The Downsides of a Long Recruitment Process—and How to Speed Up Hiring

Deciding whether and when to extend a job offer to a potential hire can be a struggle for managers. If you’ve hired the wrong candidate before, you may be inclined to move slowly, so you can be extra confident in your decision. You might also be tempted to wait for an “ideal” candidate to appear if the professional you’re currently considering doesn’t meet all your requirements.

In either case, you may miss your opportunity to make an offer if the candidate tires of waiting and moves on—potentially, to a competitor. One of the top risks of a long hiring process is letting a great hire slip away. And in the current hiring environment, the need to snap up skilled talent quickly is more urgent than you might think.

In today’s labor market, the challenge isn’t just finding skilled talent, it’s convincing them to make a move. New Robert Half research shows that only 27% of U.S. professionals plan to proactively look for a new job in the second half of 2025, down from 35% one year ago. On top of that, research for our Demand for Skilled Talent report shows that 92% of employers say it’s challenging to find skilled professionals today, a difficulty compounded by fewer workers actively seeking new opportunities.

So, what can you do to move faster and with more agility when hiring talent for your firm? A crucial starting point is understanding what issues may be holding you back, aside from your own second-guessing or holding out for unicorns.

How to Reduce Time‑to‑Hire: 5 Steps to Help Speed Up the Hiring Process

What can slow down the hiring process?
What are the effects of a long hiring process?
5 strategies to streamline your hiring process

What can slow down the hiring process?

Here are some factors that can create delays in the hiring process. How many can you relate to?

Lack of internal alignment: Before a job is even advertised, all hiring decision-makers should be on same page about the position’s responsibilities, reporting structure, location (e.g., will the job be fully in-office, hybrid or remote?), and starting salary.

Inefficient screening processes: Taking too long to review resumes and conducting initial screenings can derail the hiring process at its earliest stages. You can easily get bogged down if you’re trying to manage all these steps on your own, too, instead of engaging resources like a specialized staffing firm.

Too many interview rounds: While you always want to be thorough when hiring employees for your team, excessive rounds of interviews can be redundant and cause candidates to lose interest. (It might also give them the impression you’re not confident about hiring them.)

Bureaucratic bottlenecks: Lengthy chains of approval and overly rigid hiring policies can slow down your ability to make a job offer or settle on the final compensation package. And by the time you break through all the red tape, you may have missed your moment to hire a talented new employee.

What are the effects of a long hiring process?

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The risks of a long hiring process are many, and they extend well beyond losing out on a top candidate. Here are seven downsides of a long recruitment process, based on our research for the Demand for Skilled Talent report. U.S. hiring managers surveyed by our company cited the following impacts their organization experienced due to not staffing an open role:

Employee burnout (42%): When a key role remains unstaffed for an extended period, existing team members must take on extra work to compensate. This increased workload can lead to stress and decreased job satisfaction, making employee burnout a serious concern.

Delayed project timelines (39%): Teams rely on having the right personnel in place to move projects forward. A long hiring process can stall your company’s initiatives, disrupt deliverables and create frustration among team members left waiting for much-needed support.

Decreased productivity (37%): An unstaffed role can impede your team’s overall performance. The longer it takes to hire, the more work is left undone. This creates inefficiencies that can impact both short-term output and long-term business goals.

Higher employee turnover (36%): If your employees feel overburdened, they may start looking for new opportunities elsewhere. High turnover rates can further exacerbate your hiring challenges and create a cycle of continuous recruitment issues.

Inability to support critical projects (34%): If an open position is tied to a crucial function or project, your organization may struggle to meet deadlines, deliver results or maintain its competitive edge.

Lower team morale (31%): A slow hiring process can lead to frustration and disengagement among employees. When teams see a lack of urgency in hiring, they may question whether the company is committed to supporting its workforce.

Lost revenue (23%): Depending on the responsibilities involved, an unstaffed position can lead to lost potential revenue—from missed sales opportunities to delays in service to operational inefficiencies. And the longer a key position remains vacant, the greater the potential financial impact on the business.

Learn more about what’s happening in the hiring environment and the challenges employers are facing in the latest Demand for Skilled Talent Report from Robert Half.

5 strategies to streamline your hiring process

If you want to avoid the costs of a long recruitment process, you need to move faster to secure talent while also doing what’s needed to make solid staffing decisions. In fact, 51% of managers say evaluating candidates’ applications and determining who to interview takes longer now than it did two years ago, followed by checking references and conducting background checks (46%); scheduling and conducting interviews (43%); writing and posting job descriptions (36%); and negotiating offers (36%).

The five strategies outlined below can help you avoid the risks of a long hiring process, while keeping your talent recruitment standards high.

1. Write a targeted job description

Earlier, we mentioned that the lack of internal alignment among hiring decision-makers can be an obstacle to hiring speed. When you gain alignment, it helps you define the requirements, responsibilities and opportunities of a role, so you can avoid posting vague or overly broad job descriptions.

With targeted descriptions, you can attract candidates who meet your qualifications, instead of wasting time reviewing applications from those who don’t. (See our tips for creating a great job description.)

2. Set a hiring timeline—and stick to it

Establish a structured timeline, including deadlines for reviewing applications, conducting interviews, checking references and making a decision. Make a point to block out time on hiring decision-makers’ calendars for interviews to help minimize scheduling issues after you identify a strong potential hire. This is especially important when you consider that more than half of managers (58%) say it takes them four weeks or longer to hire for a permanent role—plenty of time for top candidates to lose interest or accept another offer.

When speed-to-hire is critical, a professional staffing firm can help you save time and effort and avoid costly hiring mistakes. Learn more about working with a recruiter to hire talent.

3. Streamline the interview process

The interview stage is one of the most time-consuming aspects of hiring, but it doesn’t have to be. Start with well-prepared initial screenings via phone or video to evaluate candidates before you commit to scheduling an in-person meeting.

When you’re ready to set up on-site interviews with candidates, try to consolidate these meetings into one or two days. Also, limit the number of rounds, and involve only the most essential stakeholders, especially as you move closer to making an offer.

4. Provide clear and frequent communication

Do your best to keep candidates informed throughout the hiring process. This will help demonstrate that you respect their time, appreciate their interest and understand you may not be the only employer they are targeting.

Set expectations with candidates about the hiring timeline from the start. If there’s a delay, a simple message or phone call can reassure them they’re still under consideration. If a candidate is a strong contender, express your enthusiasm and step up communication. This can help foster trust and keep top candidates focused on your company—instead of a competitor.

5. Make offers quickly and decisively

Once you’ve identified a potential employee, don’t hesitate to make a move. Extend a verbal offer that’s contingent on background and reference checks. If you have internal alignment on all the details already—job responsibilities, compensation, and perks and benefits—you can present a clear and accurate offer that helps reduce last-minute negotiations. You can move faster to put an agreed-upon offer into writing, officially hire your candidate and start the onboarding process. For tips on making your offers more compelling, see our guide to attracting top talent with competitive compensation and benefits.

Hiring employees sounds routine, but it’s one of the most critical decisions for your company. Sometimes, the importance—and pressure—of this effort can lead to an overly complex and time-consuming recruitment process that frustrates candidates and leaves you with unstaffed roles longer. With a well-organized, targeted and agile approach and support from the right resources, you can avoid the downsides of a slow hiring process and secure the skilled talent your organization needs to succeed.

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