Overcoming the challenges of recruiting for construction

Construction and mining are the third equal largest industries in Australia, according to data from the Reserve Bank. Thanks to a housing shortage and a booming economy, construction is set to keep growing and eventually overtake mining in terms of economic output.

The rapid growth of such a large industry poses unique difficulties for the recruiters who staff it. What do the challenges of construction industry recruitment look like, and what can recruiters do to tackle them head on?

Construction workers are thin on the ground here in Australia. What can recruiters do?

Staffing a behemoth industry

The industry is comprised of 1 million employees and nearly 350,000 businesses, IBISWorld data shows. Staffing such a large industry is already challenging, and the high level of current activity only makes it more difficult.

In fact, figures from the Department of Jobs and Small Business show that the construction industry talent shortage is dire. The average number of applications per vacancy has fallen from 10.8 in 2012 to 7.4 in 2017, with only 1 suitable applicant per vacancy.

All construction trades are deemed to be in a state of shortage by the Department, and there are few signs that this will change in the near future. In 2018 just over half of construction vacancies are filled due to this shortage and recruiters are feeling the pinch. What can your recruitment agency do to get ahead of these challenges?

Building a usable database of talent

When talent is scarce the balance of power shifts to candidates. Recruiters are no longer sifting through dozens of construction applicants to find the perfect candidate – most just aim to find at least one or two who fit the job description.

This means recruiters need to prioritise relationships with construction industry talent, particularly people who can fill in-demand vacancies. Doing so means you need to go to your candidates, rather than coming to you. The best way to do so is to build a searchable database of applicants, that is compiled through every day interactions.

When you have a vacancy to fill this means you can increase your chances of finding the right talent by being proactive and prompting those who might have applied if they’d seen the position. Nurturing those existing relationships becomes increasingly important as the talent shortage increases in severity.

Maintaining relationships with construction industry talent and being proactive is essential during this talent shortage

Using software that maximises your efforts

There are countless ways to keep a talent database. Some use Excel spreadsheets, Google Drive documents or specialist software that they flick back and forth from when looking for candidates who may be suitable.

However, end-to-end recruitment software like FastTrack360 makes being proactive so much easier. It can handle both back and front office functions from recruitment and time capture, right through to billing clients and paying candidates, so that everything you do is in one easy-to-use system.

What’s more, every time you interact with a candidate they can be added to the searchable database within the system. That means the longer you use FastTrack360, the more valuable it will become as a recruitment tool – making finding the right candidates a breeze.

Find out how FastTrack360 has helped Dash Construction Solutions halve their payroll time and support their business for growth, and discover the importance of blue collar management software.