Talando

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Marketing manager of a software company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Out company provides with accurate database for recruiters and business developers

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Talando to accomplish?

The objective was to recruit and onboard skilled software developers for backend (BE) with proficiency in Java and frontend (FE) development with expertise in Angular. In addition to these roles, there was also a significant emphasis on bolstering our team with qualified Quality Assurance (QA) professionals to ensure the delivery of optimal software solutions.

SOLUTION

How did you find Talando?

• Online Search
• Referral
• Other

Why did you select Talando over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Talando were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

The Talando recruitment team played a pivotal role in establishing our core team from the ground up. Not only did they source and interview the candidates, but they also presented us with individuals of exceptional caliber, complemented by comprehensive summaries of their respective experiences. 

Additionally, they provided weekly reports on the recruitment process, which proved invaluable in helping us gauge the timeline for closing each position they were working on. Throughout every phase of the recruitment process, they maintained consistent communication with each prospective hire. Beyond just recruitment, Talando also facilitated a seamless onboarding process and offered valuable analytics on the prevailing market dynamics.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

With the assistance of the Talando team, we successfully hired a team of 8 developers and met all of our hiring needs for our IT department. This crucial partnership not only strengthened our technical capacity but also enabled us to release the product to the public in a timely manner.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

With the unwavering dedication of three key representatives from the Talando team — a Business Developer, Recruiter, and Researcher — our collaboration was fluid and well-coordinated. Our communication channels were always open, marked by weekly sync-up calls to ensure our efforts were perfectly aligned. Moreover, we had an additional group chat for swift queries and gentle reminders from their end regarding upcoming interviews.

Their detailed recruitment reports were not only insightful but instrumental in shedding light on the trajectory and intricacies of our recruitment drive. Their responsiveness and attentiveness to our questions and concerns were nothing short of exemplary. They displayed consistent professionalism, arriving fully prepared for each of our meetings. Thanks to their meticulous work ethic and efficiency, we met and fulfilled all hiring requisites for our IT department promptly.

What was your primary form of communication with Talando?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Talando differentiates itself from competitors through: 

• Precision in Recruitment: They adeptly address business needs with timely and precise talent acquisition. Trustworthiness: Their transparency and honesty are evident in every interaction, fostering mutual respect. 
• Long-term Impact: Talando focuses on transformative, lasting results rather than quick fixes. 
• Consistent Excellence: They maintain high-quality results across all projects, ensuring dependable outcomes. 
• Adaptive Approach: Each project refines their perspective, helping uncover new opportunities for scalability. 
• Global Reach: They operate seamlessly across borders, undeterred by cultural differences. In essence, Talando's unwavering commitment to these principles positions them as a premier choice in recruitment.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Talando could have done differently?

No, they delivered outstanding work.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Wiliot Cloud and IoT Pixels have the brains and self-awareness to tell you where your things are, who’s using them, the temperature around them, when they need replenishing, and many more insights.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CNA International IT?

We were looking for a stable and professional recruitment agency with expertise in IoT to close multiple positions for our product. With the CNA IT, we have been staying for a long time already, always having successful closures with their help.

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

The deciding factor was their ability to close non-standard positions (we saw that in feedback) with non-common expertise. They were very professional in delivering their value regarding the candidates, who will fit the most our team culturally and mentally, not only of their hard skills. Also, we were very strict on deadlines with no possibility to close these positions on our own

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

We were sharing our positions, not at the same moment but step by step. First of all the team was given some instructions/requirements from our tech person, also they were instructed regarding our company’s DNA. After that, the team started their own research and showed us a few candidates during the 1st week that have already went through some interview stages.

As a result, the perfect candidate was hired. Also, the team helped us with the Lead positions and as a result, we hired the Lead and after inquiring about the help to allocate the whole team for him.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

5 people, an Engagement manager, an Account manager, a dedicated recruiter, and financial and legal representatives. Also, managing partners were always responsible in case of any necessity.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

We started to work with them in 2020. Being satisfied with the quality of work we decided to amplify our collaboration in Portugal. In the beginning, we hired only Developers and QA specialists with the help of the CNA IT team.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Zoom/Google Meets, Telegram, day-to-day communication in chats/messengers, weekly reports about the progress via email and on calls.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We liked the light communication, speed of work, and mutual trust that appeared during our work.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Sometimes they were too many scheduled calls that could be eliminated. Also, the reports were very detailed. At some moments we were quite good just with brief updates.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

US based organisation operating in the Financial Services industry. Although being an American company, the team is international (including US, UK, UA, Indian and Thai employees).

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CNA International IT, and what were your goals?

We were looking for an Agile agency with a solid reputation to lead the recruitment of a Production Engineer. After we turned to CNA IT, who responded quickly and conducted a personalized hiring process.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

They are the recruitment agency that has been working even in the situation of war without losing speed and quality. Moreover, they have relocated part of the team to the UK, where their head office is located. I chose them also for only 5-star reviews on Clutch.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

They answered my inquiry less than in 30 minutes, and already on the same day, we scheduled an intro call. After understanding their processes, we agreed to start working together, signed a contract and I shared the job description. I was communicating with a dedicated team that included even Customer Care Angel.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

4-5 people, sales, an Account manager, a dedicated recruiter, and financial and legal representatives. Also, managing partners were always responsible in case of any trouble.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We worked on an exclusive basis with the CNA IT, As the guys had a warm pipeline, we got the result very quickly. Our new developer is already working with us, having passed all the tests and preliminary tasks.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Slack, Telegram, Zoom/Google Meets, day-to-day communication, weekly reports about the progress

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We were fascinated by the speed and quality of the proposed candidates. This is a kind of rare combination right now.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Difficult to say as we are totally satisfied.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m CBDO of a software development company with ~60 people

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CNA International IT?

Our team has only HR that is also responsible for recruitment. We decided to partner with CNA International IT. Our attention was grabbed by the Salary Surveys conducted by the team every half a year.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

They are the recruitment agency that has been working even in the situation of war without losing speed and quality. Moreover, they have relocated part of the team to the UK where their head office is located. I chose them also for only 5-star reviews on Clutch.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

They answered my inquiry less than in 30 minutes and already on the same day we scheduled an intro call. After understanding their processes we agreed to start working together, signed a contract, and I shared the job description. I was communicating with a dedicated team that included even a Customer Care person :)

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

4-5 people

• sales
• customer care angel
• dedicated recruiter
• financial and legal representatives

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We worked on an exclusive basis with the CNA IT. As guys had a warm pipeline we got the result very quickly. Our new developer is already working with us having passed all the tests and preliminary tasks.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Day-to-day communication, weekly reports about the progress using the comfortable for mee tools: Slack, Telegram, Zoom/Google Meets!

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We were fascinated by the speed and quality of the proposed candidates. This is a rare combination right now.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Difficult to say as we are totally satisfied.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m CEO of a software development company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CNA International IT?

We don’t have a dedicated internal recruiter to find developers, that’s why we decided to partner with CNA International IT. We paid attention that they are aware of market situation as they do Salary Surveys on a 6-months basis.

This point made us suppose that we will get the clarified feedback about salary of the desired specialist without any additional payments.

SOLUTION

How did you select CNA Internationa IT and what were the deciding factors?

They are the only company in Ukraine that has a UK head office. So I was sure that the processes and quality of communication won’t definitely be low. I chose them also for only 5-star reviews on Clutch that pointed clear communication.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

I sent an inquiry on their website, they immediately answered me and I have booked a call already for the next day. After that i sent them job descriptions, they discussed them in team and sent us a short list of candidates already within 1 week. 2 of 4 provided candidates were good to be chosen for the next stage, and 1 was chosen as a final candidate for the offer.

How many resources from the CNA Internationa IT team worked with you, and what were their positions?

4-5 people, sales, customer care angel, dedicated recruiter and financial and legal representatives.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

We decided to work on exclusive basis with the CNA IT, we got a very quick result and the probation period in our case was only 1 month (as the technology is rare). We got an appropriate team player to our team that was searched by the professional of the CNA IT.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Our teams went hand-in-hand all off the project so I liked their processes.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What mesmerized me the most is their network of candidates and warm attitude during our collaboration. Also I was impressed by their style of communication.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I could say that I would like to get the result quicker but this would be unfair.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the founder of a software development company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CNA International IT?

My company didn’t have available resources to hire a perfect candidate that would become immediately a part of the team, also we were not acquainted well with the market situation and benefits to propose to the new team member, knowing that there is quite a struggle for professionals on the market. So, I started to search for a partner. Initially, I wanted to check how CNA IT can handle the work, so studied review on Clutch and their articles in media as well as reviews in open sources and reputation rates.

I was engaged in working with them as they are the only company in Ukraine that are part of a British network specialized in Executive search, so I understood that I deal with the traditions, tailored made approaches, and high-quality customer service. Also, they conduct plenty of educational and analytical activities so I’ve got not only the recruiting service but also consulting services as a bonus. We were limited in the time of hiring the right person, so velocity was also one of the most important criteria.

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

I was engaged in working with them as they are the only company in Ukraine that is part of a British network specialized in Executive search, so I understood that I deal with the traditions, tailored made approaches, and high-quality customer service. We were limited in the time of hiring the right person, so velocity was also one of the most important criteria.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

We provided the team with the requirements of the person we search for. They gave us feedback on all the points in the vacancy description, advising how to make it better. Also, they provided consulting on the current market situation, what candidates search for while changing the job place now. They suggested cutting the number of interviews, providing preliminary screenings of the shortlisted candidates.

Also, they showed that they are in touch with the candidates as we got 3 CVs exactly in a few days. One person was selected by us and in general, the hiring process took about 10 days.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with a dedicated team, at the first stage we were dealing with Business Development Consultants and Recruitment Lead that gave us the idea of how realistic is our inquiry in terms of the market situation, what time they will need to close the position, and etc.

After the contract was signed we were introduced to the dedicated Recruiter and Customer Care Angel (the person who was always in contact with us ready to answer all the additional questions and provide us with the necessary information. Dedicated Recruiter was always online with us, sharing the progress of their team on our project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

As far as we know the time required to close such a position is about 1-1.5 months. They did their work 3 times shorter than expected, with excellent quality and perfect fit of the candidate into corporate culture. The candidate passed successfully the probation period without any negative feedback from us. Thanks to the CNA IT team we speeded up our projects and empowered team spirit. They totally demonstrated the premium personal attitude to our company and brilliant results.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They used a kind-a mix of Agile and The Lean Startup approaches. I like the last one a lot as we are using Lean Startup too. We had several channels of communication including emails, Slack, Telegram, Zoom/Google Meets. They provided us with reports and all the communication process was clear and transparent.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I was impressed by their panoramic view and unbelievable ability to dive into our culture and team spirit. I can’t even imagine how they managed to complete our task with such a candidate and such a short period of time! Being impressed means nothing, what we really feel is much more! Their approach helped us speed up the process and trebled the results. Our decision to work with them was such a good investment this year.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

At first glance, their rates and prices seemed a bit high. But after we got the service I can say this is the minimum to be paid for such an excellent service! So we are totally satisfied and going to continue working with them in the future on other key positions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a product company working in the healthcare field. We’re creating products for children with autism and I’m a recruiting lead responsible for the European team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CNA International IT?

We were looking for an agency to recruit front– and backend resources for us. We had a lot of hiring to do in one month’s time.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We asked them for front- and backend developers. At the time, we needed no more than 10 people in total. CNA had initial interviews with the resources to make sure they fit our culture, and from there we had technical interviews. They found three backend and two frontend developers, which was enough. We hired a couple of recruiters to our team from there and the developers are working remotely.

What is the team composition?

Vlada (Managing Partner & Recruitment Team Lead) was my main point of contact.

How did you come to work with CNA International IT?

I’d worked with CNA three years earlier for another company. We were using two recruitment agencies at the time, and I liked CNA a lot.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our project with CNA ran from September–October 2020; it ended when we hired the resources. The whole engagement lasted for around two months.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

CNA closed five positions in two months, which was a very good result for us. I don’t remember the exact numbers, but they showed us around 13 candidates, and we hired five of them — they didn’t waste our time with unvetted candidates. All in all, the result was tremendous.

How did CNA International IT perform from a project management standpoint?

I’d worked with them before, so it was very easy to continue our communication. We had several calls in the first week to get on the same page, too. We worked through Slack and spreadsheets, and CNA sent us weekly reports about how many candidates they’d reached out to. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The chemistry between their recruiters and our team was very impressive. They were pretty quick about communicating and they delivered very good results. Overall, they made a strict plan and stuck to it. We never had a situation where we needed to ping them about their work since we received daily information about the candidates. They did their job quite well. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there is anything they could have improved. They didn’t show us a lot of candidates, but they focused on quality instead of quantity and we hired five of them. 

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I don’t have any fellow recruiters I could refer to CNA at the moment, but I’ll definitely refer them if the opportunity arises.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the Deputy CHRO for a financial company. We have 500+ employees.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CNA International IT?

We were looking for some international recruitment for a manager.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us find a manager. He’s responsible, familiar with the local culture, and speaks our language fluently, as well.

What is the team composition?

There were three people working with us.

How did you come to work with CNA International IT?

My boss worked with them previously and was happy with that experience. He suggested I consider working with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from December 2019 – March 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It was an excellent decision to work with them. They found us an experienced manager that knew the culture well and had a firm grasp on our language. We worked with other companies in the past for 5-6 months and never found a good candidate. Within a few months of working with this team, we found the best possible candidate. We’re very happy.

How did CNA International IT perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a good job. We had some language barriers in the beginning but they fixed it, and communication was good after that. We used Outlook for messages, Telegram for most communication, and Skype for interviews.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The team is very professional. They’re specialized in recruiting for Asia and Africa. They did a very good job of identifying all the issues and criteria we had and finding the best solution to fill that need.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They ask a lot of questions, and they will do a good job helping you find exactly what you need.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of research and development at CreditNinja, an online-based consumer lending company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CNA International IT?

We’re a two-year-old startup and we needed to build out our tech team. We wanted to start hiring developers in Kiev, Ukraine.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I engaged CNA International IT to help me build out a Kiev based software development team. We wanted them to build out our team of six developers. They are very far from the run of the mill, sand-based recruiters.

They have a network of developers and are really good at tuning in to what kind of developers we’re looking for. We initially started with finding some junior developers and they did that well. Then we let them be our exclusive partner in terms of building out the rest of the team. Now we want to engage them to help us find some project management people. That will be a little unique for us, but I’m confident that they can help me figure out what we’re looking for.

They’ve had a number of clients like us that first approached building out a team in Kiev who later wanted to establish a physical office for the developers in the Ukraine area. That’s another project that I’m going to engage them with. They’re going to help us establish a physical office in Kiev for 10-15 person occupancy. They have experience in helping find an office location.

They give me good intel in terms of how the process should look in establishing an entity in Ukraine and what the rough estimates are for upfront costs and ongoing costs. It's really great because it’s my first time trying to establish an offshore office, but as the business grows, we’re going to grow out that team more and more.

What is the team composition?

There are six developers and a development lead. My main contact was initially with the account manager. I then spoke with a woman who gave me a lot of feedback about the onboarding process. There were maybe four or five people in total who I interacted with when it came to scheduling candidates.

How did you come to work with CNA International IT?

We’ve been trying to hire Kiev-based developers since the inception of the company. We weren’t able to build a pipeline of candidates because it was just me and my dev lead in Kiev and we have a regular day job.

My dev lead started getting hit up by recruiters. I told him to reach out to some of them and tell them he’s happy where he works but his boss wants to talk to them about building out a team in Kiev. He then connected me with CNA International IT and we got on a Skype videoconference call.

How much have you invested with them?

$10,000-$49,999.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2018 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We went through a lot of candidates and they stuck with us through hitting the goal of getting six developers. We had=ve a good steady pipeline of candidates. We get great weekly summaries so I know the status of every candidate. We have some really good talent.

We picked up a guy who is a junior developer starting his freshman year of college and going to be working full-time with us. He’s already had three years of paid professional Rails development consulting experience. At no point in time, once the pipeline was full, did it ever dip down below six people. It was closer to 10-12 people in various stages. 

How did CNA International IT perform from a project management standpoint?

The main account manager sends out a weekly summary of what’s going on. He also has great suggestions as to how we could tweak or improve the recruiting pipeline. It’s not my first time doing recruiting.

I’ve worked at a number of startups building out entire organizations. It’s nice to get feedback from them in terms of what works for candidates they’re seeing. They tell us if we need to tighten up and get them scheduled as quickly as possible.

They make suggestions like setting up a Skype channel so our admin and their people scheduling the candidates can talk directly if there’s a need for urgency to get a candidate scheduled. All that is handled very well. We do bi-weekly calls on Skype to make sure we’re dialed in on the goals and to discuss how the pipeline is looking.

The primary form of communication is email. One thing I really like is that we had an open line on Skype. In the middle of my day, if a candidate wasn’t getting scheduled or was having trouble connecting with my admin, they’d send me a message over Skype asking me to bump it along. The reason the Skype channel is so effective is that it makes the time difference much easier to manage. They’re very responsive. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Unlike your average recruiters, they really care about the fit. After they’ve done a placement, they’re still following up with the candidate and giving me feedback about our onboarding process. There have been some instances where they give us very good feedback about a person, they placed with us. I’ve gone back to my dev leads and managers below me and tell them they need to make adjustments in terms of onboarding new people.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there’s nothing they need to improve. They really do a good job.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t engage with them and expect them to do all the work that the hiring managers are responsible for. They’re really good at logistics, being aggressive, getting feedback, and getting the candidate to show up at the interview.

What they can’t do is force your interview team to be on time or to get the interview scheduled. That’s on you. They work best when the hiring manager and the interview team are just as good. Ideally, you should know what your interview recruiting process looks like before going into the engagement.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior manager in the technology department at SPS Commerce, an EDI provider based in Minneapolis.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CNA International IT?

We were experiencing difficulty with our hiring infrastructure and were trying to fill our positions faster to have a better pool of candidates to choose from.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided recruiting for software engineers, senior software engineers, and QA software engineers. They've helped us to fill four positions, so far, and they also help us with the technical part of the interviewing process. They’re able to fill most of our positions faster than we normally could.

What is the team composition?

We had one point of contact, which was our connection to their full team.

How did you come to work with CNA International IT?

CNA International IT was recommended to us by a colleague.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in 2018 and our collaboration is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The candidates all passed the probation period successfully, and they are contributing to the team. I would say CNA International IT does the job pretty well.

How did CNA International IT perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s nice to communicate with them. Even if we have a misunderstanding, it’s resolved very quickly. We communicate via messaging applications and phone, and we also use a Trello board for all project-related communication.  

What did you find most impressive about them?

In a situation where we had no internal professional to interview candidates, CNA International IT provided an interviewer with excellent skills in the area and organized communication and scheduling between the parties.