The Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey (REOS) found in its December 2025 quarterly report that recruitment difficulty has eased from 50% a year ago to 41% in Dec 2025. That still looks like recruitment is difficult for many employers. It’s probably most difficult for regional and remote employers and those in construction, manufacturing, healthcare and social assistance support.
Why are employers finding it painful to recruit?
The main driver reported is a lack of suitable skilled applicants. Many employers don’t see the other reasons recruitment of the right people is so hard for them.
You see…
Life’s too short for the wrong job
Candidates may be assessing your job or your organisation as a bad place to work. Are you blind to your Employer Brand (in the marketplace)? Do you know the candidates’ misconceptions and perceptions about what working for you will be like? Do you know what employees and ex-employees say about what its like to work for you?
Some employers have talent available to them that they overlook. Do you train people who work for you for the next level up? Do you re-train and upskill employees to keep up with the pace of changing skill demands?
As work becomes more specialised and changes so fast it’s not surprising employers experience skills shortages. What’s the answer?
Succession Planning and Training
Train from within, grow your people to meet the developing skills needs of your business, actively use succession and training plans.
“But what if I train them and they leave?”
I say “What if you don’t train them – and they stay!”
(and if they do leave – find out why by asking an external party to conduct exit interviews because you need to know what’s not working for employees).
Here are some other reasons you could be experiencing hiring difficulties that you may not even realise:
- Undesirable working conditions – from lack of a values match to low pay, uncomfortable environmental conditions (such as high heat) or a psychologically unsafe workplace (think working with a bad-tempered Chef or aggressive clients with dementia)
- Ineffective hiring processes or a poor Employer Brand (think untrained interviewers, poorly designed or inappropriate selection methods, not selling the organisation to candidates with your Employer Brand and EVP’s – or not knowing what an EVP is! – and taking too long to make offers).
Reduce Your Pain
Do you want to reduce the pain points for yourself, your hiring managers and for candidates in your recruitment process?
Let me help – I’ve helped organisations to:
- Audit their current recruitment processes (one of which was taking months) and discover what needs improving (timeliness, employee value propositions, appropriate relevant selection methods, training of managers to take part in selection, “selling” the brand at the interview stage) to compete on an equal footing with other employers.
- Recruit people for difficult (high heat) factory roles
- Develop selection tools (competence sets, values sets, interviews, assessment centre exercises) and train people in-house how to use them effectively
- Review recruitment process effectiveness and improve it (going from a “does your face fit” interview or a poorly designed assessment centre to using tools that identify key competences and values and assess the candidates’ levels of each against job needs)
- Have their own bespoke selection methods so they can manage recruitment and selection in-house at all levels
- Identify the causes of people exiting their organisation so they can stem the flow
- Develop their attraction and retention plan, employer brand and employee value propositions so they can more easily lure, identify, select and retain the candidates they want.
What would help you reduce the pain points of your recruitment process?
If you’d like more help from others – ask me about training your managers to help with recruitment so they will conduct an effective competency-based interview. If you need help with bulk recruitment let’s talk about having an in-house assessment centre that you run and own – with your leaders and managers as the assessors. Click here to see how Development at Work can design selection methods for your organisation and train your people to use them effectively – from an interview to an assessment centre. Let us help you to attract and select talent. https://www.developmentatwork.com.au/assessment-and-selection/
Whatever your recruitment need talk to me. I don’t do recruitment – I help you to do it. If you need help with something I don’t do – I know some great local head hunters and recruiters I can refer you to.
For information about outplacement services, change management, psychological and wellbeing support for leaders, retrenched employees and those who stay – call Bridget Hogg for information and prices on 0477 016966 or email bridget@developmentatwork.com.au. See www.outplacementadelaide.com.au for testimonials and further information about outplacement services.