We’ve worked and trained all over Australia and here are some common mistakes we see being made by Hiring managers across all Industries, NFP and government enterprises.
Hiring managers play a critical role in recruitment - yet many have never been formally trained in how to recruit and hire effectively.
The result?
Inconsistent decisions, poor candidate experiences, and poor hiring outcomes that don’t deliver long-term strategic or performance value for the organisation.
The good news is that most recruitment mistakes are common - and fixable.
1. Not Defining What “Good” Looks Like
Always good to start with a Position Description and a brief (taken by HR or the TA team).
The mistake:
Starting recruitment without clearly defining success in the role.
Even though we have a PD or someone to replace, the core competencies and success criteria have never been truly articulated.
Impact:
- Poor candidate fit
- Confused or poor shortlisting
- Misaligned expectations of the role and the candidate
- Poor performance in the role, and high turnover (new employee does not stay or pass probation).
How to fix it:
Define:
- Core competencies required are identified
- Transferable skills recognised (could come from another sector or industry)
- Key performance outcomes of the role articulated
- Must-have vs nice-to-have criteria
- What good looks like
- What’s failed / gone wrong in the past (capabilities missing)
2. Writing Poor Job Ads
A cut and paste of the Position Description is not a great job Advert, neither is just a list of essential skills. Organisations now have to “sell” both the job and the organisation and spark interest and excitement in the opportunity.
The mistake:
Using outdated or overly generic job descriptions.
Impact:
- Attracts the wrong candidates
- Reduces application numbers and quality candidates
- Weakens the employer brand
- Makes the role and the organisation look boring!
- Doesn’t show case benefits and culture
How to fix it:
- Focus on outcomes, not just tasks
- Highlight EVP and benefits
- Be clear about what success looks like
- Relate it to them “You will bring…” language
Top tip: check out Canva’s employment adverts. They are great, casual and appealing.
3. Relying on “Gut Feel” in Shortlisting and at the Interview
The mistake:
Making decisions based on instinct or surname or suburb rather than criteria.
Impact:
- Inconsistent shortlisting
- Bias in decision-making
- Overlooking strong candidates
How to fix it:
Use structured criteria and assess all candidates consistently fairly and equally. Don’t dismiss candidates because of their name, suburb or location or because they haven’t worked at a “big” employer before (likely to be discrimination at play and illegal).
4. Conducting Unstructured Interviews
We call this a “bar stool” interview or where the Hiring Manager just rocks up with a pad, a pen and has a chat.
The mistake:
Running interviews as informal conversations. Decisions made on gut feel and not based on competence or criteria needed for the role.
Impact:
- Inconsistent candidate experience
- Difficult to compare candidates
- Increased risk of poor decisions
How to fix it:
Use:
- Structured interview packs / guides
- Question preparation in advance
- Interview frameworks
- Carefully designed competency-based questions
- Know what good looks like
- Ability to probe for more evidence (than just a surface response)
- Consistent core questions for every candidate
- Competency-based approaches
- Consistent scoring methodology, after each interview
5. Asking Weak or Irrelevant Questions
The mistake:
Asking questions that don’t assess capability. Or may even stray into personal attributes (so could be deemed as direct or indirect discrimination).
Impact:
- Superficial responses
- Lack of useful evidence
- Judging candidate on personality but not ability
- Poor decision-making
How to fix it:
Ask:
- Prepare and ask Behavioural questions
- Past Scenario-based questions (real examples not hypothetical)
- Questions linked to job role and core competencies
6. Failing to Probe for Evidence
The mistake:
Accepting answers at face value. Not asking for further details.
Impact:
- Misjudging capability (assuming capability)
- Overestimating candidates
- Increased hiring risk of the wrong candidate
How to fix it:
Use STAR probing techniques: Situation, Task, Action, Result.
- “Tell me of a time when…?”
- “What specifically did you do?”
- “What was the outcome?”
- “What did you learn from that?”
- “How do you do things differently now?”
- “Can you give me another example?”
Top tip – ask a “flip” question e.g. “Tell me of a time it all went wrong…?”
7. Poor Notetaking and Documentation
The mistake:
Relying on memory rather than evidence.
Impact:
- Weak decision-making
- Hard to compare candidates over several hours or several days
- Not reference as to why their answers were good / poor
- Hard to score or compare candidates
- Compliance risks
- Difficulty justifying decisions / organisation exposure if complaints
How to fix it:
- Provide structured interview packs
- Questions agreed in advance by the panel
- Take structured notes (not just one-word comments)
- Record evidence against criteria (save interview packs, notes and scores)
- Use evaluation templates / Scoring system on the packs
- Fill in a selection report / summary as to why the preferred candidate and scores
8. Inconsistent Candidate Evaluation
The mistake:
Different standards set for different candidates. Assumptions made.
Impact:
- Unfair hiring decisions
- Bias / unconscious Bias creeps in (especially when assumptions are made
e.g. They won’t be able to do those hours, They won't be able to work away from home….
- Poor comparison across candidates
- Unfair Preferences given to one candidate (possibly affiliation or latency bias)
How to fix it:
Use:
- Scorecards
- Consistent questions for all candidates
- Competency based assessments
- Consistent evaluation frameworks
- Score straight after the interview
9. Ignoring Bias in Recruitment
The mistake:
Not recognising your own or unconscious bias in the process.
Impact:
- Lack of diversity in hiring / the organisation
- Poor hiring outcomes
- Legal and Compliance risks
How to fix it:
- Train hiring managers on different types of bias
- Have the ability to recognise bias in self or others
- Prepare questions in advance
- Questions based on role requirements not personal attributes
- Know inappropriate questions
- Managers have received training on EEO and the law in Australia
- Focus on evidence, not similarity
10. Delaying Decisions
The mistake:
Either rushing to hire (taking the wrong person) or taking too long.
Impact:
- Losing strong candidates
- Have to start the process again
- Increased time-to-fill
- Gaps in the workforce, stress on other team members
How to fix it:
- Set clear timelines
- Book interview times in Hiring Manager diaries before adverts are even run
- Align stakeholders early on process and timelines
- All interviews on the same day / same week
- Timely decision-making asap after interviews
- Don’t delay verification checks or offer letter approvals
In Summary
Most recruitment challenges are not about attracting candidates - they are about how we prepare, assess and how decisions are made during or after the interview.
By addressing these common mistakes, organisations can significantly improve hiring quality, consistency, reduce risks, and achieve better workforce culture, and performance outcomes.
Ring any Bells?
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We provide practical tools to support compliant, inclusive hiring practices.
You can call me on 0403 899083, email me at rachel@hillconsultinghrs.com.au
