1. Unable to attract the top talent for the position?   

2. Not satisfied with your hiring decisions?  

3. Is your best-selected candidate still not the best for the position?  

You are not alone when it comes to facing recruitment challenges? There are so many challenges that recruiters face worldwide. Recruitment nowadays isn’t as easy as it was.   

These hiring challenges are just the start; the list is much longer! [Not intended to spread pessimism: the solutions are much more comprehensive.  

Here, in this blog, we will discuss how diverse hiring challenges varyingly affect a recruitment journey and in what ways one can learn to avoid them eternally, becoming the Recruiter of all time! So here we go: 

What are Recruitment Challenges? 

It may seem so, but hiring the right candidate is not a child’s play. It takes rounds of interviews, assessments, numerous internal meetings, and checking heaps of resumes to prevent a bad hire and finally make the right choice. 

A bad hire is an individual who is not productive enough and doesn’t align with the position's seniority and expertise. Be it work quality, attitude, or personality, the company's expectations are not matched.  

When filtering the talent pool, be it for a small or big company, it is essential to establish a set of guidelines for managing your recruitment process. Also, companies are considering trial-and-error methods using various assessment tools and software to automate the hiring procedure.  

For instance, in the technology field, organisations prefer to utilise the best programming assessment tests to hire developers.  

Nevertheless, as the best is subjective, a solution that works for one might not work for you.  Thus, here is an entire list of challenges that companies face along with their solutions. 

10 Toughest Challenges Faced by Recruiters Worldwide (With Solutions) 

Making the Opportunity Reach to the Top Talent 

Whenever a job opening is posted, the intent is not to attract just anyone but the top talent. Engaging such qualified applicants is one of the major problems recruiters face.  

Candidates with perfect skills and expertise are also referred to as “purple squirrels,” as they often have an impossible combination of skills, rarely found experience, and education, all indicating a perfect match.   

These purple squirrels are constantly flooded with a handful of job offers, and yours has to be the best to stand out. 

Solution: You, as recruiters, need to make the job description attractive and exciting enough for them to consider.  

These well-qualified individuals are often passive job seekers who are not eager but slightly interested in switching roles.  Therefore, pinpoint their potential reason for passive job search. It might be growth, a healthy work environment, or a salary and bonus.  

Instead of creating a dull and ordinary job description, craft it like you’re personally conversing with the candidate. This small gesture says a lot about the organisation’s policies and atmosphere. 

Note: You can well customise your job positions on hiring platforms such as Redrob's Hiring Solutions platform.

Targeting Passive Job Seekers 

Targeting actively applying candidates is more accessible for any job designation; however, engaging with passive job seekers is exceptionally challenging. Recruiters also prefer hiring individuals who are not desperate to get a job but are patient enough to wait for a suitable one. 

To attract such applicants, it is crucial to understand what motivates them to search even passively for a job position. The challenge faced by recruiters here is not only to find these individuals but also to ignite their interest. 

Solution: Candidate interaction is vital in engaging passively applying candidates. As per a LinkedIn survey, 49% of such candidates who are passive seekers want to hear about upcoming good opportunities. 

You can connect to such individuals through social or professional networking platforms or by directly searching for candidates' database sources.  

Reaching out directly to such individuals through cold calling or cold emailing is also one of the most effective ways to target and convince them that this may be the best opportunity for them.  

In addition, an efficient employee referral program offering exciting incentives and bonuses may bring you excellent referred matches. Using approaches like regularly posting engaging content about job openings on social media also spreads awareness. 

Managing Heaps of Resumes or Few Resumes 

Receiving few to no applications is no less problematic than receiving too many. Recruiters know they need around 1-5 hours daily, even for a single position.  

For starters, they filter out those who are highly unqualified and then re-interact those who are qualified for further interviews. In many cases, candidates go further with other opportunities, or passive ones may not be interested anymore.  

Regarding receiving “too few” applications, the situation might not be hectic enough, but it is distressing. This might be due to several reasons, like an improperly detailed job description, not including enough job-targeting keywords or unavailability of active job seekers.  

Solution: To tackle the issue of inspecting “too many” resumes, you can consider installing a good Application Tracking System (ATS) that analyses thousands of keywords in no time.  

The software is the best hiring assistant for many recruiters worldwide. By automating your hiring process, ATS streamlines the overall experience for both parties. Furthermore, using more relevant and job-related keywords that job seekers use can bring more applicants for the vacancy.  

Try making the job description more readable with simple and concise sentences. Use conversational, everyday language and add interesting information about the company.  

Adding a CTC range, perks, leave information, etc., may also help, as people don’t like to waste their time assuming such significant aspects. These little details can add up to a lot to your JD.

Looking Out for Urgent Hirings 

A vacant position could cost the company money and time, so hiring teams are expected to recruit as fast as possible. This requires a good hiring team that is amazing at engaging and convincing people. Urgent hiring is the most common reason for bad hires, so recruiters try not to hire rather than hire badly. 

Solution: Setting realistic expectations, especially when hiring for more sophisticated roles with high experience, is one of the best ways to get the best hire while keeping calm. Interact with the hiring team and prioritise recruiting only the most suitable candidate within the appropriate time. This understanding helps set the right expectations and ensure the recruitment process is aligned with organisational goals without rushing decisions. 

Many such helpful job posting platforms would help your organisation in this cryptic situation. One such example of a platform is Redrob.

Absence of Defined Recruitment Objectives 

Recruitment objectives are goals set by employers to recruit the most deserving candidate. Not having these objectives can create serious recruitment challenges for companies. Objectives help weed out the crowd, give a better understanding of goals, and improve the overall quality of hires.  

Solution: Establish recruitment objectives to find the best candidate for any role. There can be some role-specific and mostly general recruitment objectives.  

The objectives include asking questions, showing and expecting transparency, etc. 

Role-specific recruitment goals may include conducting skill assessment tests and inquiring about a candidate's experience and educational milestones. A list of skills that are ‘preferred more’ may also be included.   

Utilising recruitment objectives provides a well-planned, less time-consuming and wholesome approach to interviewing candidates. 

Campus Hiring Challenges 

Companies face numerous challenges during the campus hiring process to find the right fit for their job opening. These issues may be due to limited time, insufficient skills, time-consuming evaluation, manual skill assessment, etc.  

Due to these challenges, companies face bad or no hires; candidates face biases and unemployment, and so on. So, how do we tackle these problems faced by recruiters? 

Solution: Utilise online assessment platforms like Redrob, which offer various skills, language proficiency, software, and cognitive assessment tests. Additionally, make good use of campus intelligence and get insights into which university is top due to producing the most talented students. Furthermore, providing good feedback to students helps them improve for future opportunities.  

Time Taking Recruitment Process 

A long recruitment process can push away good candidates and make hiring more expensive. Top candidates may lose interest or accept other offers if the process drags on without clear communication or consequences.  

This can leave companies missing out on the best talent. Moreover, a stretched hiring cycle can increase costs related to HR resources and extend the period a position remains unfilled, affecting productivity and potentially increasing workload on other staff members.  

Solution: To speed things up, companies can use technology like ATS to sort resumes quickly and communication tools to speed up interviews. They can also use data to spot the best candidates earlier. Making the application process simpler and reducing the number of interviews can also help. 

Establishing a Competent Employer Brand 

Why would an individual go for a company whose image is not very appealing? If a company doesn't look attractive to work for, recruiters might face challenges in attracting skilled people.  

This can lead to insufficient job applications, making it hard to find the right fit. Plus, even those working there might start looking elsewhere if the company's reputation isn't excellent. It's like a cycle that can make things challenging for the company. 

Solution: You can start by asking what employees like about your company. On social media, your website, and anywhere else you talk about your company, talk about a friendly environment, job perks, or growth opportunities.  

Listening to your team and making changes based on their feedback can also improve your workplace and strengthen your employer brand. 

Doing Justice to the Right Candidate 

Ensuring that only the most deserving individuals get the job might be a real recruitment challenge. Sometimes, even with the best intentions, the hiring process might miss the mark, choosing someone who is not the best fit over someone who is.  

This could be due to unconscious biases, insufficient tools to measure a candidate's fit, or just rushing through the hiring decisions. It's frustrating because it's not just about missing out on a great hire—the candidate who was perfect for the job also misses out. 

Solution: Utilise high-quality assessment tools that dig deeper than resumes to understand each candidate's capabilities and fit. You can also write down standardised interview questions and avoid manually grading them to reduce personal biases and ensure fairness. Finally, don’t rush the hiring decisions, even for urgent hiring; take time to evaluate each candidate thoroughly.  

Providing an Overall Positive Candidate Experience 

Offering candidates a good recruitment experience is a crucial part of the hiring process. Candidates who have a terrible time might not want to continue with the application.  

They might even tell their friends or post online about their bad experiences, making others think twice about applying to the company.  

A good recruitment manager is responsible for smoothly tackling challenges like these and ensuring everyone feels respected throughout the process. 

Solution: Communicate clearly and quickly so candidates always know where they stand. Keep the application steps simple, and ask for feedback to learn and improve. Ensuring the team treats all candidates well also helps make your company a top choice for job seekers.

Effective Practices to Solve Most Common Problems  

Introduce ATS to Your Hiring Procedures 

We have discussed ten rigorous challenges so far, and when you think about them, most of them can be tackled through a good ATS. Introducing an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) into your recruitment procedure allows you to effectively manage and track applications.  

ATS automates all your manual tasks, boosting the overall procedure. In no time, it recognises the best fit. Through automation, it also reduces human biases.  

Redrob has developed an excellent, AI-automated ATS system. It offers advanced automation to manage candidate data rapidly. If you're a recruiter, Redrob’s ATS Integration is one solution for all your hiring challenges. 

Invest in High-Quality Customisable Skill Assessment Tests 

There are various types of job designations in different industries, so definitely, one size won't fit all. A single test cannot judge all your candidates or all positions, but there are a variety of them that can.  

For instance, Redrob’s skill assessment tests measure technical and job-specific skills, while software tests evaluate proficiency in particular software applications. Personality and behavioural tests help understand a candidate's character traits and how they might fit within a team. Besides, cognitive tests are a standard test for all and assess problem-solving, reasoning, etc.  

Each test plays a significant role in the hiring process. It can solve problems related to skill-based issues and help ensure that the candidate matches the job requirements perfectly. 

Choose the Right Recruitment Management System 

A good RMS streamlines everything from tracking applicants to scheduling interviews, making it easier to manage recruitment efficiently. It helps eliminate the chaos of manual processes, ensuring you don’t miss out on great candidates due to poor management. With the right system, your team can focus more on engaging with candidates and less on paperwork, leading to better hiring outcomes. 

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Which is the best Hiring Platform in India?

The best hiring platform is the one that makes the recruitment process easier for your organisation while saving time and resources. and, one such example of a platform is Redrob.

Redrob provides multiple recruitment features such as job posting, job posting engagement tracking, an automated Applicant Tracking System, AI-driven online interview assessments (customisable), global people search, live interview assessments, etc.

2. How does ATS help in the recruitment process?

Applicant Tracking System or ATS is an automated software that matches your posted keywords with the ones present in the resumes of the candidates and brings up the best resumes for your job role. The resumes with the highest matching skills rank at the top, making it easier for you to find the right resumes from the huge pile.

Click here to learn more about the ATS functionality.