Why relying solely on job advertisements would shrink your construction claims and disputes talent pool

Recruiting for construction claims and disputes roles requires more than just posting a job ad and waiting for applications. It demands an in-depth understanding of the industry, access to a global network of professionals, and a tailored recruitment approach to meet the specific needs of each role.

Here are some of the limitations of only using job ads:

1.  Reaching Only Active Job Seekers

Job advertisements primarily attract active job seekers -those who are actively looking for new roles. This limits your talent pool to passive individuals who are in their current roles, or open to exploring new opportunities. While there’s certainly value in this group, it represents only a fraction of the available talent in the market.

Recruiters are experts at identifying and engaging with passive candidates—those highly qualified professionals who are not actively job-hunting but would consider a move for the right opportunity. These individuals rarely browse job boards but are often open to discussions with recruiters who understand their career aspirations and can present them with well-suited opportunities.

You can draw applicants who might not have found you through traditional job advertisements by using a specialist recruiter to access this hidden talent pool.

2.  Limited Reach and Visibility

Job advertisements are typically posted on popular job boards, company websites, or social media platforms, which are visited by people already in job-hunting mode. However, this doesn’t guarantee visibility to the right candidates, especially for highly specialised roles. In niche industries such as the construction claims and disputes industry, many of the best candidates aren’t even looking at job boards.

Furthermore, advertisements are frequently hidden under hundreds of other postings, which makes it challenging for your opportunity to be noticed. Whether or not the right person happens to be looking at the right time determines how effective job ads are.

3.  Inconsistent Quality of Applications

Job advertisements often attract a high volume of applicants, but that doesn’t necessarily equate to high-quality candidates. For specialised roles, particularly in the construction claims and disputes sector, many of the applicants may lack the niche experience or technical expertise required. This means you end up spending valuable time sifting through irrelevant applications, while the right candidate might not even see your ad.

4.  Time-Consuming and Resource-Heavy

Crafting, posting, and managing job ads can be a time-consuming and costly process. You may need to advertise in multiple places to reach a wider audience, which increases costs without guaranteeing better results. Furthermore, filtering through numerous applications can strain your HR team, diverting attention from more strategic tasks. This process can also delay the hiring of a critical role, which may impact project timelines and business performance.

As recruitment consultants, we perform preliminary interviews, screen candidates in advance, and provide you with a shortlist of suitably qualified applicants. By doing this, we ensure that your team doesn't waste time reviewing resumes and can concentrate on interviewing the most qualified applicants.

Furthermore, recruiters can act swiftly when new opportunities present themselves because they frequently already have established relationships with high-quality candidates. They can expedite the hiring process, which will enable you to fill positions more quickly and prevent expensive project delays.

5.  Making a judgement solely based on a CV

Another often overlooked downside of relying on job advertisements instead of a recruiter is the risk of making quick judgments based solely on a CV. A well-crafted CV doesn’t always indicate a great candidate, and a poorly written one doesn’t necessarily reflect a lack of skill or potential. As specialist recruiters, we go beyond the surface by conducting in-depth interviews with candidates, providing a more accurate assessment of their experience and skills. This process also allows us to offer guidance on improving CVs to better showcase strengths. Beyond evaluating technical competencies, these interviews help us assess cultural fit, ensuring a more holistic match for both the candidate and the company.

This testimonial from a candidate that I recently recruited for a premium disputes firm portrays this point pretty well:

“Trying to navigate the best time to move from a quantity surveyor role into the world of construction disputes can be a challenging endeavour. If you are somewhat like me, you might not have any idea where to start. That is how I found Maxim recruitment who showed me the way in which I could make the transition.

The guidance and support I received from Nilam was absolutely fantastic and I can confidently say I would not have been able to make the transition without her support. Her knowledge from the type of firm to the role and all the information I needed to make the successful transition was immeasurable.

Having only three years’ experience as a QS but a keen interest in Construction disputes paired with the guidance of Nilam secured my role as an associate at a global leading construction disputes consultancy. Although I was a little apprehensive at first having only three years’ experience as a QS, my opinion is that it has enabled me to start with an open view and an eagerness to learn in this niche industry. “

I first connected with this candidate when she reached out with a strong ambition to specialise in construction disputes. While her initial CV didn’t align with the typical "Quantum CVs" we usually come across, our interview revealed that she possessed the relevant experience and significant potential—qualities a CV alone couldn’t fully capture. Her personable, client-facing nature was another standout trait. Despite being relatively junior and lacking the typical 4-5 years of quantity surveying experience most firms seek, we worked together to refine her CV and prepare for interviews. Through this collaboration, we successfully secured her a role at a market-leading disputes consultancy.

Summary

In a competitive market where expertise in claims and disputes is in high demand, partnering with a recruitment agency like Maxim Recruitment that knows the industry inside and out is a smart move for businesses looking to find talent that not only meets technical needs but can also thrive in the company's environment.

For companies looking to stay ahead in this highly specialised sector, engaging with a specialist recruiter can make all the difference in securing top talent and building a strong, successful team.

If you would like to partner with market-leading recruitment specialists, feel free to reach out to one of our specialist consultants or submit a vacancy on our award-winning website, and we will be in touch to discuss further.

Nilam Modhwadia
Recruitment Consultant
Maxim Recruitment
LinkedIn

Nilam is a Recruitment Consultant based in the Maxim head office in Leicester, UK. She supports the team with researching, headhunting, shortlisting, and interviewing valuable construction industry candidates, to place them in premium construction jobs with our market-leading UK and international clients.