The automotive industry isn’t facing a talent shortage, but a failure in its recruitment process, writes Fraser Brown, managing director of MotorVise.
That may seem at odds with the fact that nine in ten automotive employers experience difficulty in filling roles across the UK – significantly higher compared with other sectors. However, the problem isn’t a lack of people but a failure to connect the right candidates with the right opportunities.
At the same time, candidates increasingly describe a recruitment experience that leaves them disengaged long before any meaningful interaction with a prospective employer. When both sides are left frustrated, it points to a failing recruitment system.
The operational cost of broken hiring
Speak to any dealer principal or sales manager, and the challenges are consistent. One week brings a high volume of applications, the next very few that meet the required standard. Significant time is spent reviewing CVs to identify a shortlist, and when contact is made, response rates can be low. Of those invited to interview, a notable proportion don’t attend.
Even at the interview stage, the final choice is often limited, which means employers have even less chance of securing the best possible hire.
There is also a clear operational cost. Interviewing 20 candidates for a single vacancy can absorb up to 40 hours of management time once CV screening, scheduling, administration and no-shows are factored in. For many dealerships, it represents a considerable distraction from day-to-day performance.
The candidate experience problem
From the candidate’s perspective, the experience can be equally challenging. Applications often receive an automated acknowledgement, whilst recruitment processes can involve multiple stages with limited feedback or clarity on timelines. In some cases, interviews are arranged and withdrawn.
The result is a gradual erosion of interest and trust in the process, and in an industry built on customer experience, which is a concern.
Part of the issue lies in how recruitment processes have evolved. Greater use of automated screening may improve efficiency, but it also narrows the focus too early. Candidates are assessed against fixed criteria rather than broader potential, and key attributes such as communication style and interpersonal skills are difficult to evaluate through a CV alone.
At the same time, the sector itself is changing. Electrification, new technologies and evolving customer expectations are reshaping the skills required across both sales and aftersales functions. However, many recruitment processes are stubbornly aligned to traditional role profiles and methods of assessment.
This creates a disconnect between what businesses need and how candidates are evaluated.
Retention starts before the hire
There is also a wider workforce challenge to consider, with an ageing employee base and increasing competition for talent across multiple sectors.
Despite this, the issue is not simply attraction but retention within the recruitment process itself. Lengthy and fragmented hiring journeys increase the likelihood that strong candidates disengage or accept alternative offers.
In effect, the industry is losing candidates before decisions are even made and addressing this requires a shift in approach.
Reducing process and increasing interaction
There is growing recognition that more streamlined, experience-led recruitment models deliver better outcomes. Approaches that bring candidates and employers together more quickly and assess individuals in a more practical and interactive way, can reduce time-to-hire while improving quality of fit.
From our experience at MotorVise delivering recruitment days across the UK, the difference is often in the format. When employers meet a high volume of pre-screened candidates face-to-face in a single, structured environment, they gain a far clearer understanding of how individuals communicate, think and perform – something that’s difficult to achieve through CVs and traditional interviews alone.
This format provides greater visibility of how candidates perform in real-world scenarios, while offering a clearer and more engaging experience for applicants. The principle is straightforward: reduce process, increase interaction.
Ultimately, recruitment in automotive needs to better reflect the nature of the industry itself. Success in dealerships is built on communication, trust and personality, yet these are often the hardest qualities to identify through traditional hiring methods.
Because in its current form, the system is not delivering the people the industry needs.
Author: Fraser Brown, managing director, MotorVise
Ensure you always receive AM insights. Make us a preferred source of news on Google