For many recruiters, including tech recruiters, LinkedIn is their only or at least dominant source of hire. But there are tech recruiters who apply creative approaches to sourcing with which they are able to tap into talent sources that are relatively untapped. Leaving them with the advantage of a lot less competition and finding candidates they would never have found on LinkedIn.

This blog lists the best sources of talent for tech recruiters other than the conventional platforms.

Platforms with rich candidate information

These platforms provide profiles rich of candidate information and data about activity on the platform in terms of blogs, code repositories or engagement with content.

Overview 📜

• GitHub
• Stack Overflow
• Reddit
• HackerRank
• AngelList
• Xing
• Kaggle
• Medium
• Tumblr
• ResearchGate
• GitLab
• Coderwall
• Dev.to
• StackShare
  

Details per platform 👇👇👇

GitHub

GitHub is the platform with the most active engineering users, beating LinkedIn and any other platform. With GitHub engineers can deposit code repositories and collaborate on their (open source) code. The activity of the engineers creates valuable information and keywords based on the languages and frameworks they work with.

Key facts

• Engineers
• 65 million users
• Publishing of code repositories including tech tags

🔎 How to search talent on GitHub

Stack Overflow

Stack Overflow is a question and answer (Q&A) forum for engineers. With 14 million developers on the platform that ask and answer questions around their most relevant technology themes Stack Overflow is a rich source of information on the latest technology skills of tech talent.

Key facts

• Engineers
• 18 million users
• Up to date tech skills data based on tech Q&A activity

🔎 How to search talent on Stack Overflow‍‍‍

Reddit

Reddit is one of the biggest online communities existing today with 330 million users. Redditors engage in comical, but also professional discussions. When understood, it provides a good opportunity for sourcing talent.

Key facts

• Variety of profiles
• 330 million users
• In depth informal discussions on a variety of topics

🔎 How to search talent on Reddit‍

AngelList

AngelList is a platform where startup and scaleup talent present themselves, connect, share knowledge and get informed about the startup world. AngelList has various platforms. Some of them are open like the original AngelList platform and others like AngelList Source require login and paid subscription.

Key facts

• Startup talent
• 2.5 million users
• Focussed on people who work or want to work in the startup world

🔎 How to source talent on AngelList‍

XING

Xing is the leading professional network site in Germany and it is gaining more users in other countries as well. The assumption is that LinkedIn is used globally as the primary professional network but that's not true for Germany. Also in Austria and Switzerland Xing is the go to professional network.

Key facts

• Variety of profiles
• 17 million users
• Focussed on German, Austrian and Swiss talent, but also other talent available

🔎 How to search talent on XING‍