How We Helped a Global Engineering Organisation Reduce Time-to-Hire and Strengthen National Service Teams
Context / Background
A global engineering organisation operating across energy, marine, food & beverage, and industrial processing was expanding its Australian service operations. With every technician and engineer playing a vital role in maintaining critical equipment, unfilled roles had immediate operational and customer impacts.
Their HR function was responsible for recruitment alongside a wide range of responsibilities, making it difficult to dedicate time to sourcing niche technical candidates across multiple states.
The Problem
The client faced a growing challenge: finding highly specialised engineering talent fast enough to keep pace with operational demand.
With internal HR stretched, the organisation needed support solving deeper business issues:
Delays in hiring that slowed service delivery
High competition for niche mechanical and rotating-equipment skill sets
Pressure building on existing service teams
A need for culture-fit to drive long-term retention
Risk of productivity loss from extended vacancies
As the HR lead shared:
“Recruitment is only one portion of our HR role. We’re sometimes time poor and don’t have the capacity to search for candidates in our niche industry.”
Our Approach
We partnered closely with the client to design a recruitment strategy that addressed both capability gaps and workforce pressure.
1. Market Mapping
We built a detailed view of the national engineering landscape to identify where passive, highly skilled talent was located and what would attract them.
2. Targeted Search
Through LinkedIn Recruiter, SEEK Talent Search, referrals and direct headhunting, we reached candidates the internal team couldn’t access due to time constraints and niche requirements.
3. Technical & Behavioural Screening
We assessed each candidate’s technical capability, safety mindset, and culture alignment — ensuring long-term suitability, not just role fit.
4. Collaborative Process Delivery
We managed shortlisting, interviews, checks, negotiations and onboarding, reducing administrative load for an already stretched HR team.
5. Long-Term Workforce Partnership
We helped forecast talent gaps and build succession pipelines, improving visibility and reducing the risk of recurring vacancies.
The client noted why they chose to partner with us:
“Our consultant understands our industry, respects our recruitment process and genuinely cares. When he moved to Sirius. I was eager to continue working with him.”
Results
The outcomes delivered operational stability and long-term workforce confidence.
Key Achievements
15 permanent hires across multiple states
37 business days average time-to-fill in a niche market
87% retention at 12 months
Improved workload balance and reduced strain on existing teams
These hires brought strong experience in rotating equipment, mechanical servicing, industrial maintenance and field service, enabling the organisation to maintain service continuity and better distribute workload.
Although engineers require a structured training period before operating independently, the foundation laid by these hires has already stabilised workforce capability and reduced operational pressure.
Client Testimonial
“Having worked with Corey on a number of recruitment cycles, I can say he has been brilliant to deal with. His excitement about each role stood out immediately! Taking the time to locate quality candidates and ensuring the process is as seamless as possible has made me truly enjoy working with him.”
— HR Business Partner
Reflection
This project demonstrates the strength of a specialised recruitment partnership that understands the technical and operational realities of engineering environments.
By removing hiring pressure from a time-poor HR function and delivering niche talent consistently across the country, we helped the organisation build a more resilient workforce, reduce vacancy risk and support long-term service delivery.
Every week a vacancy remains open costs thousands in lost output. Ready to reverse that trend?
We help businesses minimise downtime, stabilise service teams, and improve workforce continuity with high-performing talent.
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Let’s build your next high-performing team together.