks: Engage with alumni networks from institutions known for producing engineering leaders, such as MIT, Stanford, or IITs in India.
  • Company Career Pages:
    • Your Company Website: Make sure your company’s career page is optimized for search engines and highlights the strategic role and impact of the Director of Engineering. Include success stories or testimonials from current engineering leaders.
  • Role-Specific Job Boards:
    • Engineering.com: A niche job board focused on engineering roles, including leadership positions.
    • TheLadders: Targeted at high-earning professionals, TheLadders is ideal for sourcing senior-level engineering candidates.
  • Geography-Specific Job Boards:
    • United States:
      • Indeed: A broad platform that can attract a wide range of engineering leaders.
      • Built In: Focuses on tech roles, making it ideal for engineering positions.
    • India:
      • Naukri: A leading job portal in India for finding experienced engineering professionals.
      • Cutshort: Focused on tech jobs, including senior engineering roles.
    • UAE & KSA:
      • Bayt: A popular platform in the Middle East for senior-level professionals.
      • GulfTalent: Targeted at executives and leaders in the Gulf region.
      • Whitecarrot
    • Remote Positions:
      • We Work Remotely: A leading platform for remote roles, suitable for senior engineering positions.
      • Remote OK: Another popular site for sourcing remote engineering leaders.

What are the best practices for headhunting {role_name}?

  • Leverage Your Network: Use your professional network to get referrals and recommendations. Directors of Engineering are often found through industry connections, so tapping into your network can yield high-quality candidates.
  • Target Passive Candidates: Many potential candidates may not be actively seeking new roles. Reach out to passive candidates by highlighting the unique challenges and opportunities your company offers, particularly in driving engineering strategy and innovation.
  • Attend Industry Events: Participate in or sponsor industry conferences, webinars, and meetups where engineering leaders are likely to attend. These events provide direct access to potential candidates and allow you to showcase your company.
  • Personalize Your Approach: When reaching out to potential candidates, personalize your communication. Reference their specific achievements and how those align with the challenges your organization is facing.

"Find Talent Quickly" – Leverage Headhunting and Referrals

How to shortlist candidates?

Once you have started to get applications from applicants, a thorough screening process and shortlisting of prospects will help you make the most of your time spent with the most qualified ones. 

Automated shortlisting tools :

Automated screening quickly filters out unqualified candidates, saving time for manual review. This allows the manual process to focus on the most promising candidates, ensuring the best ones are considered for further evaluation.

Screening questions to auto-shortlist based on predefined criteria

like qualifications, location, experience, and skills. Either use job board or use an ATS such as whitecarrot. Here are some questions for {role_name}

  • How many years of experience do you have in engineering leadership roles (e.g., Engineering Manager, Director of Engineering)?
    • Auto-Reject Criteria: Less than 7 years of experience.
  • How many years of experience do you have in managing cross-functional engineering teams?
    • Auto-Reject Criteria: Less than 5 years of experience.
  • Are you located within [specified location] or willing to relocate/work remotely?
    • Auto-Reject Criteria: Not willing to relocate or work remotely if required.

Skill based question to auto shortlist candidate

Analyze the skill test data to automatically shortlist top-performing applicants. (recommended screening test time - 15 minutes). Here are some skill test questions for {role_name}

Engineering Management

Assessing the candidate's ability to manage engineering teams and projects.

  • What is the primary goal of engineering management?
    • a) Maximizing team productivity
    • b) Aligning engineering efforts with business objectives (Correct Answer)
    • c) Reducing project costs
    • d) Increasing team size
  • Which method is most effective for managing a large engineering project with multiple teams?
    • a) Waterfall
    • b) Agile (Correct Answer)
    • c) Lean
    • d) Six Sigma
  • What is a key responsibility of an engineering manager during project planning?
    • a) Writing code
    • b) Budget allocation and resource management (Correct Answer)
    • c) Client communication
    • d) Product design

Strategic Planning

Evaluating the candidate's ability to plan and execute engineering strategies.

  • What is the first step in creating a strategic engineering plan?
    • a) Identifying team roles
    • b) Analyzing current capabilities and market needs (Correct Answer)
    • c) Allocating resources
    • d) Setting a project deadline
  • Which tool is commonly used in strategic planning for engineering?
    • a) SWOT Analysis (Correct Answer)
    • b) Gantt Chart
    • c) Root Cause Analysis
    • d) Kanban Board
  • How often should strategic engineering plans be reviewed and adjusted?
    • a) Annually
    • b) Quarterly (Correct Answer)
    • c) Monthly
    • d) At the end of each project

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Testing the candidate's ability to collaborate effectively across different departments.

  • What is the most important factor in successful cross-functional collaboration?
    • a) Clear communication (Correct Answer)
    • b) Individual performance
    • c) Time management
    • d) Budget control
  • How should conflicts be handled in cross-functional teams?
    • a) By escalating to upper management immediately
    • b) By facilitating open discussions to find a mutual solution (Correct Answer)
    • c) By ignoring them until they resolve themselves
    • d) By assigning blame to one department
  • What role does a Director of Engineering play in cross-functional projects?
    • a) Approving budgets
    • b) Mediating conflicts and ensuring alignment between teams (Correct Answer)
    • c) Designing product features
    • d) Managing marketing strategies

Note - Auto reject candidates if scores less than 70% in this section

One way video interview

Recruitment Bullet

Use tools like hirevue, whitecarrot.io to ask candidates pre-recorded questions about their experience and skills.

Recruitment Bullet

Use sample question given in scorecard.

Collect other information 

Recruitment Bullet

Collect data from shortlisted candidates, such as salary expectations and visa status.

"Shortlist in Seconds" – Use our CV scoring feature to get top candidate recommendation

Manual candidate profile shortlisting:

Recruitment Bullet

Thoroughly review the CVs of the top scoring candidates from the automated process

Recruitment Bullet

Look for evidence of the required skills, experience, and achievements

Recruitment Bullet

Review the candidate’s portfolio or GitHub repositories to see examples of their work.

Schedule recruiter calls with the candidate

Recruitment Bullet

Use a tool like calendly or whitecarrot to allow candidates to self-schedule calls based on your availability

Recruitment Bullet

Confirm the call details (date, time, dial-in info) with the candidate via email

What questions to ask in the recruiter phone screen?

Recruitment Bullet

 Use scorecard for rating candidates for recruiter

Recruitment Bullet

Sample scorecard : 

Criteria Rating (1-5) Comments
Leadership Skills
Strategic Thinking
Cultural Fit
Technical Expertise
Problem-Solving Ability
Communication Skills
Recruitment Bullet

Check for consistency in responses from the candidates.

Recruitment Bullet

Record such scorecards in an ATS like whitecarrot or use google doc