Hiring for IT roles often focuses on technical skills, such as knowing the latest programming language, cloud platform, or cybersecurity tool. While expertise is important, building a team purely around skill sets can leave organizations with gaps in impact. The real differentiator? Aligning your IT team with business goals.
At Market Street Talent, we often see teams hire for technical excellence only to realize later that collaboration or business alignment was missing. To avoid this pitfall, remember that the most successful teams tend to prioritize both from the start.
1. Start With the Business Objectives
Before posting job descriptions, step back to assess the company’s main priorities for the year. Are you scaling a product, improving data insights, or enhancing security? Understanding these will help define roles that truly move the business forward.
2. Define Roles by Impact, Not Just Tasks
Move beyond listing technical requirements and focus on expected outcomes. For instance, instead of “seeking a Java developer,” consider: “We need someone who can accelerate our customer-facing platform rollout and reduce time-to-market.” This ensures each hire drives business success.
3. Build Complementary Teams
Skills matter, but balance matters too. Look at the team as a system: who complements existing strengths, bridges gaps, and collaborates across departments to solve business challenges? A cohesive team aligned with objectives often outperforms a collection of individual experts.
Just as important as technical capability are soft skills—communication, adaptability, and the ability to translate technical concepts into business value. These traits enable IT professionals to work effectively with stakeholders, adapt to change, and drive real outcomes beyond the codebase.
4. Measure Success in Business Terms
When evaluating candidates or team performance, include business metrics alongside technical benchmarks. Faster deployment times, increased system reliability, or improved customer satisfaction can be just as important as the number of lines of code written or tickets closed.
5. Communicate the “Why.”
Every team member should understand how their work connects to the company's goals. This clarity not only improves engagement but also empowers the team to make decisions that support broader objectives.
The Takeaway
Skills build capabilities, but strategy builds impact. By aligning IT roles with business goals (and prioritizing both technical expertise and soft skills) hiring managers can create teams that don’t just complete tasks; they drive measurable success.
Looking to build an IT team that aligns with your business goals?
At Market Street Talent, we partner with organizations to connect them with well-rounded technology professionals who bring both technical expertise and communication skills to make a real impact.
Contact us today to discuss your hiring needs and see how Market Street Talent can help you build a high-impact IT team aligned with your business goals.
