How to find good candidates amid tough competition in the job market?

manpreet Best Answer 2 years ago

I've been trying to hire two additional permanent members for my team since January, and we aren't getting good candidates. The company is offering a competitive salary, which alone makes us stand out. In addition, we offer a wide range of benefits which far surpass what other companies in the area offer.

The roles are advertised on job boards and we work with recruitment companies. The roles are getting exposure but we are not getting candidates applying.

The feedback I'm getting from recruitment companies is there are a lot of companies offering similar roles, and there simply aren't enough candidates available in the area. The number of recruitment companies I'm working with has gone down from 12 to 7 as some of them just gave up.

I've broadened the search to graduates, and I'm finding we still can't get any good candidates. I've spoken to other companies having similar issues. They have resorted to hiring candidates they wouldn't normally offer a position to, which has resulted in a high staff turnover.

I'm now looking at bringing in apprentices after one of our contractors mentioned he had some success with training people to the required level. I will soon be forced to use outsourcing if I can't find good candidates, which I want to avoid.

I've not tried paying for the ads and paying to search for candidates, but I'm already spending so much time on this that the team I manage is suffering as a result.

Are there any suggestions on how I can find more candidates?

manpreet 2 years ago

If you're offering what others are paying now in a market where nearly 100% of the qualified candidates are already receiving a similar package, they have no reason to leave their present employers, unless there's some other problem, which should be rare, they're probably treated very well where they are now. In such a market, they probably know how sought after they are and are furthermore expecting significant annual raises.

You're going to have to raise your salary expectations significantly. You need to pay current salaries plus at least 1 year, and probably 2 years, worth of good raises.