Sourcing talent in India has become increasingly difficult, with hiring teams facing growing challenges such as skill mismatches, slow recruitment processes, and difficulty in sourcing qualified candidates for specialized roles.
Based on real data from hundreds of Qureos campaigns, this article outlines the key pain points faced by recruiters in India and provides practical insights into overcoming these issues. By analyzing these challenges, we aim to offer solutions that will help recruiters streamline the hiring process and successfully meet their clients' needs.
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Limited Access to Qualified Candidates
A significant challenge for recruiters in India is the oversaturation of junior profiles and the shortage of skilled mid-to-senior-level candidates. Job descriptions often don't align with the actual talent pool, making it difficult to find candidates who meet the required qualifications. This mismatch contributes to prolonged hiring cycles and inefficiencies in sourcing talent.
Challenges in sourcing skilled talent
- Too many junior CVs: Recruiters frequently receive a large volume of junior-level profiles, while mid-to-senior level candidates remain scarce.
- Mismatch between job descriptions and available talent: Job descriptions often call for qualifications and experience that aren't readily available in the local market.
Qureos Insight: Many recruiters report that traditional job boards prioritize quantity over quality, making it difficult to find the right candidates for specialized roles in India.
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Lack of Verified Candidate Data
A recurring issue faced by hiring teams in India is the lack of verified candidate data. CVs are often outdated, incomplete, or even falsified, and verifying candidates' skills, experience, and readiness to change jobs can be a lengthy process. This lack of transparency causes recruiters to waste significant time vetting candidates who may not meet the job's requirements.
Challenges with candidate data
- Outdated CVs and inconsistent LinkedIn profiles: Many candidates fail to update their profiles with recent qualifications or work experience.
- Falsified experience: Some candidates embellish their resumes, making it difficult to assess their actual skills and expertise.
Qureos Perspective: Our platform tags candidate intent, readiness, and job availability before they even reach the recruiter, ensuring that only relevant and qualified candidates are shortlisted.
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Slow & Manual Sourcing Workflows
Many recruiters in India still rely on manual workflows, such as using spreadsheets and emails, to source and track candidates. This results in inefficiencies and delays, as recruiters spend a significant amount of time on tasks like outreach, qualification, and candidate communication.
Challenges with manual sourcing
- Over-reliance on spreadsheets and emails: Recruiters spend hours organizing and tracking candidates manually, leading to inefficiencies and mistakes.
- No automation for filtering or vetting: Without automated tools, recruiters spend more time filtering out unqualified candidates and chasing non-responsive applicants.
Qureos Observation: Without AI or smart filtering tools, 60–70% of recruiter time is spent qualifying candidates, instead of focusing on actual hiring.
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Nationalization Policies and Quota Pressures
Nationalization policies, such as India's reservations and other government-imposed quotas, pose challenges to recruiters trying to meet their clients' specific hiring needs. These policies require companies to hire a specific percentage of local talent, but recruiters often find it difficult to find the right candidates to comply with these quotas.
Challenges with nationalization policies
- Quota-based hiring: Recruiters must ensure that they meet nationalization quotas while also finding the right talent for specialized roles.
- Limited flexibility: Nationalization policies sometimes restrict the candidate pool, making it harder to fill positions, especially for senior or highly specialized roles.
Qureos Solution: Qureos offers filters by nationality, which helps recruiters comply with nationalization policies while ensuring that they still find the best candidates for their roles.
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Mismatch Between Skills and Job Requirements
A significant skills gap exists in India, as many applicants hold degrees but lack the job-ready skills required by employers. Companies often struggle to find candidates with the right experience, certifications, and technical skills, which results in unfilled positions and delays in hiring.
Challenges with skill mismatches
- Degree oversupply: Many candidates possess academic degrees, but lack the practical, job-ready skills required by employers.
- Missed core requirements: Many applicants fail to meet the essential experience, certifications, and tool knowledge needed for specific positions.
Qureos Feedback Loop: Our AI ranks candidates based on real-world skill signals and screening answers, ensuring that recruiters only receive candidates who are truly qualified for the job.
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Ghosting and Drop-Offs After Outreach
Ghosting and candidate drop-offs are major pain points in India, especially for highly sought-after roles in IT, healthcare, and engineering. Many candidates ignore follow-up emails, disappear mid-interview, or accept counteroffers, leaving recruiters frustrated and with lost opportunities.
Challenges with ghosting and drop-offs
- Candidates disappearing mid-process: After initial interviews or outreach, many candidates fail to respond, wasting the recruiter's time and effort.
- Counteroffers: In high-demand sectors, candidates often accept counteroffers from their current employers, leading to abandoned hiring processes.
Qureos Advantage: With intent scoring and instant video replies, Qureos helps reduce ghosting by surfacing only those candidates who are genuinely interested and available, ensuring a more efficient hiring process.
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Overdependence on Job Boards and Referrals
Many recruiters in India still rely heavily on job boards and referrals for candidate sourcing. However, these traditional methods attract low-intent candidates and have limited reach, making it difficult to fill positions quickly or scale hiring efforts.
Challenges with job boards and referrals
- Job boards attract candidates with low intent, leading to a high volume of unqualified applications that waste recruiters' time.
- Referrals offer a limited scope, particularly for diverse or volume hiring needs.
Qureos Insight: Many recruiters in India turn to Qureos after maxing out traditional sources. They’re looking for more precise, data-backed hiring solutions to streamline their recruitment efforts.
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Conclusion
Sourcing talent in India is fraught with challenges, from skill mismatches and manual sourcing workflows to ghosting and nationalization pressures. However, by leveraging modern recruiting tools like Qureos, recruiters can overcome these obstacles. Qureos uses AI-powered filtering, verified candidate data, and intent-based screening to help hiring teams find the right talent quickly and efficiently.
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