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- Last Updated: September 03, 2025
The State of Online Recruiting
2025
As the recruiting landscape continues to evolve, understanding the trends and technologies influencing how employers and candidates connect is critical to compete for top talent.
In its seventh year of publication, iHire’s State of Online Recruiting Report takes a deep dive into these trends, giving hiring professionals data-driven advice for overcoming their most pressing challenges and leveraging the right solutions to grow their teams.
For our 2025 report, iHire surveyed 1,421 job seekers and 529 employers from 57 industries across the U.S. While we investigated perennial topics like job board usage, talent shortages, and ghosting, we expanded our coverage of AI adoption in 2025’s report, investigating how employers and candidates are increasingly using the technology, as well as their concerns and hesitations.
We also shared employers’ and candidates’ expectations for hiring and job searching, respectively, in the coming year, while themes such as employee upskilling, talent pipelining, age discrimination, and candidate competition recurred throughout the report.
Ready to uncover our exclusive insights? Dig into iHire’s 2025 State of Online Recruiting Report for hiring statistics and recruiting trends you won’t find anywhere else.
Executive Summary
Job Boards Are Key for Connecting Candidates and Employers – But Only If Platforms Keep Reinventing Themselves
With turbulence across the job board space, especially in the past few months with CareerBuilder and Monster’s downfall, it may seem that job boards have lost their appeal.
However, employers continue to lean on these platforms for recruiting – 68.6% of survey respondents said they conduct “all” or “most” of their hiring through job boards, and 31.9% believe their reliance on job boards will increase in the coming year. Candidates, too, are using online recruitment platforms in their hunt, with 79.5% of surveyed workers relying on general job boards to search for career opportunities, and 53.8% using industry-specific or niche job boards.
Yet, employers may only stay reliant on job boards that are continuously evolving and reinventing themselves to offer value beyond “post and pray.” Job boards that forge meaningful connections between job seekers and employers through AI-powered tools that enable proactive sourcing, pipelining, brand storytelling, personalized communication, and more will come out on top in this market.
For instance, employers surveyed showed interest in job boards that offer messaging (email and text) tools to communicate with candidates, prescreening questions, skills assessments, interview scheduling solutions, job ad writing features, and applicant tracking system (ATS) integrations.
Nevertheless, job boards aren’t the only recruiting resources today’s employers rely on – 71.3% use referrals from current employees, 49.5% use their company website or dedicated career page on their website, and 46.1% use professional networking sites like LinkedIn to reach the right talent. Job seekers, too, use channels outside of job boards including professional networking sites (54.9%), company websites (45.0%), search engines (41.6%), and networking (32.7%) to find opportunities, suggesting a multi-channel approach to recruiting and job searching is still utilized.
AI Adoption Is Booming, But Apprehension Lingers
AI has infiltrated every industry and even our everyday lives. In iHire’s survey, 25.9% of employers said they are currently using AI in their recruitment efforts. While that may seem like a low percentage, consider how 14.7% of employers said the same in 2024’s State of Online Recruiting Survey, and just 4.9% said the same in 2023’s. Popular AI use cases among employers are writing job ads (73.0%) and composing messages (emails, texts, etc.) to candidates (68.6%).
Candidates are also increasingly testing the waters of AI, with 29.3% having used AI to write or customize their resume or cover letter in the past year – a significant uptick from 17.3% who said the same in 2024. Moreover, 6.9% of job seekers have begun using generative AI platforms like ChatGPT to search for work opportunities.
However, there is still some apprehension around AI for both groups. When asked about their biggest challenges or concerns with AI, employers cited fake or fraudulent candidates (24.4%) and inauthentic candidate applications/resumes (24.2%) as their top worries.
For job seekers, the chief concern about AI is that the technology will replace their jobs or make roles less significant – a fear expressed by 24.3% of respondents.
The Candidate-Employer Communication Gap
Ghosting – employers not responding to candidates and vice versa – has been a recurring issue in this annual report. This year, 59.0% of candidates said applying for jobs and not hearing back from employers was a top job search challenge, while 50.7% of employers said they were frustrated by candidates ghosting them (not responding to outreach or showing up to interviews). Further, 47.4% of candidates expect ghosting to impact their job search or career growth in the next year.
AI tools, including those offered by job boards and recruiting platforms, as well as generative AI solutions, hold potential to help close that communications gap. In fact, 31.8% of employers said they valued AI tools on job boards that facilitate sending messages to candidates, and 30.2% said the same about AI tools that help them compose messages to applicants.
As employers continue to adopt AI, we should see more hiring pros using these tools to streamline communications. And, when employers are responsive to candidates, candidates are more likely to reciprocate the actions, therefore decreasing instances of ghosting.
Employers Are Turning to Alternative Talent Sources Due to Talent Shortages and Economic Uncertainty
Another key finding from iHire’s survey is employers’ challenge with attracting qualified candidates amid an ongoing talent shortage – a frustration of 59.7% of respondents. Plus, 54.8% of employers foresee the skills gap affecting talent acquisition in the coming year, and 31.8% said the same about economic uncertainty and recession fears.
These trends highlight the need for adaptive hiring strategies and innovative approaches to source the right talent. Fortunately, many employers are already implementing such strategies. Our survey showed that in the past year:
- 42.3% of organizations have focused on internal mobility, promoting or laterally moving employees instead of hiring external candidates.
- 36.9% hired from their talent pipeline.
- 30.8% rehired former staff, commonly referred to as “boomerang” employees.
- 27.8% upskilled or reskilled current employees.
As a result, companies are creating pathways to long-term workforce stability while treading cautiously in light of the cooling labor market.
Upskilling, Reskilling, and the Aging Workforce
Along with the above hiring tactics, upskilling and reskilling current employees emerged as one of the most talked about trends in talent acquisition in 2025, with 27.8% of surveyed employers prioritizing the development of their existing employees to meet their business needs.
Upskilling or reskilling will prove valuable given the aging workforce – a concern of nearly 30.0% of employers. As baby boomers retire, organizations can train their staff to fill vacant roles or take on specific tasks. Or, as baby boomers choose to remain in or return to the workforce (10.1% of job seekers surveyed were coming out of retirement), upskilling or reskilling can help older employees acquire new competencies and maintain relevancy.
Yet, the aging workforce is experiencing a unique predicament: age discrimination. 28.1% of candidates surveyed cited ageism as a job search challenge, and 48.2% anticipated age discrimination hindering their job search or career growth in the coming year.
As employers upskill/reskill workers, they should also aim to nurture an inclusive work environment for people of all ages and ensure their hiring practices don’t subject applicants to conscious or unconscious bias. For example, anonymizing resumes with AI tools to remove dates is one way to reduce bias in recruiting.
Employer Branding and Candidate Engagement Are Vital to Effective Online Recruiting
Posting a job with a few details about the requirements won’t cut it for effective online recruiting. When nearly 60.0% of employers report receiving too many unqualified applicants, attracting the right talent requires paying extra attention to how well the job posting conveys one’s employer brand and engages the candidate.
When asked what employers could do to raise the likelihood that they’d apply for a job, candidates surveyed had a lengthy wish list, which included indicating their anticipated hiring timeline (60.5%), specifying the salary range (57.1%), including contact information for the hiring manager or recruiter (40.7%), listing benefits information (27.2%), and providing details about their company culture and values (22.0%). Atop that, 18.7% of candidates said they were frustrated with unclear or vague job postings.
Including details candidates want to see in a posting can entice great talent to apply while helping verify that the job is legitimate in a time when candidates struggle to discern real job ads from scams. Next to ghosting, fake, fraudulent, or “ghost” jobs were candidates’ second most pressing challenge (39.9%), and 15.2% of job seekers said that an increase in such postings is the single biggest change they’ve witnessed in the job search space over the past five years.
Creating clear, compelling job postings that emphasize one’s employer brand and share enough details to engage and excite a candidate about the possibility of landing the job – and using AI to help when needed – can give employers a competitive recruiting advantage and win over top talent.
Employer Survey Results
Despite a slowing job market, hiring is up 5.8% year-over-year among employers surveyed for our annual report. Specifically, 80.0% of employers were currently hiring as of early July 2025, compared to 75.6% who said the same in 2024’s survey (Figure 1).
Of the 17.0% of employers who weren’t hiring, over half (53.3%) said they simply didn’t have a need, and 34.4% had recently hired and already filled positions (Figure 2). Still, some employers remain cautious amid ongoing economic uncertainty, with 11.1% implementing a hiring freeze, 8.9% cutting budgets, and 7.6% reducing headcount.
Are you currently hiring? Figure 1
Why aren’t you hiring? (Select all that apply.) Figure 2
*Other responses include company was acquired, company closed, and slow season.
Employers’ Job Board Usage
Job board usage has been steady year-over-year. In 2025, 68.6% of employers said they conduct “all” or “most” of their hiring through job boards (Figure 3). At the same time, just 6.5% of employers expect their reliance on job boards to decrease in the coming year, while 31.9% believe it will increase and 54.1% think it will stay the same (Figure 4).
Approximately how much of your hiring is done through job boards/recruiting platforms? Figure 3
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All of it | 23.8% | 25.6% | 25.6% |
| Most of it | 44.8% | 42.5% | 44.6% |
| Some of it | 18.1% | 20.0% | 18.6% |
| None of it | 4.5% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| It depends on the position we’re filling | 8.7% | 8.5% | 7.0% |
In the coming year, you expect your company’s reliance on job boards/recruiting platforms to: Figure 4
Most Valuable Job Board Features
Today’s best job boards offer features and functionalities beyond simply sharing job postings. As employers rely on job boards for filling open positions, they also value platforms that provide tools for emailing (47.1%) and texting (34.6%) candidates, prescreening questions to filter out unqualified applicants (44.6%), and applicant skills assessments (28.4%) (Figure 5).
In comparison, few employers (4.9%) desired “blind” hiring tools that anonymize resumes to reduce bias, and just 6.2% found the ability to collect and publish employee testimonials valuable.
What tools and features do you find most valuable on a job board/recruiting platform? (Select all that apply.) Figure 5
Other Recruiting Resources
Although job boards are most employers’ go-to recruiting solutions in their HR tech stack, hiring professionals are taking a multi-channel approach to talent acquisition. Aside from job boards, employers rely most heavily on referrals from current employees (71.3%) to connect with potential hires (Figure 6).
Meanwhile, a little less than half of respondents lean on their own websites or dedicated career pages (49.5%), professional networking sites like LinkedIn (46.1%), and social media (43.5%). Notably, 34.4% of employers said they use alumni networks and career centers – up from 28.3% in 2024’s survey – showing that more companies are trying to reach younger generations.
Aside from job boards, which of the following resources do you use regularly for recruiting? (Select all that apply.) Figure 6
*Other responses included state employment resources, referrals from clients and business partners, and digital ads on streaming platforms.
Social Media Channels for Recruiting
How essential are social media platforms for recruiting? To find out, we asked employers which sites (aside from LinkedIn) they use to hire, and job seekers which platforms they use to find work opportunities (Figure 7).
Facebook was the top site for both groups, followed by Instagram; but in general, job seekers appear to turn to social media more than their employer counterparts. For example, 14.8% of job seekers use YouTube to search for jobs, but just 4.8% of employers are leveraging the channel for recruiting.
Which of these social media sites do you regularly use for recruiting? (Select all that apply.) Figure 7
| Employers | Candidates | |
|---|---|---|
| 83.0% | 72.2% | |
| 37.0% | 24.7% | |
| X/Twitter | 9.1% | 9.0% |
| TikTok | 6.5% | 12.1% |
| YouTube | 4.8% | 14.8% |
| Other | 3.0% | 11.2% |
| Snapchat | 0.4% | 3.1% |
Online Recruiting Challenges
Year after year, employers have pointed to candidate quality as their top recruiting challenge. In 2025’s survey, 59.7% of employers reported receiving too many unqualified candidates when recruiting through a job board (Figure 8). However, that number is down slightly, as 63.3% of employers were challenged with poor candidate quality in 2024 and 62.6% in 2023.
The second and third most pressing challenges – candidate ghosting (50.7%) and cost of using a job board (50.3%) – mirrored 2024’s survey responses, while employers also struggled with receiving too few applicants (34.2%), candidates dropping out of the hiring process (27.0%), and engaging passive candidates (21.0%).
What are your biggest challenges when recruiting through a job board or recruiting platform? (Select all that apply.) Figure 8
*Other responses included fake or outdated resumes, candidates not passing background checks, and candidates not showing up for work on the first day.
Further, 7.4% of employers said there are too many AI-powered tools on job boards and they aren’t sure how to use them or don’t want to use them, and 3.6% said there weren’t enough of these tools to simplify their hiring… which leads us to our next section on AI.
AI in Recruiting
Love it or hate it, AI is here for good. And, our survey suggests that adoption of AI hiring tools in the hiring process is climbing steadily (Figure 9) – 25.9% of employers are using AI in their recruitment efforts in 2025, compared to 14.7% in 2024 and 4.9% in 2023. That’s a 76.2% increase since 2024, and a 428.7% increase since 2023.
Are you using AI in your recruitment efforts? Figure 9
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 25.9% | 14.7% | 4.9% |
| No | 67.5% | 79.9% | 86.9% |
| Unsure | 6.6% | 5.5% | 8.2% |
But exactly how are employers using AI in recruitment in 2025? Writing job ads was the top use case (73.0%) among AI adopters, followed by composing (68.6%) and sending (49.6%) messages to candidates to keep them engaged and inform them of their application status during the hiring process (Figure 10).
Additionally, 32.1% of employers who use AI are leveraging it to screen applicants and resumes, up from 11.6% who said the same in 2024, while 16.1% are using AI to interview candidates – something no employers were doing in 2024’s survey.
How are you using AI? (Select all that apply.) Figure 10
Echoing the most common AI use cases, employers’ most valued AI-powered job board tools revolved around sending messages to candidates (31.8%), composing those messages (30.2%), and creating or optimizing job ads (29.3%) (Figure 11).
What AI-powered functions do you find most valuable on a job board/recruiting platform? (Select all that apply.) Figure 11
As with any burgeoning technology, there is some apprehension around AI. For employers, fake or fraudulent candidates (24.4%) and inauthentic applications and resumes (24.2%) are the two biggest concerns around AI (Figure 12). This is likely because it’s becoming more common for job seekers to use AI to embellish their resumes, and for scammers to submit AI-generated applications in an attempt to commit fraud.
What are your biggest challenges or concerns with AI in the hiring process? (Select all that apply.) Figure 12
*Other responses included not interested, missing human touch, and business too small to invest in AI.
Top Hiring Trends for 2025
To round out our employer survey, we asked respondents which initiatives they implemented in the past year (Figure 13). A few notable recruitment trends for 2025 emerged, including how 42.3% of employers hired or promoted from within versus hiring an external candidate. In 2024, 16.9% of employers said the same.
Similarly, 27.8% of employers invested in upskilling or reskilling their employees, while 30.8% hired a “boomerang” employee, showing that employers are looking outside traditional talent acquisition tactics to meet their needs.
In the past year, my company has _________. (Select all that apply.) Figure 13
Lastly, employers identified which trends they expected to impact their hiring efforts in the coming year (Figure 14). The skills gap was the top response (54.8%), as candidate quality challenges continue to crop up in this report, while 32.5% of employers anticipated difficulty retaining employees, perhaps due in part to an aging/retiring workforce, which resonated with 28.5% of respondents.
In addition, 19.5% of respondents expect to see an increase in skills-based hiring and a decreased focus on traditional degrees for candidates (10.6% of employers have already experienced this change – Figure 13); and 20.0% expect AI adoption to grow in the hiring space.
In the coming year, which trends do you expect to impact your hiring efforts? (Select all that apply.) Figure 14
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Job Seeker Survey Results
In surveying over 1,400 candidates, we found that 88.2% of respondents were actively looking for a new job (Figure 15). As with past years’ surveys, the reasons given for searching for a new job spanned a gamut (Figure 16) – including being laid off (22.0%), unhappiness in one’s current role (17.6%), dissatisfaction with pay (15.6%), and inability to advance (13.4%).
It’s worth noting that 10.1% of job seekers said they were coming out of retirement, and 7.2% said they were searching for a second job, confirming the trends of “unretirement” and a need for supplemental income.
Are you looking for a new job? Figure 15
Why are you searching for a job? (Select all that apply.) Figure 16
*Other responses included company closing, contract ended, hours reduced, toxic environment, need extra income, want remote work, and want to progress/advance.
Candidates’ Job Board Usage
Employers are still leveraging job boards – but what about candidates? 79.5% of workers said they rely on general job boards to search for jobs, and 53.8% use industry-specific or niche job boards (up from 49.2% who said they use niche job boards in 2024) (Figure 17). Still, candidates are turning to a diverse set of resources in their search, with 54.9% using professional networking sites like LinkedIn (the second most popular response), websites of companies they want to work for (45.0%), and search engines (41.6%)
A new response option for 2025, generative AI platforms like ChatGPT, are used by just 6.9% of job seekers, but that number may grow substantially in 2026.
Which of the following resources do you use to search for job opportunities? (Select all that apply.) Figure 17
*Other responses included company closing, contract ended, hours reduced, toxic environment, need extra income, want remote work, and want to progress/advance.
When using job search sites, candidates are clear about the features they find most valuable – half of respondents want job alert emails to notify them of the latest matching openings, and 40.2% want to be able to read reviews about potential employers from current or former employees, which can influence their decision to apply for a job (Figure 18). Job alert text messages (33.8%) and career advisory services from a real person (19.5%) – despite the AI boom – were also notable responses for 2025.
What tools and features do you find most valuable on a job board? (Select all that apply.) Figure 18
Job Search Challenges
For the third-straight year, job seekers reported ghosting as their biggest job search challenge, with 59.0% of respondents expressing frustration with a lack of response from employers after applying for jobs. This signals that broken lines of communication between job seekers and employers persist, as half of the hiring professionals surveyed expressed their frustration with candidates ghosting them (Figure 19).
Fake, fraudulent, or “ghost” job postings (jobs that are already filled, outdated, or never intended to be filled) were candidates’ second most cited challenge (39.3%), just above difficulty finding jobs that meet their salary requirements (36.5%).
Age discrimination, which has become more common due to the aging workforce and trend of “unretiring,” was another top job search challenge (28.1%). Likewise, 25.8% of candidates said they were frustrated with being overqualified for jobs.
When searching for work on a job board/recruiting platform, what are your biggest challenges? (Select all that apply.) Figure 19
*Other responses included finding jobs in my location, limited part-time positions, obtaining visa sponsorships, and finding entry-level jobs.
Job Postings: To Apply or Not to Apply
For employers struggling with candidate quality, understanding what job candidates want to see in their job postings can help attract the right talent. Therefore, we asked candidates what employers or recruiters could do to get them to apply for their online job posting and found that 60.5% of candidates want hiring timeline transparency (Figure 20). In other words, job seekers want to know when employers plan to reach out to schedule interviews or when they can expect to hear back about their applications.
Aside from transparency, candidates also want employers to specify the salary range for the position (57.1%), include contact information for the hiring manager or recruiter (40.7%), and list must-have qualifications separate from nice-to-haves (36.2%), which gives them a better idea of how well they fit the role before applying.
Which of the following could employers/recruiters do to get you to apply for their online job postings? (Select all that apply.) Figure 20
*Other responses included listing expected work hours, being honest about expectations, not having to re-create/re-enter resume information, and shortening the number of interviews.
Similarly, we asked job seekers to identify instant turnoffs for a job posting or what would make them not want to apply for a job (Figure 21). The top three responses were no salary information provided (60.7%), the employer’s name is not included or the job posting is anonymous (50.9%), and there are too many “must-haves” (37.2%).
What is an instant turnoff for a job posting? (Select all that apply.) Figure 21
*Other responses included unrealistic requirements, no location listed, and low pay.
How Long Should It Take to Complete an Application?
What’s the sweet spot for online application length? Too many steps, form fields, and prescreening questions can lead to candidate drop-offs. But asking for too little information can give way to an influx of unqualified applicants. We asked job seekers how much time they think online applications should take to complete, and found that over half (51.7%) believe 10 to 15 minutes is the ideal length (Figure 22).
How much time do you think online applications should take to complete? Figure 22
AI & the Job Search
As with employers, AI adoption by job seekers is rising. According to iHire’s survey, 29.3% of candidates have used AI to write or customize their resume or cover letter in the past year, compared to 17.3% who said the same in 2024.
In addition, we asked candidates which AI-powered tools and functionalities they find most valuable on job boards (Figure 23). Job matching tools that automatically recommend the right postings based on candidates’ qualifications (43.6%) were the most valued features, followed by resume reviewing and scoring tools (31.5%) and resume writing and customization tools (29.6%). Interestingly, chatbots were the least popular, with 17.3% desiring chatbots that help prepare them for interviews, and 9.4% wanting career advisor chatbots.
What AI-powered functionalities do you find most valuable on a job board? (Select all that apply.) Figure 23
2025 Job Search Trends
Looking back at the past year, job seekers next identified which behaviors they had exhibited. We found that nearly half (48.2%) had applied for jobs they were overqualified for, and 41.7% had applied for jobs despite not meeting the requirements (Figure 24).
Almost a quarter (24.8%) of candidates said they were laid off or fired in the past year, while 18.9% voluntarily quit a job. Moreover, approximately 1 in 5 people had turned down a job offer (19.4%), echoing a challenge reported by 27.0% of employers (Figure 8).
In the past year, I have _________. (Select all that apply.) Figure 24
Finally, job seekers noted which trends they anticipate affecting their job search or career growth in the coming year (Figure 25). The top answer was ageism (48.2%), followed by ghosting (47.4%), economic uncertainty or fears of a recession (46.0%), employers’ unrealistic requirements (39.7%), competition/standing out from other applicants (35.9%), and fewer advancement or growth opportunities in their industry (24.5%)
Finally, 24.3% of job seekers believe they’ll see AI replacing jobs or making roles less significant in the next year – up from 17.0% who said the same in 2024’s survey.
In the coming year, which of the following trends do you expect to impact your job search or career growth? (Select all that apply.) Figure 25
Survey Takeaways: 7 Ways to Elevate Your Recruiting
Based on our survey data, consider the following five pieces of hiring advice to elevate your recruiting in 2025 and beyond.
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Explore Job Board Features Beyond Posting Jobs
Many of the best job boards provide far more value than simply hosting job postings. For example, features like prescreening questions and skills assessments can ensure better matches, messaging tools can improve the candidate experience and engagement, and tools for crafting compelling job ads can cut both costs and time-to-hire rates. By finding platforms with these additional functionalities, employers can make job boards a critical part of their recruitment strategy.
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Simplify Recruitment With AI
AI is no longer a distant concept in hiring; it’s an accessible and effective tool that will power the future of recruiting. Use AI to reduce repetitive tasks such as writing messages to candidates, scheduling interviews, or developing job postings. These efficiencies allow recruiters to dedicate more time to high-value activities like engaging candidates and enhancing their experience. If you’re unsure how to use AI in recruiting, our Resource Center is a great place to start.
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Communicate With All Applicants For a Positive Candidate Experience
Ghosting is one of the most common frustrations job seekers face. This lack of communication can leave candidates feeling undervalued and discouraged, negatively impacting your employer brand. To foster a positive candidate experience, acknowledge every application, even if the response is an automated or AI-created message. Timely updates – whether to move a candidate forward or to inform them they are no longer being considered for a role – demonstrate professionalism, respect, and transparency. Additionally, consistent communication can keep talent you pipeline (instead of) hire engaged for future opportunities.
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Tap Into Alternative Talent Sources
Expand your talent pool by exploring overlooked resources. Building a talent pipeline ensures you’re prepared for future hiring needs, so reach out to former applicants, alumni networks, and current employees for potential candidates. Strengthening your internal mobility strategy, such as promoting or laterally moving employees, not only fills skill gaps but also boosts morale. Upskilling and reskilling current staff further solidifies your organization’s ability to adapt to shifting talent demands.
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Focus on Candidate Quality Over Quantity
Instead of casting the widest net, refine your recruitment approach to attract the most qualified candidates for your open roles. While it can be tempting to prioritize high applicant volume, sifting through large numbers of unqualified resumes can waste time and resources. By targeting your efforts toward niche or industry-specific platforms, you can connect with talent that is already invested in and knowledgeable about your field – individuals who are more likely to possess the skills, certifications, and passion needed to excel in the role. This approach may yield fewer applications overall, but the candidates you do attract will have a higher likelihood of meeting your requirements and fitting your company culture.
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Showcase Your Employer Brand
Your employer brand plays a central role in effective recruiting, as it helps showcase what makes your organization an attractive workplace for top-tier talent. Highlight your commitment to employee satisfaction, diversity, and growth opportunities in your job ads and online presence. Fill out company profiles on job boards with staff photos, employee testimonials, recruitment marketing videos, and more. These elements will help build trust with your brand and entice candidates to apply for your jobs.
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Implement Age-Inclusive Hiring Practices
Age discrimination remains a significant concern for job seekers, especially as older workers delay or come out of retirement. Implementing age-inclusive hiring practices can help attract and retain talent across all generations, tapping into diverse perspectives and experiences. Such practices include using neutral, skill-focused language in job descriptions, conducting anti-bias training for hiring managers, and showcasing a multi-generational workforce in your employer branding materials.
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Shift Toward Skills-Based Hiring
Rather than relying heavily on traditional markers like education or past roles, skills-based hiring zeroes in on what else a candidate can bring to the job. Incorporating skills assessments into your hiring process increases the likelihood of identifying individuals with the capabilities to excel, even if they lack conventional experience. This method broadens your talent pool and supports more inclusive hiring practices. It’s a powerful approach to ensure you hire for potential, not just prerequisites.
Conclusion
iHire’s 2025 State of Online Recruiting Report highlights an exciting, yet challenging, evolution in online recruitment. Employers are navigating obstacles like unqualified applicants while adopting AI and data-driven tools to streamline hiring and identify top talent. For job seekers, the enhanced candidate experience provided by the most innovative online recruitment platforms promises greater access to opportunities and tools to showcase their skills effectively. As technology continues to shape how we connect, both employers and candidates are positioned to meet the challenges ahead and build lasting professional relationships.
Related Resources
2024 State of Online Recruiting Report
Reports & Research Library
Employer Resource Center
Hiring Solutions
Employer Webinars & HR Training
Masterclass: Build Better Job Ads
Research Methodology
iHire surveyed 1,421 job seekers and 529 employers across the U.S. from 57 industries in July 2025 via the Qualtrics XM platform. Respondents came from iHire’s job seeker and employer databases. All decimal points are rounded to the nearest tenth. For many questions, multiple answers could be selected, so percentages add up to a sum greater than 100%. In some instances, survey questions were skipped by an individual respondent.
About iHire
iHire is a leading employment platform that powers a family of 57 industry-focused talent networks, including WorkInSports, iHireVeterinary, iHireDental, iHireConstruction, and iHireChefs. For more than 20 years, iHire has combined advanced job matching technology with our expertise in the talent acquisition space to connect job seekers with employers in their desired sector. With an industry-specific, candidate-centric, and data-driven approach to recruitment, iHire helps candidates find meaningful work and employers find unique, high-quality talent – faster, easier, and more effectively than a general job board.
