How to Win Candidates in the Current Irish Job Market, According to an Expert
Want an easy way to win great candidates this year without needing higher budgets? When Ronan Hill, Chief Operations Officer of Morgan McKinley Ireland, was asked about his 2026 predictions in our Ireland Salary Guide, he noted that: “Low-touch or automated hiring processes are pushing candidates toward more people-centred employers.”
The negative impact of AI on candidates is a worldwide problem - it has already resulted in cases being filed by US applicants against the companies that use it.
Closer to home, Professor Joseph Fuller of Harvard Business School, warned at a recent IBEC conference that AI is ruling out 50% of people with employment gaps of six months or more, predominantly women.
The result? Many Irish jobseekers are losing trust in the hiring process, with nearly half of those blaming AI for this. So, what can we do as employers to create more ‘people-centred’ hiring processes?
To find out, we spoke to Eleanor Collins, Director of Life Science, who has 15 years experience at the helm of Irish hiring in Morgan McKinley alone. Here’s her advice for boosting candidate experience with a more human approach.
Irish Job Market Tip 1: Professionalise Your Interviewers
A big mistake Eleanor has been noticing is not choosing carefully who is conducting their interviews: “Some people might be amazing at their job, but they're not good at interviewing and it can give a bad candidate experience”, she explains. This is a dangerous move as it may even put that candidate off the company later in their career.
The fix: To solve for this, Eleanor advises that it’s so important that clients:
- Assess their current interview process
- Confirm that it’s not too long (or too short - e.g. one round only)
- Ensure that the right people are in the room to make the decision
- Prevent interviewers from speaking extensively and at length
Irish Job Market Tip 2: Swap "Chat-Based" Rounds for Workshops
Assessing technical skills goes back to having the right person in the room to do that actual assessment. She reminds hiring managers: “Highly technical candidates aren’t expected to be good at interviews - they’re expected to be good at their jobs.”
The fix: For engineering or technology roles, Eleanor strongly recommends working in an assessment such as a case study, workshop or to debug or test a piece of equipment in order to showcase their abilities in real-time.
Irish Job Market Tip 3: If You Can’t Offer Hybrid Working, Offer Flexibility
Eleanor says that the need to balance on-site requirements without ruling out great candidates based outside of cities is a massive topic in Ireland, especially as the Civil Service empowers hybrid work models: “We’ve seen candidates take salary drops for roles closer to home with more flexibility”.
The fix: Even if it’s the perfect job, if the hybrid policy doesn't suit the candidate, it’s ultimately not going to be the right fit, warns Eleanor. For organisations that can’t accommodate hybrid working, they “need to offer something else” such as:
- Flexible hours, such as starting between 7am-10am and finishing between 4.30pm-6.30pm
- Extended lunch breaks to accommodate things like school pickups and medical appointments
- ‘Black and white’ parameters around this flexibility to keep expectations clear for employees
This can even increase productivity: “This is especially the case for experienced professionals who are trying to master that daily work/life flow.” However, junior professionals should want to learn the ropes and get embedded in their early years: “Flexibility is earned, not a given.”
Irish Job Market Tip 4: Beware of CVs That Seem "Too Good to Be True"
Eleanor speaks to clients everyday who are struggling with applications with CVs that have been edited to match the exact job specifications, whether they have the experience or not:
“If somebody's CV looks too good to be true and is an exact match with the role, nine out of 10 times, it is too good to be true”, says Eleanor. This is costing organisations a huge amount of time to sort through which have the legitimate skills.
The fix: By partnering with a recruiting consultant, you can eliminate this time-heavy process. They can set up quick screening calls with designated questions you’ve decided on in order to rule a candidate in or out. They will also have candidates ready to go in their extensive talent pool to add.
If it’s not feasible to engage with a consultancy, Eleanor recommends for the TA or HR person responsible to sit with the hiring manager and decide on these technical screening questions, along with the answers you’re ideally looking for, in order to quickly screen candidates in and out.
Irish Job Market Tip 5: Decide on Exact Recruitment Process Early On
The most common mistakes Eleanor sees Irish businesses making with their hiring are long and unstructured interview processes, unclear decision-makers, along with interview rounds being added on to keep the hiring manager happy.
“I think because the market is so tight, hiring managers are nearly afraid to make a decision on a new hire”, explains Eleanor, who recommends to:
- Take a couple of steps back and think of what has worked best in the past in relation to your hiring process
- Make the process as condensed as possible, with the right people in the room at the right time
- Know that if you’re not doing this, candidates will choose the more efficient, effective and better interview process
Irish Job Market Tip 6: Don’t Use Counter-Offers to Keep Employees
It has happened to every organisation at one time or another - one of your highest performers hands in their notice for another role and you decide to keep them with a counter-offer.
But Eleanor has important advice: counter-offers are not recommended. And in fact, the statistics would support that they don’t work anyway.
She explains: “If somebody is on the market looking for a job, they have mentally already checked out in some capacity. And the statistic we keep seeing is that within 6-12 months of it being accepted, they will be on the market again.”
Want to learn more about the trends defining the Irish job market? Download our new salary guide – or speak to one of our consultants about your hiring.
