In the Hiring Line: Why it’s Not Always Easy Being a Hiring Manager

Posted on July 2015 By Speller International
Challengers For Hiring Managers

​When you’re sitting down for an interview with your prospective hiring manager, it’s easy to feel like they have everything going for them. They call the shots, they get to pick and choose from a range of candidates and, most crucially, they already work for the company you want to work for!

Sadly, life is never as simple as that. Hiring managers encounter a range of challenges that make it hard to fulfill everything that’s required of them. We’ve listed just a few reasons your potential hiring manager might be taking a little while to get back to you – or why he or she might seem a bit frazzled when you meet!

Knowing what’s going on behind the scenes can calm your nerves when you’re meeting for the first time (or waiting for that all-important call), so read on to discover the biggest secret in recruitment: your hiring manager is human, after all!

You can’t be everywhere at once

From other work commitments to keeping up to date with what’s important in a SAP candidate, hiring managers have a lot going on, like…

  • Other projects: SAP hiring managers don’t just hire people – they manage them, too. Many projects take multiple phases and require managing and keeping existing team members motivated, so hiring will almost certainly not be the only thing on their plate.

  • The rest of the hiring process: Interviewing isn’t the only part of hiring! A manager must also schedule interviews, get references, organise offers and contracts with HR and Procurement and much more.

  • Keeping up with changing needs: The ‘best person’ for a role is something that is always changing, especially in a fast-paced world like SAP. It’s a hiring manager’s responsibility to stay on top of trends and technologies that impact candidate choices.

You have a lot of balls in the air

Hiring managers negotiate some very tangled webs, balancing a huge range of things: people, projects, circumstances… You name it! Some of the stuff they deal with includes…

  • Loads of CVs: Assuming the hiring manager is not using a recruiter, there will be a veritable mountain of CVs to go through for any hire – many of which are not a match at all.

  • Navigating internal processes: Many companies have internal hiring procedures but some are very strict and include elements such as psychometric testing – which can also withdraw a seemingly perfect candidate from the race, adding to stress levels.

  • Getting everyone together: When it comes to interviews, it’s not just the candidate and the hiring manager who need to find time. There are other stakeholders who need to be present, and it falls to the hiring manager to coordinate everyone’s calendars.

  • Onboarding: There are a range of elements that go into getting a new hire to work, all of which tend to fall to the hiring manager (or the HR department). An accident or delay could cost a company thousands as they pay a new hire to sit around doing nothing!

  • Internal recruitment teams: While they are designed to help recruitment efforts, internal recruitment teams can often be a thorn in a hiring manager’s side as they don’t understand the intricacies of a role’s requirements, which sometimes results in inaccurate hires.

It’s tough to find your perfect match

  • Competition is fierce: Other companies are always on the lookout for quality staff as well, so hiring managers must contend with stiff competition. A delay in making an offer, a low salary budget or a slow recruitment process can lose a great candidate.

  • It’s tough to get commitment: Many SAP professionals prefer to work on a contract basis for a number of reasons including flexibility, rates and desire for variety. That makes it hard to get candidates to commit to a permanent role.

  • Location can be a curse: Some areas are just not magnets for SAP professionals (at the moment), so hiring in these locations presents its own challenge. On the same note, many managers are under pressure to outsource technical teams overseas, causing additional logistical issues.

  • A reference is not a reference anymore: These days, references are not as effective a measure as they once were when ensuring a hire is going to be the right choice. This is where a wide and strong network in the community can help a lot.

When it comes down to it, hiring managers have to achieve the impossible on pretty much every project. These professionals have to find someone who has the right skills, is a cultural fit for their organisation, meets diversity targets and will stick a project out until the end – no easy task! Next time you’re working with a hiring manager, whether you’re looking for a job or already at work, remember the crazy magic they have to weave each day – and maybe grab them a coffee next time you’re getting one!