Recruiters are confident they can deliver and their candidates are high quality, but according to research in Europe and north America, positions are still hard to fill.
Nearly all (95%) recruiters say they are confident they can find the right candidate for open positions and 77% consider active candidates to be high quality. Despite this confidence, 71% of recruiters say they struggle to fill position because of candidates’ skills gaps.
Job board Monster’s research report surveyed 1,700 recruiters in the UK, US, Canada, France, Germany and the Netherlands, and the vast majority of recruiters (85%) believe that candidates exaggerate skills and competencies on their CV.
While candidates look good on paper, recruiters need to adjust expectations to consider candidates with most or some of the necessary skills to find the right fit, according to 70% of respondents.
“Today’s tight labour market is making it increasingly challenging for organisations to find and hire outside talent that has all of the necessary skills and is the right fit,” said Scott Gutz, chief executive at Monster.
“Upskilling is critical to not only retain top talent, but also to attract qualified candidates from competitors. Companies need to evolve how they view the role upskilling plays within their own organisation.”
Compared to their counterparts in the other six-country average, UK recruiters were more likely to:
- distribute job ads on social media (43% UK vs 36% average)
- believe that candidates are exaggerating their skills (93% vs 85%)
- say that candidates look for career development opportunities (48% vs 41%)
- find it challenging to answer candidates’ questions about work-life balance (45% vs 38%)
- struggle to recruit Gen Z (18- to 24-year-old) candidates due to lack of experience (47% vs 40%)
- be “very worried” about a recession affecting the economy in the next two years (35% vs 27%).
The survey found that millennial recruiters are ahead of the curve and more interested in using video in the job search process, compared to their older peers. Ninety-two per cent of millennials would interview candidates live via video (vs 88% for Gen X and 78% for baby boomers).
In a separate survey of candidates, Monster found that 94 percent of Gen Z candidates agree that a video of a recruiter would help them better understand a job opportunity.
“For recruiters to be effective, the industry must continue to adapt to the needs of both candidates and employers. The reality is that the skills and generational gaps will continue to widen in the years to come. But by focusing on addressing those challenges today, companies will be able to not only identify top talent, but also retain and grow their existing employee base,” added Gutz.
