The Candidates Are Stellar. The Processes Are Not. 

Over the past few tough years, the market has shifted with no shortage of exceptional senior talent. In fact, some of the strongest candidates in years are actively on the market, but here’s the reality: there are far fewer roles than there are good people to fill them. 

Clients are firmly in the driving seat and candidates know it. As a headhunter, I have a front-row seat to both sides of this and what candidates tell me, day in and day out, is that too many hiring processes are leaving them cold.  

So why, in a market that should make hiring easier, are so many businesses still getting it wrong? Because a process that was broken in a candidate-short market doesn’t fix itself just because the tables have turned. The uncomfortable truth is that your hiring process is often the first real experience a candidate has of your organisation. And first impressions, as we all know, cut both ways. Here’s what needs to change: 

Eighteen rounds of interview. Yes, really. 

I spoke recently to a candidate – talented, senior, exactly the kind of person any business should be desperate to hire – who told me they’d had 18 rounds of interview before finally receiving an offer. Eighteen. Now, I understand the instinct. Senior hires are high stakes and nobody wants to get it wrong. But here’s what that process communicates to a candidate: indecision, dysfunction and a culture where nothing moves without layers of sign-off. They’re weighing up whether your organisation is somewhere they want to be and a chaotic process will answer that question for them, before you’ve had a chance to make your case. The best candidate rarely waits – and they shouldn’t have to. 

Consensus is costing you talent 

There’s a particular type of organisation that hires by committee – four, five, six, seven stakeholders all needing their say before a decision can be made. And while that might feel collaborative and thorough, the reality is that all those layers of opinion rarely make the decision better. They just make it slower, more political and more exhausting for everyone involved – especially the candidate. The businesses consistently landing the best people are those that can move with conviction. They have a clear process, defined decision-makers and the confidence to act when they find the right person. Endless rounds of consensus-seeking sends a signal that your organisation struggles to make decisions. And if that’s how you hire, a smart candidate will wonder: is that how you operate too? 

They’re interviewing you too 

Here’s something that hasn’t changed, even in a quieter market: the best candidates are still assessing you. They may have fewer options right now, but that doesn’t mean they’ll accept a poor experience, or a role they don’t believe in. You still need to attract them, excite them and make them genuinely want to be part of what you’re building. That means being engaged, energetic and compelling about your vision. It means treating the interview as a conversation, not an interrogation. The best hires happen when both sides leave the room feeling energised. If your candidate is walking out feeling underwhelmed, you have a problem, regardless of how impressive your business is on paper. 

Your process is your brand 

This is where it gets really important and where many organisations are losing talent without even realising it. How you run your hiring process sends a very loud message about your culture. Slow feedback – or worse, none at all – arrogant or ill-prepared interviewers, panel members who clearly haven’t glanced at the candidate’s background before walking into the room…all of this tells a story. And it’s rarely the one you want to tell. If a senior candidate experiences a chaotic, disrespectful, or dismissive process, they won’t just decline your offer, they’ll tell others. Reputation in the talent market is hard won and easily lost. 

Preparation matters on both sides of the table. A candidate who has done their homework, researched your business and shown up ready to have a meaningful conversation deserves an interviewer who has done the same. Anything less is simply disrespectful of their time and a missed opportunity to make a genuine connection. 

Say it straight 

Transparency isn’t just good practice, it directly and measurably affects retention. Be honest about the role: the compensation, the genuine opportunity, the challenges the business is currently facing or has faced in the past and the realities of the environment they’d be stepping into. Candidates who join with the full picture – warts and all – are far more likely to stay, perform and become advocates for your business. Those who feel they were sold a polished, glossy version of reality that doesn’t match what they actually walk into? They leave. Quickly, and often noisily.  

Trust your search partner  

Finally, and perhaps most importantly: your talent consultant or headhunter is not a CV delivery service. If you treat them like one, you are leaving an enormous amount of value on the table. The best search partnerships happen when clients genuinely let their search partner in on the good, the bad AND the ugly. The politics, the history, the dynamics at play, the things that aren’t in the job spec but absolutely should be. Embed them with your key stakeholders, give them the real brief, and let them get properly under the skin of your business and what you’re trying to build. 

Because the value of a great search partner isn’t in them nodding along and doing what they’re told. It’s in them challenging your thinking, asking the uncomfortable questions, pushing back on a process that isn’t working and being honest with you when you’re about to make a mistake. That kind of partnership requires trust, openness and a willingness to be challenged. But when it works, it’s the difference between a good hire and a transformational one. 

The value is in the challenge, not the compliance. 

So next time your search partner tells you to move faster, streamline your process, or reconsider how you’re showing up to candidates – listen carefully. They’re not being pushy and they’re not trying to make their life easier. They’re trying to help you win. And in a market where great candidates are available but great opportunities feel scarce, how you show up matters more than ever. 

Looking for talent

Whether you are a communications professional looking to move into this kind of advisory work, or a firm building out these capabilities and needing to find the rare talent that can operate at this intersection, we would love to talk. Hanson Search has spent years placing senior communications professionals into exactly these roles, and we understand what good looks like at this level. Should you wish to discuss future leadership needs, we would welcome the opportunity to speak. Please contact our team via the form below.

Katie Simpson moved into recruitment after a decade in communications, working on UK and international campaigns for major global brands. She now advises on senior Corporate Affairs and Sustainability appointments across agency and in-house markets worldwide.