One of the most difficult and frustrating recruitment challenges currently is in the area of Administrative Support. Whilst there is no shortage of applicants, it is still a challenge to find the level of skill, experience and “fit” to meet the demands of employers.

Whilst there is continuing debate about how Australia will be affected by what is happening in global economies around the world, there still seems to be no shortage of opportunities for people with good administrative skills in particular.

On SEEK.com in Melbourne alone, there are some 2,000 plus vacancies listed. Whilst some of these roles are obviously advertised multiple times and therefore this number is clearly not accurate; our experience suggests that the competition for experienced people is significant.

The market is such that quality candidates still have an extraordinary number of choices and are in the position where they can be selective. When a prospective employer delays making a hiring decision on a candidate whom they deem a good fit for their role, there is a strong likelihood that the applicant will accept another offer of employment in the interim.

Sometimes the delay might be because the role perhaps hasn’t been defined properly in terms of what the actual requirements are. Alternatively, it can also be a result of the key decision makers not communicating with each other because they have other priorities.

Our advice to any employer is to work with your recruiter to define your exact needs and expectations and to ensure the recruitment process is completed in a timely and effective manner. In this way, you reduce the risk of losing a quality candidate and going back to square one.