5 Common Recruitment Problems & How to Fix Them: A Guide for Hard-to-Fill Vacancies

• About the Author:

Jan Bernhart is a recruitment veteran. Having worked as in-house headhunter for companies like Booking, Bol and Adyen, his specialization in recruitment became to tackle vacancies that seemed ‘stuck’. Currently, Jan Bernhart leads the boutique Executive Search Firm called IT Leaders.

Table of Contents

1. The right mindset; A prerequisite for problem solving

2. Common recruitment problems

• Problem 1: Looking for a Unicorn

• Problem 2: Looking for Overqualified People

• Problem 3: Process Blockers

• Problem 4: Looking for a Dobby

• Problem 5: They Actually Don’t Want to Hire

3. Conclusion

1: The Right Mindset for Tackling Hard-to-Fill Vacancies

Tackling hard-to-fill vacancies starts long before you dig into possible solutions - it begins with how you think about the problem. After 17 years in recruitment, I've found these three mindset shifts make the difference between frustration and success.

• Collaboration is Key: Recruitment is a team effort. Hard-to-fill vacancies are a shared problem, and recruiters should avoid taking sole responsibility. If you (or your stakeholders) think you can fix the problem alone, you’re heading for trouble.   Encourage collaboration with stakeholders (hiring team, managers, and leaders).

• Work Smarter, Not Harder: It’s hard to see patterns when you’re in the middle of the weeds. Take a step back, analyze data, and consult stakeholders who are not directly involved. Avoid burnout by focusing on strategic solutions rather than just working harder.

• Know Your Solution Biases: We all have go-to solutions (headhunting! more branding!). But like using a hammer for every problem, this often misses the mark. First diagnose the real issue - is it truly a pipeline problem, or is it misaligned stakeholders? Then match the solution to the root cause.

2: The 5 Common Problems with Hard-to-Fill Vacancies

I’ve categorized 5 common problems in recruitment, and will discuss them one by one. This is not an exhaustive list, and you sometimes run into a mix of these common problems. 

Problem 1: Looking for a Unicorn

Probably the best-known recruitment problem is the Unicorn (or purple squirrel) problem. A recruiter is set to find a candidate with a long and unique mix of requirements. The underlying cause is often a Manager who has multiple challenges in their team and hopes to hire someone who can fix all of them. This could lead to a search for a full-stack developer with devops expertise who enjoys pre-sales calls and can lead the team without being the manager. Onsite. In Antarctica. 

The solution for this problem is actually quite straightforward, though not always easy to execute. Unicorns do not exist. You need the make the Hiring Team realize that. Make a search with all requirements, and show them the results. Show what the same team at comparable companies looks like. Show that reality, and take them out of a fantasy land in which one hire will solve all problems. Then, show them what is possible if we remove one requirement (and play with this so they have options). This should lead to a more realistic job profile. 

• The Tells: The job lists an unusual set of skills/experience that you have never seen before. Even the most elaborate search gives no good results, when all requirements are used. 

• Solutions: Show the hiring team the reality of the market by presenting search results with all requirements. Also, show the current team and competitors’ teams to provide context.

Problem 2: Looking for Overqualified People

This problem is often confused with the Unicorn problem, but it is essentially different.

In this problem, the target audience that the Hiring Team wants to hire does exist, but they are not interested in joining. 

The underlying cause is that leaders often overestimate the attractiveness of their team/department/company. Is the Hiring Manager convinced that candidates should be lining up for this job, while in fact they aren’t? That’s a sign. Is your payscale lower than the market average, but does the hiring team expect to hire ‘A-players’? Are you looking for someone who has already done this type of job for multiple years in a comparable or more attractive company? 

Solving this problem can be tricky. Being the messenger that the company isn’t as attractive as the leaders think, might not be good for your career. Instead, keep sharing data; the number of people who declined your messages, the reasons why prospective candidates turn down your job, and the salary expectations of your target audience. Let facts and reality be the messenger. Another great solution is to involve the hiring team in messaging prospective candidates. If they are successful and you end up with a hire; great. If they are not successful, the team gets to experience for themselves how the market is responding to the job proposition. 

• The Tells: The dream candidates do exist, but they don’t want to join the company. The hiring team may overestimate the company’s attractiveness.

• Solutions: Share data on response rates and compensation to set realistic expectations. Involve the team in contacting candidates to build rapport and trust.

Problem 3: Process Blockers

The hiring team has set a workable and realistic job profile, and you’re achieving a healthy pipeline of candidates. But they don’t get hired. Promising candidates pull out, and interviewers disagree in their interview feedback.

Sounds like you have a problem in the selection process.

The underlying cause is often that various stakeholders have a different view/interpretation of the position. Perhaps the engineers prefer an introverted problem solver, while product hopes to hire an outgoing go-getter. Or interviewers create a test/assignment that saves them time, at the cost of the candidates' time. Sometimes, hiring becomes the playfield of a political game that has been smoldering between the stakeholders. 

No amount of headhunting or employer branding will solve the root of this problem (though you might get lucky, but that just pushes the problem to the next role). You’ll need to identify the misalignment and pain points, and  share this with the key decision makers

• The Tells: Promising candidates drop out during the process, you’re getting mixed signals from interviewers and candidates, and extra interview rounds are added.

• Solutions: Ask rejected candidates about their feedback on the role and procedure. Shadow interviews and ask interviewers’ opinions on the process.  Use this to point out misalignment and involve stakeholders to recalibrate.

Problem 4: Looking for a Dobby 

In the world of Harry Potter, Dobby is a highly capable house-elf, yet his role is limited to routine tasks—wasting his potential. Similarly, many teams have unglamorous but necessary work that nobody wants. When hiring, there’s often a temptation (consciously or not) to offload these tasks onto a new hire. 

This becomes a problem when the job is marketed as challenging, peer-level work—but in reality, it’s grunt work with no growth path.

This is a very difficult role to fill.

Signs you have a Dobby problem:

• Internal avoidance: Team members could do these tasks, but won’t.

• Candidate dropouts: Strong applicants withdraw after learning the role’s reality.

• Misaligned job reqs: The tasks don’t match the posted qualifications

The best solution? Turn this problem into a win-win: Frame the role as a traineeship for high-potential juniors or career switchers. The ‘easier’ tasks are great for people who can use some practice to gain work experience. 

This generates a fantastic pipeline of self–trained colleagues into the company, AND relieves teams from tasks that distract the seniors from their main focus. Seniors can play a great mentoring role in this scenario, which makes it a learning opportunity for them as well.

• The Tells: Good candidates withdraw when they learn the finer details of the job. Current team members have the skills to do the tasks of this role, but prefer not to.  

• Solutions: Encourage the team to make this position a traineeship with a clear growth path for a high-potential who lacks experience.

Problem 5: They Actually Don’t Want to Hire 

Some roles stay open forever—not because of market challenges, but because the hiring manager doesn’t actually want to fill them (yet). This problem can cause trauma for recruitment teams because we feel like we’re failing when a role is open for a long time. 

The underlying cause is usually that a hiring manager has a ‘right’ (sometimes called headcount) to hire someone, but doesn’t want to use that right in the short term. Why does this happen? Various reasons could apply.

• The team is too busy to onboard a new colleague

• The headcount or organization might change soon 

• Being ‘understaffed’ is a great excuse for not hitting targets

The tricky part is that they won’t tell recruitment that they are not planning to fill the role in the short term. This might lose them the right to hire, or could signal a change that shouldn't be known yet. 

How to spot a reluctant hiring manager:

They take weeks for simple decisions.

They have a rolling unavailability for interviews.

They ghost you for updates.. 

The solution for this problem is tricky, as company politics are quickly involved. Call it out tactfully—but if priorities won’t change, match their urgency to save your sanity. And remember: A role staying open isn’t your failure—it’s a reflection of their priorities. 

• The Tells: The hiring team delays basic decisions and doesn’t give any priority to the job opening.

• Solutions: Adjust your pace and urgency to that of the hiring team.

Conclusion:

Hard-to-fill vacancies are rarely about a lack of candidates—they’re about misalignment, unrealistic expectations, or hidden hesitations. Whether you’re battling unicorn hunts, Dobby roles, or silent disinterest from hiring teams, the key is to diagnose the real problem before prescribing a solution.

Recruitment isn’t just about filling seats; it’s about aligning people, priorities, and possibilities. By addressing these five common pitfalls—with data, collaboration, and a dash of creativity—you can transform stalled searches into strategic wins.

Remember:

• Unicorns don’t exist, but compromise does.

• Overestimated allure fades in the face of market reality.

• Process blockers reveal deeper team dynamics.

• Dobby roles are hidden opportunities to grow talent.

• Reluctant hiring managers need patience, not pressure.

What’s the most creative fix you’ve applied to a hard-to-fill role? Connect with me —let’s trade tactics and raise the bar for recruitment together.

Jan Bernhart is a recruitment veteran who specializes in difficult, high-impact hires. As the founder of IT Leaders, he helps companies build teams that thrive—not just survive.