In today's competitive job market, attracting and retaining top talent in the FMCG Industry can be a challenge. Companies that fail to recognise the evolving expectations of employees may struggle to secure skilled professionals. One of the most significant reasons top talent won't work for your business is that employers have unrealistic expectations. So in this blog, we look at some of the unrealistic expectations we hear in the industry, how they manifest in the recruitment process, and why it's important for businesses to adapt in order to attract the best candidates.

 1. Not Keeping up with Salary Expectations.

 One of the most glaring unrealistic expectations is failing to adjust your salary offerings in line with current market trends. In the FMCG industry, where talent is scarce, salary inflation has been steadily increasing, and businesses that don't keep up will lose out on top candidates.

For instance, a £50K salary in 2022 would now be worth approximately £55,000 to £57,000 in 2025. This salary adjustment reflects the increased cost of talent and market demand in the FMCG industry. If your business is still offering a salary that is significantly below this benchmark, it will be challenging to attract top professionals who know their worth and have other job offers to consider.

 Many businesses have established salary thresholds based on outdated pay bands or budgets that are no longer realistic. It's important for companies to revisit their salary structures to ensure they are offering competitive wages for the positions they are hiring for. Salary expectations need to be updated regularly to stay competitive in attracting high-quality candidates.

 2. Lowballing Candidates: Not Valuing Talent Enough

 Leading on from the above, and in our opinion worse, lowballing candidates during salary negotiations is another example of unrealistic expectations. When businesses fail to offer a salary reflective of what the candidate needs in order to move from their current role, it signals that they do not value the candidate enough. This can be detrimental not only to your recruitment process, but the reputation of your business.

Many employers make the mistake of lowballing candidates to stay within budget, or because they believe they can negotiate a lower salary. However, in the fast-paced FMCG sector, the best talent is highly sought after and will not settle for an offer below their market value.

If you want to secure the best candidates, you need to research market salaries for a specific role and offer packages that reflect industry standards, or be honest about the salary on offer and lower your expectations of the caliber of candidate.

 But trying to negotiate a salary lower than what a tier 1 candidate has communicated to you suggests you don't value them, and it could potentially reflect negatively on your brand and waste the candidate's and your time.

 3. Not Flexible Enough: The Demand for Work-Life Balance

 Like it or not, flexibility remains a critical factor for many workers today. Many FMCG professionals still expect flexible working arrangements, such as the ability to work from home and flexible hours.

 Even though there are more and more cases in the media demonstrating the big return to the office, many of these organisations still offer some sort of hybrid arrangement that many tier 1 candidates still have access to in their current role and expect in their next.

 We are strongly in the camp of more time in the office, and consider employees and employers alike will benefit from many aspects of being in the office around colleagues etc. but if your business is not offering any type of hybrid work model, or flexible working hours at all, you could be potentially losing out on top talent, as we have seen that even the best brands or highest salaries are sometimes not enough to tempt candidates back into the office 5 days a week.

 Flexibility doesn't mean fully remote, or a 4-day week, there are many arrangements businesses have that suit both employer and employee alike. But to secure the caliber of candidate you're looking for, you might need to make this compromise.

 4. Unrealistic Expectations from Founders: They're Not You

 Founders often exhibit high levels of passion, drive, and commitment to their business/es, often working long hours and being deeply involved in every aspect of their company. However … (and for many this is a hard pill to swallow) it's unrealistic to expect employees, even senior candidates, to mirror the same level of dedication.

 In particular, founders tend to have unrealistic expectations about their team's commitment to the business. Over the years, we've heard phrases like "I work 15-hour days, why can't they?!" or "I go into the stores at the weekend, why don't they?", which reflect a mindset that fails to account for the fact that employees are not entrepreneurs.

 As a founder-led company ourselves, we understand this mindset, and honestly, accepting that employees won't care about your business quite as much as you do will be the best thing you can do for your sanity! We get it, your business is no doubt your life, and your world revolves around it, but your employees have other passions, priorities, and goals as well as their careers. If you demand that your employees match your level of intensity, you risk burnout, disengagement, and a high turnover rate.

 Employees are professionals with their own career ambitions, and they need to feel respected for their contributions rather than be expected to operate at the same level of intensity as a founder.

 Key Takeaways

 To attract and retain top talent in the FMCG industry, you must adjust your expectations to meet the realities of today's job market. This means offering competitive salaries, being open to a form of flexible working arrangements, and understanding that employees have different priorities compared to founders.

 It's essential to make adjustments in salary structures, respect employees' personal lives, and recognise that top candidates are looking for more than just a paycheck - they want to work for companies that value their contribution, financial needs, and work-life balance.

 We understand that keeping abreast of current talent market conditions and all it entails might only be on your radar when you're recruiting, and you might be relying on information from when you last recruited … if you're not recruiting on a regular basis, you might be out of date!

 That’s where your recruitment partner will be worth their weight in gold as they will be placing the candidates you want all the time … they will be able to give you real-time, up-to-date, and realistic advice to ensure you don't miss out on top talent.