One thing I’m seeing more often when recruiting across the meat and food manufacturing industries is good candidates disappearing from recruitment processes before an employer has had the chance to make an offer.
- Sometimes they accept another job.
- Sometimes they decide to stay where they are.
- And sometimes they simply lose interest.
In a lot of cases, it isn’t because the original opportunity wasn’t good enough. It’s because the recruitment process took too long.
Good candidates normally have other options
If you’re interviewing a strong Maintenance Manager, Production Manager, HSE Manager, Operations Manager or senior sales candidate, there’s a pretty good chance you’re not the only company speaking with them.
That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re applying for ten different jobs.
- Quite often, particularly with candidates I’ve approached directly, they weren’t actively looking at all.
- But once someone decides they might be open to moving, things can change quickly.
- They update their resume. They speak with a few contacts. Another recruiter calls. A competitor gets in touch.
- Suddenly the person who wasn’t looking for a job three weeks ago has two or three opportunities in front of them.
Silence creates uncertainty
One of the easiest ways to lose a candidate is simply not communicating with them.
If someone has interviewed on Monday and hears nothing for two weeks, they naturally start wondering what’s happening.
- Did the interview go badly?
- Has the company found someone else?
- Is the role still going ahead?
- Candidates don’t expect an immediate decision after every interview, but they do appreciate knowing where things stand.
- Even a quick update saying, “We’re still interested, but the Operations Manager is away until next week” can make a big difference.
At least they know.
Too many interviews can become a problem
There are obviously positions where several stakeholders need to meet the candidate.
For a senior management appointment, that makes complete sense.
But there’s a difference between a thorough process and an unnecessarily complicated one.
- First interview.
- Second interview.
- Site interview.
- Meeting with another manager.
- Psychometric testing.
- Presentation.
- Final meeting.
- Another catch-up because somebody important missed the previous meeting.
- By that point, you can’t really blame the candidate for wondering whether anyone is actually prepared to make a decision.
Before starting a search, it’s worth deciding who genuinely needs to be involved and getting those people organised early.
Salary surprises are another big one
This is probably one of the most avoidable reasons for losing somebody late in a process.
If a candidate has said from the beginning that they’re earning $170,000 and would need around $180,000 to move, there isn’t much point taking them through four interviews and offering $160,000.
Likewise, candidates need to be realistic about their expectations.
- Salary doesn’t necessarily need to be agreed to the exact dollar at the beginning, but everyone should at least be operating in roughly the same territory.
- Finding out at offer stage that there’s a $30,000 difference between the two sides generally means somebody hasn’t asked the right questions earlier.
Counteroffers are still a risk
A candidate resigning doesn’t necessarily mean the recruitment process is finished.
Their existing employer may suddenly offer them more money, a promotion or greater flexibility.
- Sometimes that’s enough to make them stay.
- You can never completely remove the risk of a counteroffer, but understanding someone’s motivation for leaving helps.
- If their only reason for moving is another $10,000, a counteroffer is probably going to be pretty attractive.
If they’re moving because they want greater responsibility, a different culture, career progression or a move into another part of the industry, money alone may not solve the reason they started looking.
Recruitment doesn’t need to be rushed
This isn’t about hiring the first reasonable person because you’re worried they might disappear.
Getting a senior appointment wrong is far more expensive than taking an extra week to make the right decision.
- The point is simply to keep the process moving.
- If you’ve interviewed someone you really like, tell them.
- If the next interview needs to happen, organise it.
- If there’s going to be a delay, explain why.
And if you know they’re interviewing elsewhere, don’t assume those other processes will conveniently wait for yours to finish.
Sometimes a few days makes the difference
Over the years, I’ve seen companies miss excellent candidates because an interview couldn’t be arranged quickly enough.
- I’ve also seen employers turn a process around in a couple of days when they knew they’d found the right person.
- There isn’t a perfect recruitment timeline.
- But when you have a genuinely strong candidate interested in joining your business, momentum matters.
- You’ve done the difficult part and found them.
Don’t lose them because nobody checked their diary.
Adrian Osuchowski
Director – Orion Search
Orion Search specialises in permanent recruitment across Australia’s meat and food manufacturing industries, including primary processing, further processing, value-added meat, ready-to-eat, smallgoods and poultry.