Do you have a position that has been open for months or are you running interviews, but none of them end with an accepted offer? Or the candidates simply don’t match the job requirements? These are situations you’ve probably met in recruitment. In many cases, the issue isn’t a lack of candidates but the gap between their expectations and employers’ requirements, along with the absence of effective negotiation tactics.
Global labor market data confirms this trend. According to the study “LinkedIn Research: Nearly 80% of people feel unprepared to find a job in 2026”, published in January 2026, almost 80% of candidates say they don’t feel prepared for the job search process in 2026, while 66% of recruiters say it’s harder than before to find truly qualified talent.
The Robert Walters Salary Survey 2026 highlights a clear gap between how employers plan salary increases and what employees and candidates expect: 69% of employers are planning salary increases of 1–5% in 2026 and almost 29% don’t anticipate any salary increase. On the other hand, 36% of employees expect a 1–5% increase, 21% expect 5–10% and almost 12% are hoping for an increase of over 10%.
In this context, recruitment becomes a balancing act between two legitimate perspectives: candidates who know their value and have expectations around salary and benefits while paying close attention to flexibility and development opportunities and managers who need people who are ready, well-matched to the role and able to deliver results quickly.
How do these expectation gaps show up in practice and how can they be managed so that the recruitment process stays efficient? Andreea Dumitrescu, Senior Recruitment Manager, and Cristina Scarlatescu, Recruitment Manager at BIA Human Capital Solutions, explain the main situations where these misalignments appear and how they can be balanced.
What do candidates want?
When you start a recruitment process, you often ask yourself what truly matters to candidates and how these expectations align with what the company can offer. Recruiters point out that candidate expectations have changed significantly in recent years and understanding them has become essential for an effective recruitment process.
“Candidates are mainly looking for competitive salaries, flexibility, stability, clear development opportunities and a healthy work environment. These expectations are largely justified. However, there are also situations where market realities can’t always support the desired level, especially when it comes to flexibility or very fast career progression. Companies are becoming more selective and budgets are carefully calibrated, which makes negotiation a real balancing exercise,” explains Andreea Dumitrescu, Senior Recruitment Manager at BIA HCS.
According to the BIA HCS recruitment team, this shift in managers’ perspective comes in the context of accelerated digitalization and strong competition for talent. Candidates have experienced remote or hybrid work and are placing increasing importance on work-life balance.
Candidates with high expectations vs demanding managers
The differences between candidate expectations and manager requirements often become visible from the very first stage of recruitment. This is where clarity and communication are critical to avoid misunderstandings in the process.
“A candidate with high expectations focuses on the salary package, flexibility and organizational culture, while a demanding manager is looking for the closest possible match: relevant experience, the ability to become autonomous quickly and immediate performance. To reach common ground, you need clarity, communication and a willingness to adjust on both sides,” highlights Cristina Scărlătescu, Recruitment Manager at BIA HCS.
Where do the most common challenges appear?
Even when you find candidates who fit the role, aligning with their expectations can still be challenging.
“The biggest misalignments usually appear around salary and flexibility in terms of schedule or work style (office, hybrid or remote). There are also gaps in the job requirements and responsibilities as well as communication, especially when the recruitment stages are not clearly explained from the start. Delayed feedback from employers, unclear requirements or unrealistic expectations can turn a simple process into a difficult one,” says Andreea Dumitrescu.
The BIA HCS team notes that many recruitment processes get extended precisely because these aspects are not clearly defined by employers from the beginning.
WHY TRANSPARENCY MATTERS MORE THAN EVER
Salary transparency is one of the key factors to consider if you want to avoid misalignment in the candidate–employer relationship. It’s even more important to include salaries or salary ranges in job ads, especially since starting June 2026 this will become mandatory with the implementation of the European Directive 2023/970 into Romanian legislation. Candidates want to know the salary upfront so they can decide whether to apply or not. When they have clear information, they can make decisions faster and with more confidence.
“Transparency around salary and benefits significantly reduces tension and shortens the recruitment process. Candidates value honesty and companies that share salary ranges attract the right profiles faster and avoid difficult negotiations at the final stage,” explains Cristina Scarlatescu.
According to the BIA HCS team, employers who take a transparent approach in recruitment help build candidate trust in the process and influence their decision to accept an offer.
FLEXIBILITY IN WORK STYLE AND SCHEDULE – A DECISIVE FACTOR FOR CANDIDATES
Beyond salary transparency, schedule flexibility is also a key factor when choosing a job.
“For companies, flexibility in work style and schedule increases the attractiveness of the role and supports retention. For candidates, it’s important to feel they have the freedom to choose their working hours or where they complete their tasks and this benefit often makes the difference when accepting a job offer. However, not all industries can offer flexible schedules or remote or hybrid work. This is where refusals often come in which makes clear communication between employers and candidates essential from the very beginning,” says Andreea Dumitrescu.
According to the BIA HCS team, many recruitment processes could be simplified if flexibility around schedule and work style were clearly stated in the job ad.
WHY A WELL WRITTEN JOB AD MAKES THE DIFFERENCE
To avoid recruitment processes that end with a candidate turning down the offer and losing valuable company resources such as time and money, make sure the job ad is clear and transparent:
“A clear and realistic job ad reduces follow up discussions and attracts the right candidates. It should include real responsibilities, not generic ones, required and optional criteria, the salary range, type of schedule and level of flexibility. Lack of clarity creates confusion and extends the process,” explains Cristina Scarlatescu.
According to the BIA HCS team, a job ad where employers clearly outline requirements, responsibilities, salary and benefits helps shorten recruitment processes.
WHO ACTUALLY MAKES THE COMPROMISES?
Let’s take this example: the job ad is well written, it attracts the right candidates, interviews begin and you reach the negotiation stage with the shortlisted candidates. At this point, it’s essential to understand where you can compromise without affecting long-term performance.
“In practice, both managers and candidates make compromises. Managers sometimes give up certain technical requirements or the level of seniority, while candidates adjust their salary expectations or level of flexibility, for example being willing to work from the office or accept a fixed schedule set by the employer. Compromise is what leads to a stable collaboration,” says Andreea Dumitrescu.
Flexibility in thinking is often the factor that makes the difference between a recruitment process that stalls and one that successfully reaches the finish line.
AND YET SOME OFFERS STILL GET TURNED DOWN. WHAT MISTAKES DO MANAGERS AND CANDIDATES MAKE?
There are positive situations where either employers or candidates make compromises and reach an agreement as well as situations where discussions end in a refusal caused by mistakes. Here’s what to watch out for if you’re a manager or an HR leader.
“Managers make mistakes when they communicate late, send unclear messages, overload the process with too many stages or offer uncompetitive packages. At the same time, candidates can miss opportunities when they don’t prepare for interviews, don’t clearly support their expectations, use rigid language or fail to ask relevant questions,” explains Cristina Scarlatescu.
The BIA HCS team recommends open communication and a well structured recruitment process to avoid these issues.
THE ROLE OF RECRUITERS: MEDIATORS BETWEEN TWO PERSPECTIVES
In a context where candidates have high expectations and managers are demanding, the role of the recruitment team becomes essential.
“Our role is to align expectations and prevent gaps. We provide real market data, clarify role requirements, manage communication and feedback and advise both candidates and managers. The goal is to build an efficient, transparent recruitment process focused on the right fit,” says Andreea Dumitrescu.
WHAT AN IDEAL CANDIDATE–MANAGER RELATIONSHIP LOOKS LIKE
The BIA Human Capital Solutions recruitment team acts as a bridge between candidates and employers to reach a balance that works for both sides:
“The ideal relationship between a candidate and a manager is built on open communication, mutual respect, transparency, quick feedback and a genuine interest in long term fit. When both sides are willing to collaborate, the recruitment process and creates a positive outcome for both sides ,” concludes Cristina Scarlatescu.
According to the BIA HCS team, effective recruitment is not just about finding the right candidate for a role but also about building a partnership with recruitment professionals who understand the labor market and have experience in negotiations between candidates and employers.
How BIA HCS supports your recruitment process:
- The collaboration starts with an initial discussion to understand each company’s specifics so we can offer tailored solutions
- We define the job profile, responsibilities and evaluation criteria
- We align the requirements with the organizational culture
- We set the strategy and the most effective channels to attract talent using direct search and headhunting
- We carry out technical and behavioral assessments
- We validate cultural and motivational fit
- We present a shortlist of candidates and organize final interviews
- We provide support during the offer and negotiation stages when needed
RESULTS AND ADVANTAGES OFFERED BY BIA HCS:
✅ Shorter recruitment time — some roles are filled in 2–5 days
✅ Expertise across multiple industries: accounting, construction, retail, medical, pharma, automotive and architecture
✅ 80% of clients come back to us year after year
✅ We manage the entire recruitment process
✅ We support offer management, salary negotiation and onboarding
✅ We offer a guarantee: we restart the recruitment process if a candidate leaves during the probation period
Differences in expectations between candidate expectations and employer requirements are common in recruitment processes. Most of the time, both sides want the same thing: a stable collaboration where skills, motivation and professional values align with the company’s goals.
For this balance to be possible, recruitment needs to be built on transparency, clear communication and realistic expectations. Role clarity, salary transparency and flexibility in negotiation can make the difference between a process that gets delayed and one that is successfully completed.
The role of recruiters becomes essential in this context — to align expectations and facilitate the dialogue between candidates and employers so they can build the right match and a long term professional partnership.
Sources:
- LinkedIn Research – “Nearly 80% of people feel unprepared to find a job in 2026”, ianuarie 2026
- Robert Walters – Salary Survey 2026
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