Case Study: VMware Increases Talent Funnel and Reduces Screening Time by 75% with HackerRank

How VMware Increased the Talent Funnel while Decreasing Screening Time

VMware’s talent acquisition team, led by Tony Torelli, needed to speed up hiring of top engineering talent while moving beyond traditional resume-based screens and convincing hiring managers to consider potential over “perfect fit” experience — all under tight, global timelines. They faced skepticism from some managers and senior candidates but had to scale outreach and maintain quality across a high-volume recruiting model.

They implemented HackerRank skills-based assessments and used A/B testing and performance data to drive manager buy-in. The change cut initial screening time by about 75%, widened the talent funnel and candidate quality, produced hires who would have been overlooked on resumes alone, and in some cases shortened time-to-offer to as little as one week.

VMware

Tony Torelli

Senior Technical Recruiter