RecWorks approach business in a lean, community-driven way, continuously refining its services from client and candidate feedback; inspired by tech business models and processes. Word of mouth and personal recommendations from our network continue to contribute to RecWorks’ impressive record of progressive, sustained growth in the London tech recruitment industry.
We ♥ community
RecWorks’ set up our first community, the LJC, to help us better understand developers and technologies, in order to develop a recruitment company that delivered what people really wanted. Our commitment to developing communities has proven that by building these for the greater good, the best candidates gravitate to us when they are seeking a new role. There is significant testimony in our groups that we are the good guys. This credibility is essential to us – it shapes everything that we do.
In 2007, RecWorks set up the London Java Community (LJC). The community has grown from 250 members in 2007, to today’s membership of over 5,500 members, making it one of the largest Java communities in the world.
In 2009, RecWorks founded the Graduate Developer Community, an active community for both undergraduates and recent graduates. Over 1,200 members.
In 2010, the London CTOs group was founded, to help London-based technical leaders to meet and discuss new technologies and share experiences of technology deployments in their organisation. Over 750 members.
In 2013, a group for Front Endgineers was established for software engineers using front end technologies. Currently has over 1,100 members.
In 2016, we took over the running of the London Groovy and Grails group, with the same ethos of building communities, to better serve the industry.
“Redefining the value recruiters can bring to the community”
This is a wonderful quote, from Java Champion Jim Gough, about the work being done by RecWorks, and it truly defines what we aim to do for the tech industry. Whilst we still make most of our revenue from recruitment within the industry, a lot of our time goes into supporting tech communities and the people within them. That work is done under the brand #ByRecWorks
Introducing #ByRecWorks
We created a brand that represents, and brings together, all the work we do in this space. Communities founded by RecWorks, events organised by RecWorks and initiatives run by RecWorks. Basically, everything we do to help people within the tech industry find a passion for what they do, meet other people that share that passion and grow within their career.
Some of the highlights of our work can be found below:
The oldest, largest and most active community founded #ByRecWorks. Created in 2007, the community has grown to over 8000 members. We have organised more than 900 events within the LJC, and international Java keynote speakers and Java Champions have given their first presentations at an LJC event. Many great global initiatives have been created within the LJC and it is considered one of the most active Java User Groups in the world.
Founded #ByRecWorks, we have made 5000 mentor introductions and counting. The best bit of this community is that it’s not done through automation, but with real people matching mentors and mentees together to form relationships. We have extended Meet a Mentor as part of our new #LikeMe initiative, and we are now able to connect people with others that look, think or act like them. Someone they can relate to. Whether this is related to gender, race, neurodiversity, sexuality, disability or any other social identity.
Established in 2010 and organised #ByRecWorks, the aim of this group is to provide a space for technical leaders to come together and discuss the challenges that they face in the role. Over recent years, we’ve organised online round-tables and presentations, to give members the chance to share their experiences and learn from each other so that they can grow in the CTO role.
A diversity/DEI focused initiative within Meet a Mentor and many of our groups. We have been approached by people that have struggled to find, in their words “a mentor that looks like me” or as someone put it recently, “Seeing role models that look like you makes it very realistic and achievable”. Based on this, we want to make it easier for you to connect with someone that looks, thinks or acts like you. Someone you can relate to. Whether this is related to your gender, race, neurodiversity, sexuality, disability or any other social identity. Hence we built the opt-in functionality to specify identity information into all our mentor matching services.
This group has grown out of our personal belief in the power that public speaking can have on career growth. This group was founded #ByRecWorks to provide mentorship and encouragement to those looking to take their first steps in the world of public speaking. Members are able to do many things, including matching up with a mentor, attending free workshops where they can learn practically, listen to events from experienced speakers and enjoy a safe space to practice their speaking skills, as well as be part of a community of others on the same journey.
Link: aspiringspeakers.co.uk
We were continually approached by many women who wanted a place to connect with others on the same journey, so decided to create a dedicated group specifically for women. Created #ByRecWorks, this group is committed to promoting diversity within the tech community and allowing women to come together and grow in their speaking journey. So far, we have over 300 members, many of whom have then tried public speaking and have extremely positive things to say about the experience. In 2023 we launched Couch to Conference, a 12 week program to enter onto the conference circuit
We’ve noticed over recent years that people have looked to move into a portfolio career and stepped into roles as fractional CxOs. This group created #ByRecWorks provides a space for fractionals and aspiring fractionals to come together, discuss the challenges they face and learn from each other. We run regular fireside chats, interview people that are already working in this way and connect people with opportunities amongst other things in this space.
The TCC is a place where you can come and meet others on a similar journey, meet friends, find mentors, learn something and stay up to date. We have a Slack group where you can speak to other founders, experts and mentors who will help answer questions. We organise regular events for startup founders to connect with tech co-founders, aspiring tech co-founders, CTOs and others who are looking to engage. We also organise panel events and regular learning sessions.
These are groups, founded #ByRecWorks, where those who aspire to be in a CTO role can network with others who have similar goals. We organise events, introduce members to mentors and send out details of CTO roles – everything we can do to help members progress to the executive team.
These groups, founded #ByRecWorks, are designed for mid/senior-level developers to have a safe space to work on their underlying tech skills. We know from experience that a focus on these skills, rather than just specific programme languages, can really boost career prospects. We help developers work on these skills by providing access to experts through roundtable events and matching members up with mentors.
Founded #ByRecWorks in 2013, this group is aimed at those who have a specific interest in front end technologies. We aim to help developers keep up with the latest industry developments and technologies through our forum and regular events.
Founded #ByRecWorks, this was initially created to help graduates bridge the gap between academia and industry. Having seen the benefits, for juniors and young people, of getting involved in open source programming, tech communities and speaking to seniors in the industry, our main aim has always been to encourage more students and undergraduates to engage with technical communities at an earlier stage. As a result we have seen many many students go on to win dream jobs.
Co-founded in 2023, and sponsored #ByRecWorks, this group is already looking to become a central part of the growing AI community in London. We are working with Mindstone to bring some of the most interesting people and projects within the AI space in London together, in a bid to facilitate learning, knowledge sharing and networking, so that new partnerships and companies can be formed.
This is a selection of some of the work we’ve been involved in. Through these initiatives and groups we build deep roots and trusted relationships with much of the top talent in London. It is through these connections we achieve such success within our tech recruitment business. If you’re growing a team please get in touch with us at RecWorks and find out how we can help.
Work for RecWorks
We’re always looking to hire enthusiastic, hardworking people to join our team, at all levels. A background in recruitment isn’t essential, as we offer great training in the RecWorks way.
We pride ourselves on only recruiting genuine, friendly people. If that sounds like you, you’ll fit in perfectly, so get in touch and tell us why you think you’d be an asset to our company.