Talent Acquisition in Web3: the Challenges Ahead

As Web3 grows, we need an appropriate pool of talent to progress. This is easier said than done—click here to see why.

The Web3 space is growing and evolving quickly. That makes the already tricky challenge of acquiring talent even harder. Recruiters have to adapt to the quirks of Web3 to get the best results.

This is easier said than done, though. While recruiting in Web3 has the same broad strokes as its traditional counterpart, it also comes with a particular set of challenges for recruiters.

Here is everything you need to know about Web3 talent acquisition, both good and bad.

Web3 Recruitment: the Biggest Problems

Below is a rundown of the most common hurdles Web3 recruiters face.

1. Web3 is a rapidly evolving industry, with new, not-yet-understood technologies hitting the market regularly. As such, it’s a hassle for companies to keep tabs on the best and latest trends to inform their hiring decisions.
2. The candidate pool is currently too small to match Web3’s growth. This field is still in its infancy, so there aren’t many candidates with the right skillset out there. This leads to stiff competition among companies looking to hire.
3. Non-developer talent is equally scarce, if not even more so. Despite its engineer-focused nature, Web3 still needs designers, accountants, and advertisers. People with the right skills and a working knowledge of crypto and blockchain are hardly a dime a dozen, so creating a diverse Web3 team is exceedingly difficult.
4. As demand for Web3 solutions grows, talent acquisition experts find themselves in a big-fish-small-pond situation. Even after snagging a candidate, the danger of another company poaching them remains. As such, employers need to keep salaries and working conditions very competitive.
5. In Web3 communities, working on more than one project is commonplace. As such, odds are your future employee won’t be completely focused on your project. This needn’t be a serious issue if you accurately convey to them the workload they’re expected to take on, but keep in mind that few Web3 devs are totally devoted to a single gig.
6. Assessing candidate skill is hard due to the aforementioned lack of Web3 experts. Not a lot of companies will have the resources to accurately gauge a candidate’s capabilities. Therefore, the risk of hiring someone who isn’t as qualified for their position is higher.

Best Advice for How to Hire Web3 Developers and Other Staff

To best meet the challenges of Web3 recruitment, companies need to adopt a more “decentralized” mindset. Community, engagement, and flexibility will be the pillars of your methodology. Here are the best actionable tips for crypto and blockchain talent recruitment.

Siphon Talent From Other Social Media and Messaging Platforms

Most recruiters are used to finding talent on LinkedIn, AngelList, and similar platforms. However, Web3 talent tends to meet in other spaces. Places like Discord, Telegram, Minds, and Twitter are more likely to have the candidates that suit your needs. You’ll need to widen your social media and messaging net to catch the best talent.

Be Seen at Web3 Events

Conferences and conventions are a huge part of Web3. Some of the greatest minds in the field attend and pick each other’s brains on topics like blockchain, AI, and the metaverse. For that reason, they’re a great opportunity to network and raise brand awareness. Attending or organizing conferences will connect you with the top talent in the Web3 field.

Engage the Community

Engagement is currency in Web3, and no project in the sphere succeeds without the community’s input. To make the most of that fact, businesses in Web3 should keep engagement high by organizing events to prompt input from the community. 

Lectures, workshops, mentorship programs, and conferences will likely pull in the right crowd. Alternatively, consider hosting competitions like coding contests, bug bounties, or virtual hackathons. Then, scout out the winners for potential hiring.

Create Referral Programs

Since they’re in a relatively close-knit community, Web3 experts tend to know other candidates of a similar skill level. So, it would be smart to create a referral incentive for your Web3 employees to bring in other qualified talent.

Offer Remote Work and Flexible Hours

Remote and flexible hour options are fairly popular in general, but the decentralized Web3 world has embraced them more than most. Companies that offer flexible work from home are much more likely to attract Web3 devs.

Prepare for the Web3 Future of Work

Work in Web3 will focus more on community collaboration, transparency, and independence from the workplace. Remote work, flexible hours, decentralization, Tokenized employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), transparent resumes—these ideas will be par for the course. Meeting these expectations will ensure you get the cream of the crop from Web3. 

To get a better understanding of Web3 and its experts, check out the TMRW Belgrade 2023 Conference. This sensational event is the confluence of the biggest industry leaders and spearheading enterprises involved in crypto, blockchain, AI, and the metaverse. Connect with brilliant minds in workshops and exclusive networking events. Make today’s dreams tomorrow’s reality at TMRW Belgrade 2023!