5 Mistakes That Hiring Managers Make in Recruitment?
Revitalized and excited about the recently onboarded client, especially due to their excellent market knowledge in terms of what can be found and what cannot, and their engagement of an agency for very clear reasons and realistic expectations and deadlines, I was inspired to highlight a few key things that are regularly repeated either in negotiations with clients or within companies and departments responsible for recruitment. Today’s market atmosphere and the context in which business is conducted are bringing to light some less-than-ideal practices and new, previously unknown moments (or perhaps known but now discussed more openly on LinkedIn), such as fake job ads, ghosting in processes, but the focus will not be on these shortcomings, but rather on five selected points.
Whenever I read sales pages or materials about a tool or approach, it always seems naïve and funny how each one is presented as revolutionary, essential for survival, and how everything works like a well-oiled machine thanks to it, now and forever. Without delving into marketing strategies and the psychology of the target audience that buys into this narrative, what history shows us is that people have employed themselves with or without specialists and experts in companies, using the most traditional practices, and none of them failed or couldn’t scale due to a lack of resources or workforce; a solution was found for every problem.
By the same token, even with these five mistakes that will be elaborated in detail, you can occasionally get through and survive, but long-term neglect of any of the issues, as well as the occurrence of all five or more of them over an extended period, can have serious consequences not only on further growth and development but also on the current team setup.
- Not familiar with the labor market
Perhaps the most uncomfortable and surprising thing is the lack of knowledge about the market you operate in, whether you are running a business or growing resources. Although the start of a business is probably not the same for everyone and many businesses begin by getting their first clients through recommendations, where little attention is paid to analysis, especially when things change quickly in the beginning, this often becomes evident and felt in business later on. This leads to not knowing what the workforce is like and what is available on the market.
- Don’t know how to work with people
If you are the type who is always dissatisfied, always bothered by something or someone, always think you could do better, like to give lessons, and believe no one is on your level, it is likely that even if something objectively meets the given criteria, it still won’t be satisfying because the problem lies within you, not others. If you are also in a strategic position or one of the few superstars on whom the company relies, and the rules are explicitly flexible for you, then things become complex and very harmful to the organization. One thing is demanding high standards and discipline in terms of knowledge, as you yourself were not like that at the beginning because everyone started from the same point, and quite another is perhaps hidden sabotage to protect one’s own position.
- Looking for candidates tailored to a personal specification
This point is closely related to the lack of market knowledge and working with people. It is most commonly encountered in individuals who think that others are there because of them and that everyone should adapt to them because they are in a position of power or decision-making. With this comes a list of criteria and capricious whims about what kind of collaborators should be chosen, many of which are not at all relevant to the work and position. Such recruitments are doomed to failure because you are looking for the nonexistent and the impossible, and even if you do find them, you risk becoming a prisoner of someone else’s absurd criteria of perfection.
- Biased and prone to subjectivity
Although the reasons for rejecting candidates are at the discretion of each company and do not have to be explained, the truth is that we are beings of reason, logic, and emotions, and as such, it is not possible to completely suppress dimensions that are not logical and objective. Although in the world of HR, more software has been developed for detecting bias, as well as functionalities for filtering candidates, it still has its flaws and shortcomings, just like when a human is doing the work, and even the tests that claim to be 80% accurate. Personally, I believe that as long as there are imperfect people, there will be imperfect decisions, including software solutions, and this will be the prevailing constant for a long time. However, I will leave room for reality to eventually prove me wrong and surprise me.
- The organization is inflating its own importance
It’s no big secret that not everyone is in a position to hire the best of the best. It’s not just about money and conditions, but they also need an attractive business and a certain leadership style to nurture their talents and extravagant personalities. Companies that are not in such a position typically find up to five such players who mostly carry the essence of the business. In order to attract them, instead of responding to their needs with an equal or better offer, they go with a counter-strategy and in front of the market, which is to pretend importance and significance that they have not yet earned, so that candidates and even clients make the decision to prove that they are indeed the best and how it is even possible for anyone to have thought or doubted their abilities.
Due to such challenges, companies hire agencies to assist in resolving them, and a similar or identical typology can be found whether you are engaged internally or externally. If you are faced with a lack of time to address these issues, or if your internal capacities and expertise are insufficient to resolve these problems independently, Trusted Advisor can help you successfully tackle these pain points by assisting with the definition of what is best for you based on what is available on the market, not based on what does not exist, and enabling your business to progress and grow.
Not less importantly, in the spirit of everything that has been said, we also want to emphasize our pledge to candidates as a business responsible agency:
- We do not engage in speculative market research based on false or non-existent job positions
- Everyone receives feedback and updates at every stage of the process
- You will know the interview concept, duration, and all relevant details affecting the process in advance
- AI does not decide the success of candidates, as this is against GDPR regulations, nor do we use AI technology in an unreasonable or excessive manner
- We adhere to principles of equality and inclusivity and do not discriminate against candidates in any way
- We communicate precisely and clearly, without ambiguity, hidden messages, or leaving anything unsaid
- We do not charge for interviews under any circumstances
- Decisions about successful candidates are made solely and exclusively based on achievements, results, facts, and qualifications
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