Nearly a third of job applications in the UK do not ask any questions about diversity, according to new research from global provider of workforce and advisory solutions, Resource Solutions.

The study, which audited over 100 companies across nine industries to uncover barriers facing today’s job applicants, also revealed a quarter of organisations do not confirm receipt of application upon submission.

Also, just 6 percent of companies requested feedback on the application process.

Meanwhile, just 3 percent of roles were transparent in terms of salary, benefits, and work patterns such as hybrid and remote working arrangements. Of those audited, Monzo, BAE Systems, and Heineken Holdings were the most transparent in these areas.

The findings also uncovered that in the initial stage, candidates must allow four minutes and 42 seconds to complete an online job application – or the equivalent of 40 clicks.

Roles in financial services and consulting have the longest application time of around six minutes, compared to just one minute 24 seconds for jobs in fintech, or nearly four times as long.

Sum Up and Revolut are ahead of the game in redefining and improving the candidate journey, requiring only 45 and 52 seconds respectively to apply for a role – and only six mandatory fields for both.

A staggering 76 percent of online job applications require candidates to create a new user account, and complete 24 mandatory fields with personal information. This results on average in double the application time.

James Atchison-Wootton, Practice Lead, RSConsultancy, Resource Solutions, said:

“There is no denying that if a company’s application process is unnecessarily time-consuming, prospective candidates will lose interest and look elsewhere. By making the application process more efficient and user-friendly, including for neurodiverse candidates, organisations can improve the candidate experience and attract top talent.”

“The majority of companies we audited ask candidates to provide a lot of personal information, without offering much transparency about the role being advertised in return,”

Atchison-Wootton added. “In fact, 39 percent of the job adverts we reviewed did not specify whether the role was hybrid, on-site, or completely remote. Companies that are not transparent right from the start risk seeing candidates drop out mid-process if the compensation packages don’t align with expectations.”

Why do businesses ghost applicants?

Although 85 percent of companies provided a confirmation of receipt via email or text, nearly half (44%) of organisations did not provide candidates with any definitive response within four weeks of receiving their application.

Insurance companies were shown to be the most responsive, with 70 percent of those audited informing candidates within the month whether or not they would be called in for an interview.

Atchison-Wootton said: “In the midst of a severe skills shortage, power dynamics in the job market have shifted in favour of candidates – yet businesses behave as if the roles are still reversed. Our research found that only 6 percent of organisations requested proactive feedback about the customer application experience they provided, meaning most companies are missing a trick to improve their talent acquisition success rate.

“In everyday life, we use feedback to improve and refine the services and products we come into contact with, and it should be no different in recruitment. Businesses must avoid ‘ghosting’ candidates at all costs, and instead ensure candidates are kept informed every step of the way, ideally directly from a recruiter rather than a no-reply email address.”

Amelia Brand

Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.