Google AI
The Times Australia

Times Media Advertising

HR Managers Get Creative on Recruitment Struggles


The tight labour market in Australia is forcing HR managers to get creative with how they source and nurture talent within companies.

With most industries nationwide citing staff shortages and difficulty recruiting for vacant roles as key factors limiting productivity, it is clear that for businesses to thrive, drastic action is needed.

This has caused HR managers and recruiters to start rethinking how they go about filling roles.

Historically, some companies had an excellent reputation for being places employees could work to grow their careers. Employees of these companies have been able to ‘start in the mailroom,’ as the cliché goes, and work themselves up to key positions within the company leadership.

However, for the most part, Australian companies have always been keen to bring in new blood, with recruitment heavily focused on attracting outside talent. This has the benefit of introducing fresh ways of doing things which can drive innovation and promote excellence.

However, in today’s tight labour market, old ways of recruiting and managing staff just aren’t working anymore.

This is driving a rethink about the value of existing staff – and maybe that is a good thing!

Filling the gap

HR managers tasked with filling roles within organisations are finding that there is a war for good talent.

Not only is it difficult to attract applications, once applicants are invited to an interview, it’s difficult to even get them through the door. Record numbers of applicants simply don’t turn up for their interviews.

As frustration sets in and companies limp along with key roles vacant, it is often the existing staff who pick up the slack. In many cases, these staff have been filling in for more senior roles but have been overlooked for promotion because of a lack of relevant qualifications.

This is why responsive HR managers are starting to look at ways to upskill these high potential existing staff members, facilitating their promotion into more senior roles that help keep things ticking along.

Through partnering with Registered Training Organisations, staff can quickly obtain qualifications that enable them to step into new roles effectively.

Workplace training courses in everything from business to health give staff practical skills, while enabling them to fast-track their progress through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Post-graduate qualifications with RPL are available to help staff step into management roles.

Human Resource management has always been about keeping the good ones and recruiting the best ones. But when finding new recruits is a challenge, we can work with turning good to best!

Property Times

Property Paralysis: Buyers Hesitate As Australia’s Housing Market Sends Mixed Signals

Australia’s property market may still be active, but beneath the auctions, listings and glossy real estate campaigns, a growing sense of uncertainty is spreading through the market. Buyers are hesitating.Sellers are confused.Banks are cautious but...

The Noise Around the 2026 Federal Budget Does Not Match the Reality for Most Property Investors

Every time the government changes the rules around property investment, the same thing happens. Phones ring, inboxes fill, and investors who have been quietly building wealth for years suddenly wonder if the ground has shifted beneath them. After t...

Budget Shockwaves: What the Federal Budget Means for Australia’s Property Market

Australia’s property market does not operate in isolation. Every federal budget sends signals to buyers, sellers, investors, developers, banks and renters about the direction of the economy, taxation, confidence and household spending. This year’s ...

Real Estate and the Federal Budget: Early Signs Emerging Across Australia’s Property Market

Australia’s federal budget has landed, and while economists, investors and political strategists continue dissecting its long-term implications, the property industry is already searching for early signs of where the market may be heading next. Re...

Food & Dining

Smart Supermarket Shopping: The Money-Saving Hacks Australians Are Rediscovering

Australians are becoming smarter supermarket shoppers. Rising grocery prices, higher mortgage repayments, expensive electricity bills and cost-of-living pressure have changed the way many households approach the weekly food shop. But contrary to p...

People Are Going Out Less — And Businesses Know It

Restaurants are full on some nights. Concerts still sell tickets. Sporting events attract crowds. Yet beneath the surface, many Australian businesses are quietly noticing a major social shift: people are going out less often. The reasons are obvi...

Lasagne Takes Centre Stage at Chiswick Woollahra This Winter

  This winter, Chiswick is launching a Lasagne Series, bringing together chefs from across the Solotel group, alongside acclaimed chef and restaurateur Matt Moran, for a nostalgic celebration of the much-loved baked pasta. Running every Sunday eveni...

Coral Trout Worth Travelling For: Lunch at The Rusty Pelican in 1770 Delivers Perfection

There are fish and chips, and then there are meals that remind Australians why fresh local seafood remains one of the country’s greatest culinary pleasures. A lunch stop today at The Rusty Pelican Cafe near the famous 1770 camping grounds in Centr...

Business Times

“People Are Spending Less”: Small Businesses Feel Australia’s Eco…

Sometimes the real state of the economy is not found in Treasury papers, Reserve Bank statements or political speeches. So...

Small Business Owners Say Confidence Is Falling Across Australia

Australia’s small business sector has long been described as the backbone of the national economy. From cafes and retailers...

Why Same-Day Flower Delivery in Melbourne Is Changing the Way Peo…

People are busier than ever today compared to three decades ago. Many children once remembered birthdays of their parents, ...

The Times Features

QLD Day

On Saturday 6 June, parkrun events across the state will be a sea of maroon, with communities  str...

NAGNATA: ‘FUTURE = FIBRE’ — Movement 21 at AFW 2026 …

Photography by Cesar OcampoOn Day 3 of Australian Fashion Week 2026, the energy at the runway shifte...

Flu Season in Australia: Why Health Authorities Are Tak…

As winter settles across Australia, so too does the annual flu season — a recurring health challen...

Smart Supermarket Shopping: The Money-Saving Hacks Aust…

Australians are becoming smarter supermarket shoppers. Rising grocery prices, higher mortgage rep...

Kmart’s Homewares Revolution: How a Discount Retailer B…

There was a time when many Australians viewed Kmart as the place to buy low-cost basics, school su...

“People Are Spending Less”: Small Businesses Feel Austr…

Sometimes the real state of the economy is not found in Treasury papers, Reserve Bank statements o...

The Arrival of Winter: More Than Just a Date on the Cal…

Winter arrives quietly in Australia. There is no dramatic wall of snow sweeping across the nation ...

The Blood Test That Could Change Colon Cancer Screening…

A simple blood test that may one day reduce the need for colonoscopies is generating enormous inte...

Recovering at Home After Surgery: The Role of Mobile Re…

Recovering from surgery can be both physically and emotionally challenging. Whether it is a joint ...