Breaking Bad – take control of your hiring

Demand results from your resourcing team - it's managers who pay the price


Andy Bristow
Andy Bristow
9 min read Reading Time
31 January 2025 Date Created

Why Hiring Managers Must Take Control of Their Own Hiring

Over the past 18 months, the job market has shifted from the highly candidate-driven landscape we saw in the post-COVID years. With increased availability of tech and change professionals, alongside cost-cutting measures, many companies have leaned more heavily on internal hiring teams and direct sourcing. And why not? If candidates are readily available and responsive, this approach makes perfect sense.

However, challenges arise when the market tightens or specific skill sets become harder to find. When that happens, companies begin to experience:

  • A decline in both the volume and quality of applications received.
  • Suitable candidates becoming less responsive or more selective, often inquiring about salary and remote work policies before agreeing to a first interview.
  • Increased dropout rates during the interview process, with a noticeable dip in candidate quality.
  • Slower offer acceptance or higher rejection rates.

These issues aren’t anyone’s fault—they’re simply signs of a shifting, more competitive hiring landscape. The real issue is failing to recognize these changes and refusing to allocate the necessary budget for specialist hiring support. Hiring managers may not always control spending decisions, but they and their teams bear the consequences: heavier workloads, delayed project timelines, and a decline in overall team capability.

For managers frustrated by long time-to-hire cycles, the solution isn’t just about waiting for HR or external recruiters to fix the problem—it’s about taking control of your own hiring process.


How Hiring Managers Can Take Control of Their Own Hiring

While budget constraints and HR processes can slow down hiring, proactive managers find ways to overcome these obstacles. Here’s how you can reduce time-to-hire, improve candidate quality, and avoid unnecessary delays:

Define the Role Clearly—Before Posting

Many hiring struggles start with unclear job descriptions. To avoid wasting time:
Differentiate must-have vs. nice-to-have skills – Focus on what’s essential rather than unrealistic wish lists.
Write a candidate-friendly job post – Highlight growth opportunities, impact, and culture rather than just listing demands.
Get input from your team – Engineers know what’s missing better than HR does.

Take a Direct Approach to Sourcing

Instead of waiting for applications, actively search for candidates yourself:
Leverage LinkedIn & GitHub – Directly engage passive candidates instead of relying solely on job boards.
Tap into your team’s network – Ask for referrals from your existing engineers.
Engage with industry communities – Meet potential hires before they start job hunting.

Speed Up the Hiring Process

Block time for hiring tasks – Treat it as a priority, not an afterthought.
Streamline interviews – Keep the process simple and efficient (screening call → technical round → final decision).
Pre-book interview slots – Avoid scheduling delays that cause candidate dropouts.

Sell the Opportunity (Not Just the Job)

You may not be able to compete with FAANG salaries, but you can still attract top talent:
Show the impact of the role – Engineers want to see how their work makes a difference.
Emphasize ownership & growth – Mid-sized companies offer faster career progression.
Be upfront about culture & flexibility – Many candidates value autonomy and work-life balance over a bigger paycheck.

Keep Candidates Engaged

Candidates drop out when they feel ignored. Prevent this by:
Setting expectations early – Let candidates know the timeline upfront.
Following up quickly – Don’t leave great candidates waiting days for a response.
Providing feedback – Closing the loop maintains your reputation and keeps talent engaged.

Remove Bottlenecks

Make hiring a leadership priority – Push back on slow decision-making from above.
Work closely with internal recruiters – Guide their search rather than passively waiting for resumes.
Empower your team – If possible, delegate technical screenings to engineers so you don’t become the bottleneck.

Be Smart About Negotiation

Sell total compensation, not just salary – Equity, bonuses, learning stipends, or remote flexibility can make your offer more attractive.
Move fast on great candidates – If someone fits, don’t wait—strong candidates don’t stay available for long.

By taking ownership of sourcing, process efficiency, and candidate engagement, hiring managers can dramatically reduce time-to-hire, improve quality, and remove reliance on slow internal processes—all while ensuring they hire the right person, not just the first available one.


Bad Information Leads to Bad Hiring

Consider a straightforward scenario: You need to replace a departing employee. The budget is approved, and job ads are live. But the previous employee left due to an uncompetitive salary, and the replacement salary is still below market rates. Worse, you may not realize this issue until you’ve gone through the hiring process twice, wasting eight weeks in the process.

No amount of online research can match the insights of a market specialist. Action step: Even if you plan to hire directly, consult a specialist recruiter early in the process. Validate your offer and test the market. If you continue to struggle, revisit the recruiter and ask for their support.


Securing Budget for Specialist Help

What if you need recruitment support but face budget constraints or resistance from HR/talent teams? Navigating these internal challenges is where leadership skills come into play.

Most internal resourcing teams have KPIs focused on reducing agency spend, while time-to-hire often takes a backseat. Meanwhile, your team is left struggling. Different managers handle this challenge in different ways—here are some effective approaches:

✔️ Make your problem their problem. A low-conflict strategy that can shift the status quo over time. Proactively engage with internal recruiters, consistently push for more CVs, and follow up regularly. This keeps your hiring needs prioritized while either securing candidates or building a solid case for external recruitment support.

✔️ Go around the blocker. This option carries the potential for more conflict, but it works best if your line manager is proactive and supportive. If you can secure buy-in from above, you can engage directly with external recruiters and loop in HR later. They won’t like it and you may get a slap on the wrist, but you’ll be making progress

✔️ Ask for forgiveness, not permission. Ultimately, you are judged on your team’s performance. If HR’s goals are slowing down hiring, their priorities are not your priorities. Many senior leaders recognize and reward managers who take initiative to remove barriers.


Final Thought: Take Ownership, Drive Results

The hiring market is always shifting. If your usual approach isn’t working, waiting longer won’t fix it—changing how you hire will.

If your team is struggling to fill critical roles, take the initiative:
Optimize your job descriptions
Actively source candidates
Streamline your process
Engage top talent early
Push back on slow decision-making

Hiring managers who own their process—rather than relying solely on HR or external recruiters—are the ones who build stronger, faster-moving teams.

If you need a specialist recruiter to validate your hiring strategy or help fill a tough role, let’s chat. Because waiting for the market to change isn’t a strategy. Taking control is.