PDG Consulting is an up-and-coming enterprise technology consulting leader in M&E, manufacturing, telecom, consumer products, and other industries. The last couple of years, however, haven’t been business as usual in terms of hiring new employees. So my first question would be: what are the unique hiring challenges PDG faces right now?

There’s no doubt COVID generated a huge demand for tech companies during the last couple of years, resulting in a high demand for talent. At PDG, as a technology consulting firm, we are looking for a unique set of skills, both from a development and communication standpoint: we seek people with highly technical backgrounds who also excel in teaming and client engagement.

A key part of our success as a company is our ability to build deep relationships with our clients by identifying their needs and developing strategies that address their pain-points. From this standpoint, it’s important that our team can build those relationships as well as communicate the technical aspects of a project. So I’d say that our unique hiring challenge right now is finding that perfect mix of technical and communication skills.

During the challenging times of the last few years, how are you able to maintain culture while remaining remote?

To put it into context, my career at PDG began three weeks before being faced with the decision to close the office doors to go fully remote as a result of COVID. In my wildest dreams, I would never have expected to have to create a new playbook for engaging with employees. To say it was a daunting task up front is an understatement, but philosophically I knew that engagement was the key to keep our people feeling connected and happy during very uncertain times. By fully leaning into unique remote engagement opportunities, such as virtual game nights, town halls, lunch & learns, happy hours with food deliveries to employee’s homes, employee shout-out recognitions, and other regularly scheduled social on-line events, we were able to keep our people feeling connected to our culture. It was important to remember who we were, and are—our identity as a team.

Engagement at every level of the organization was an important component as well. So, our founding partners reached out to each PDG employee one-on-one during the first couple of months of COVID. This was time consuming but so very worthwhile. I think a lot about transparency because when you provide your employees with open-access to all members of the management team, they feel a sense of belonging and knowing that they are cared about and cherished—and that’s how the PDG community was built. We just tapped into it in a different way.

Now that COVID restrictions are opening up more, I am proud to say that we have emerged as culturally stronger. We could never have done it without online meets and chats. Video and chat just gave us more options to connect, which in turn expanded our reach within the PDG family. We now have more communication tools and ways of connecting, and the feedback is that employees feel more connected than ever as a result. COVID challenged us in so many ways, while forcing us to evolve to a new level of communication. We have reached a point now where it’s second-nature, and are totally comfortable—even thriving—engaging remotely.

Our most significant learning was that we need to continue to connect, communicate with, and invest in our people and culture as these are all the top reasons we’re doing so well.

You consistently seem to recruit with a focus on hiring for several roles. Meanwhile, you continue to focus on building a diverse and inclusive workplace. Why is this a key to our future success?

There’s enough data out there that shows diversity in race, ethnicity, and backgrounds in the workplace equals success at all levels. From a consulting perspective, our job is to go into the who’s who of clientele and provide them with better business solutions. By having a diverse team, we are able to come up with better, more innovative solutions. Better, more innovative ideas is what propels companies forward, and our clients have seen the results. That’s why we will continue to grow with diversity at the forefront.

Could you share a few key learnings from your experience in building a diverse and inclusive work culture so far?

1. You should always be open and have frank discussions with employees.
2. When employees look to their left and right, they should feel that they belong and are part of the culture and community of the company.
3. D&I is something that both employees, candidates, and clients value a lot.
4. D&I is definitely a competitive advantage.
5. Don’t under-estimate the importance of training and on-boarding new hires. First introductions are critical and have a huge impact on an employee’s sense of belonging—which is a key indicator of future happiness!
6. Companies should participate and listen to their employees. It’s all about collaboration!
7. Encourage your people to ask questions because that’s where the best ideas are generated. Be open and honest, and embrace challenges as opportunities to continue to grow and evolve the culture of the company.

What is your usual method in finding the right candidates to hire in the first place? Do you publish a job offer and just wait, or hire candidates using headhunters?

We use a combination of direct and sourced employee hiring practices. We also actively participate in college campus recruitments and strongly believe in the benefits and talent that new graduates bring. Otherwise, our strongest candidates are people who currently work for other companies, but who may be looking for a change in their environment or more learning and growth opportunities in their careers. What we offer is just that: opportunities for learning, career and skills growth, and a great company culture. We are selective and our recruiters know it. We are not willing to compromise on the quality of our candidates.

What advice would you give to people looking to get hired in a fast-growing tech company like PDG?

1. I believe good people hangout with good people, and that’s why we rely heavily on our employer referral program. So get to know one of our employees today…and network in the industry.
2. If you lack relevant experience, community involvement is something we look for at PDG. It reflects character and also resonates with who we are as an organization. Our PDGiving matching donation program incentivizes our employees to be active in our community. This means a lot to us, as giving back is an important part of who we are culturally.
3. Know where to look. For example, platforms like LinkedIn and Glassdoor are great places if you are looking for a job with a growth company.
4. Research company culture before applying, and look for companies whose values match yours.
5. Interviews are a 2-way street so don’t underestimate the importance of being prepared and asking questions during an interview with prospective employers.

Thank you very much for your time T! And lastly, we asked T a few rapid-fire questions…