Is recency bias hijacking recruitment outcomes?
The way we hire isn't working.
Not because of lack of effort, but because of outdated thinking and poor strategy.
4 in 10 Australian employers face persistent recruitment challenges.
Tenure is on a downward trend and turnover is holding tight at 16 to 20%.
Competition for talent isn't going away.
On average, it takes 44 days to fill a vacant role.
If we always do what we've always done . . . well, you know the rest.
Is it time for a new mindset? To be adaptive and avoid recency bias?
This is one of the key themes and priority areas for leaders in 2025, according to the latest World Economic Forum.
An adaptive mindset — being open to new perspectives and ways of doing things — is excellent advice for our rapidly changing world.
If you're responsible for recruitment, it’s easy to keep doing what’s familiar—posting on job boards, relying on the same hiring process, focusing on traditional qualifications and same-sector experience — because perhaps that's what worked in the past.
But things have changed. The market has shifted.
Here's what leading global research and advisory firm Gartner recommends people leaders focus on in 2025:
develop a strong understanding of the talent market
assess job design against candidate priorities
evaluate employer brand strength and job design against competitors'
market jobs and your EVP effectively (to reduce time to fill and attract the right people)
invest in sourcing and branding
analyse employee sentiment.
2025 will be the year savvy leaders and hiring teams adapt and update their talent strategy to meet modern workforce challenges.
Forward-thinking employers will reimagine their recruitment approach and get better results.
They will forget the traditional mindset that says employers 'acquire' talent.
It's time to flip the script. When you're hiring, you're not acquiring talent. In fact, you're not the buyer at all.
You're the seller. The consumer is the talent you're trying to attract.
This modern, marketing-led approach delivers:
Better engagement: 8X more applications
Increased talent pool: 5X more qualified, engaged talent in 1-2 weeks
Faster time to hire: From briefing to signed contract 48% faster than average.
Modern recruitment is marketing. Let's adapt to the new world and hire with an attraction mindset.
Flexible talent support for NFP leaders
I am deeply committed to making recruitment easier for nonprofit leaders.
I support leaders and organisations to attract the right people through:
traditional recruitment solutions
flexible unbundled recruitment support
helping you review and improve your recruitment approach
helping you understand and articulate your real EVP through employee research
leveraging this research to develop authentic recruitment content
building campaigns that reflect culture and the employee experience
consulting and advisory work to develop talent attraction strategy and capacity.
If you’re curious to know more, send me a message or get in touch for a chat.
As a communications professional and writer turned recruiter, I know modern recruitment is marketing, and I'm on a mission to share this approach with the sector.
Each Friday, I share talent attraction advice and insights. The Nonprofit Talent Edge will help you become more intentional, creative and proactive with your recruitment.
Have a great week.
Cynthia