Trish Pandya Explains How to Hire Tech Resources While Injecting Humor

Gaining the Technology Leadership Edge: Insights from Trish Pandya

Welcome to Gaining the Technology Leadership Edge, a podcast exploring the latest trends, strategies, and insights in technology leadership. In this episode, we have a special guest, Trish Pandya, a talent acquisition leader and former stand-up comedian and improv actor. Trish has over ten years of experience in the San Francisco startup arena, working for companies that empower minorities and underrepresented communities. She is currently the Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition at Aluxio, an open-source data orchestration software for enterprise companies. Trish is known for her twisted sense of humor and her views on talent acquisition, diversity, and unbiased hiring.

The Challenge of Hiring in the Tech Industry

One of the biggest challenges in hiring in the tech industry, according to Trish, is the prolonged time it takes to fill a position. She explains that this is often due to hiring managers not being clear about what they want and constantly changing their requirements. Trish emphasizes the importance of having a structured hiring process and involving the entire team in the decision-making process. She also highlights the need for candidates to be clear about what they want and to carefully consider the company culture before applying for a position.

“The biggest challenge right now is I’m seeing a lot of jobs that have been open for more than three to five months. And I think there’s two reasons. One is that ultimately it comes down to leadership and the hiring manager who hasn’t figured out what they want. So I’ve seen this over and over again where they have a job open and then they go through the cycle of interviews, get to the final sample size of candidates and they don’t really like them and they haven’t figured out why.” – Trish Pandya

The Pitfalls of Gut Hiring

Trish strongly discourages the use of gut hiring, where hiring managers rely on their instincts to make hiring decisions. She explains that this often leads to hiring people who are exactly like them, which hinders diversity and innovation within the company. Trish believes that it is important to hire people who think differently and bring diverse perspectives to the table. She advocates for a structured interview process that focuses on both technical skills and soft skills, ensuring that candidates are a good fit for the company culture and can contribute to its growth.

“The problem with gut hiring is that people hire somebody who is exactly like them. That’s a really simple answer. So I know a lot of people like, I want to hire somebody. I want to hire a salesperson now with somebody who has an East Coast mentality like me, who’s going to go right? So you want an aggressive East Coaster who’s exactly like you. I’ve also seen like I want to hire somebody I can have a beer with. You’re not hiring your friends. You’re hiring somebody who’s qualified.” – Trish Pandya

The Importance of Diversity and Equity Hiring

Trish is a strong advocate for diversity and equity hiring. She believes that diversity is not just about checking boxes for race and gender, but about hiring people with different backgrounds and perspectives. Trish emphasizes that diversity is essential for the success of a company, as it brings in new ideas and promotes innovation. She encourages companies to actively engage with diversity hiring resources and support diversity groups to attract a diverse pool of candidates. Trish also highlights the financial benefits of diversity hiring, citing examples of companies that have seen significant growth and success after implementing diversity initiatives.

“Diversity hiring is not just hiring for race and gender and checking a box. You want to hire people who have different backgrounds, who think differently from you. And it’s only been good for the business. I experienced it personally, and I’ve seen how it works, and it’s actually like an amazing team when you hire people who are just thinking very differently than you.” – Trish Pandya

The Hiring Process and Candidate Experience

Trish emphasizes the importance of a structured hiring process that provides a positive candidate experience. She recommends having a clear timeline for the hiring process and involving the entire team in the interview process. Trish also advocates for live whiteboarding interviews for technical roles, as they allow candidates to showcase their problem-solving and collaboration skills. She believes that standardized tests are not effective in assessing a candidate’s abilities and can be a turn-off for potential hires. Trish encourages hiring managers to ask targeted questions and provide evidence-based answers to ensure a thorough evaluation of candidates.

“If you’re doing a technical interview, like a software engineering interview, I support doing live whiteboarding with another engineer on the team because they’re going to not be able to answer everything. And so you’re testing them to see if they can collaborate with you. If somebody’s asking a coding question and the interviewer says, I’m not sure about this, can you clarify exactly what you’re asking of me? You know, you can work with this person because they’re asking questions and bouncing ideas off of you.” – Trish Pandya

The Stress and Rewards of Talent Acquisition

Trish acknowledges that talent acquisition can be a stressful job, especially in the fast-paced environment of a startup. However, she finds joy in the opportunity to build and shape teams and influence the growth of a company. Trish believes that having a growth mindset is crucial for success in talent acquisition, as it requires constantly adapting to changing circumstances and finding innovative solutions. She also emphasizes the importance of maintaining a sense of humor and using it to navigate the challenges of the job.

“The stress is insane. That’s why I have a sense of humor. I literally remember breaking down a couple of weeks ago. I’m like, I don’t want to do any of this, but I’m going to do all of this. Let me figure it out. Hold please. And I got back to them at 30 minutes and figured it out. But knowing how to be able to use sense of humor with it is so important because it saved my life.” – Trish Pandya

Conclusion and Future Outlook

In conclusion, Trish Pandya provides valuable insights into the challenges and best practices of talent acquisition in the tech industry. She highlights the importance of a structured hiring process, the pitfalls of gut hiring, and the benefits of diversity and equity hiring. Trish emphasizes the need for companies to actively engage with diversity hiring resources and support diversity groups to attract a diverse pool of candidates. She also encourages hiring managers to provide a positive candidate experience and to focus on evidence-based evaluation during the interview process. Despite the stress of the job, Trish finds fulfillment in shaping teams and contributing to the growth of a company. With her unique blend of humor and expertise, Trish Pandya is a valuable resource for tech executives seeking to gain the technology leadership edge.