UK Recruiters Struggle to Find the Right Candidates

67.5% of recruitment professionals struggle to find the right candidates

A new study from CV-Library, the UK’s largest job site, has revealed that despite a growing jobs market, the recruitment industry is still struggling, with over 67.5% of recruiters admitting to difficulties when it comes to finding the right candidates for job roles.

The research addressed over 700 of the UK’s leading recruiters to establish the main challenges faced when trying to attract candidates and fill job vacancies. With 39.9% of recruitment professionals encountering problems filling permanent job roles, CV-Library questions whether more responsibility should be placed on businesses to attract the savviest applicants. Key findings revealed:

Your competitors are joining the Institute of Recruiters (IOR) - Join us

Attention Recruiters
See Live Jobs on SplitFee.org – Don’t Miss Out
It’s FREE if you Join Now!

  • 67.5% of recruitment professionals struggle to find the right candidates
  • 37.7% are experiencing serious skills shortages
  • Over a third of recruiters (34.2%) believe that candidates have unrealistic expectations
  • 32.1% feel hindered by the slow speed of the recruitment process

CV-Library’s latest statistics also shed more light on the recruitment industry’s current situation. Whilst last month saw a 29.3% job rise compared to August 2014, there was only a 19.1% increase in the number of job applications in the same time period, leading candidates to be more selective with the roles they apply for.

Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library comments:

“In a job market where candidates now have more selection, it’s unsurprising to see that recruiters are struggling to fill the growing number of roles available. Whilst recruiters should be advising clients on the best ways to attract candidates, it’s also vital that UK businesses recognise the competition and do more to ensure their positions are appealing to the leading talent in the sector. Highlighting the provision of training and mentoring, and providing opportunities for career progression are key ways to improve application rates.”

Furthermore, when asked to rank the top 5 most challenging roles to fill by sector, agencies said:

  • Engineering – 49.9%
  • Oil & gas / energy – 27.2%
  • IT – 24.9%
  • Aerospace – 21.9%
  • Medical – 20.1%

Here’s the COMPLETE set of Accredited Recruitment & HR courses

Accredited Recruitment & HR courses and qualification

Recruiters & HR professionals choose these accredited courses – take a look!

Recruitment News

Comment on this story

The British Institute of Recruiters is the Professional Body operating The Recruitment Certification Scheme

Send this to a friend