Hiring Processes: When to Follow, When to Ignore, and When to Adapt

I have a love-hate relationship with rules.

Some rules make perfect sense – you don’t change lanes without indicating, you don’t run a red light, and if you drive in a bus lane, well, you’re dead to me!

But then there are other rules… speed limits? More of a suggestion. A sign saying “No Entry” on a pedestrian path? I’ll be the judge of that.

Last year, I was out for a run in Hartford, Connecticut. I saw a beautiful river walk on Google Maps, but when I got there – big sign: “No Entry” and I thought, ‘Nah, that’s not for me,’ and kept going. Within seconds, I was face down in thick river silt, covered in mud, bruised, and limping back home.

Lesson learned? Some rules exist for a reason.

And the same is true for hiring processes.

Some organizations drown in rigid processes, turning hiring into a bureaucratic nightmare. Others have no process at all, treating hiring like a chaotic free-for-all. But the best companies? They know which rules to follow, which ones to challenge, and when to adapt.

So, how do hiring processes evolve as companies mature? And how do the best organizations strike the balance between structure and agility?

Let’s break it down through the stages of our Hiring Excellence Maturity Model.

Level 1: The Wild West – No Processes, Just Chaos

Hiring processes at Level 1 are like driving on a dirt road with no lanes, no signs, and no speed limits – it’s unpredictable, inconsistent, and a little bit dangerous.

• No structured process – hiring happens ad hoc, with no approvals, no documented steps, and no standard way of doing things.
• Recruiters (if they exist) work in survival mode, scrambling to fill roles however they can.
• Hiring managers do their own thing, often bypassing HR or using personal networks to find candidates.

And here’s the kicker: this isn’t just small businesses. Even massive organizations – think companies with 100,000+ employees – sometimes operate like this. I once worked with a company that allowed any manager, anywhere in the world, to open a job requisition whenever they felt like it. No approvals, no workforce planning, just “I need someone, let’s go”.

The result of processes like this? Total inefficiency. Hiring tends to happen on-the fly. There’s minimal documentation, hiring managers run interviews their own way, the candidate experience is fragmented, there’s no visibility, and everything is driven by urgency. It’s a complete nightmare

At this level, hiring isn’t just inefficient – it’s expensive, frustrating, and unpredictable.?

Level 2: Standardized and Structured – The First Set of Rules

At some point, organizations realize: We can’t keep doing this.

This is where hiring processes become structured and repeatable, with clear steps and expectations.

• A formal approval process – you can’t just open a req for the sake of it.
• An ATS is introduced, ensuring jobs and candidates are tracked properly.
• Basic hiring guidelines are put in place, covering things like salary approvals, agency usage, and diversity statements on job ads.

Think of Level 2 processes like basic traffic laws – you drive on the correct side of the road, and you stop at red lights. You’re not reinventing the wheel for every role anymore. There’s safety built-in: safety for the company, safety for the candidate, and safety with the process itself.

But here’s the problem: process doesn’t equal optimization. You can have a process in place, but if it’s clunky, inefficient, or poorly designed, it can still hurt your hiring outcomes.

Level 3: Scaling and Specializing – The Right Process for the Right Job

At Level 3, organizations scale their hiring processes – but they also realize that not all hiring is the same.

Different processes emerge for different roles, for example, exec hiring looks different from volume hiring. More automation is introduced, reducing manual work. And a recruitment CRM is incorporated, allowing TA teams to track candidates beyond just applicants.

And this is where federal vs. state vs. local hiring processes also start to emerge – a concept coined by the renowned John Vlastelica.

• Federal: The non-negotiables – how a req is opened, compliance steps, and the tech stack everyone uses.
• State: Hiring processes differ by country – what works in the U.S. might not work in Germany.
• Local: Even within a company, hiring salespeople might follow a different process than hiring engineers.

Hiring becomes structured, but flexible. There’s enough consistency in the processes to maintain order, but enough adaptability to meet different hiring needs. Think of Erin Meyer’s concept of the Culture Map, and how cultures all vary in response along a particular spectrum – this same thinking can be applied within organizations and leadership and departments. Understanding and adapting to this as a recruiter is essential.

(By the way, our very own Holly Fawcett has great content on this on the SocialTalent platform – check it out if you’re a user!)

Level 4: Prioritization – Not All Jobs Are Created Equal

This is where things really get interesting. In the first three levels, we are initially striving for some form of standardization. And while we are also starting to accept the need for difference and flexibility within hiring, there is a sense that every hire is treated the same.

That’s where Level 4 flips the script. And the big learning? Not all requisitions are created equal.

What do I mean by this?

• Not every job should have the same process. Hiring a VP of AI Strategy? That cannot follow the same hiring process as hiring a receptionist.
• High-priority roles should get more resources. The best recruiters, the most advanced tools, proactive sourcing, and targeted marketing.
• Less-critical roles follow a more streamlined process. Maybe they’re filled through internal mobility, referrals, or simple job postings.

This concept, first introduced to me by my friend and TA leader Kevin Blair, leverages prioritization to ensure that your hiring processes are strategic and impactful to the business.

Think about it: if your CEO has declared AI as the future of the company, and you need a VP of AI, you better have a process that ensures you get the best talent available.

Level 5: Adaptive and Dynamic – Hiring in Real Time

This is where hiring transcends process and becomes a self-learning system – something, I have to admit, doesn’t completely exist just yet!

Here, we lean much more into automated, AI-driven processes that are keenly integrated with business strategy. Optimization, adaption, and evolution become the key differentiators.?

What does this look like???

• Processes adapt in real time based on market data, hiring trends, and internal performance metrics.
• AI-driven decision-making helps adjust hiring strategies on the fly.
• TA teams run constant experiments – testing new sourcing channels, assessment techniques, and automation strategies.

But this is controlled experimentation, consistently spinning up new ideas, ways of working, new tools, new assessment models. We’re constantly trying to optimize for speed, for quality, or for whatever the priority is. It’s a fluid thing.

Because there is a danger in complete standardization and rigid rules that stagnation may occur. The market changes, the business changes, data changes – and you need to be agile enough to adapt and be better.?

Let’s bring it back to our driving analogy for a second. This Level 5 utopia is like a self-driving car. “Rules” like speed limits and driving sides now become autonomous – and the connected nature of these vehicles on the road, constantly adapting and optimizing in real time, renders the rules slightly arbitrary. It’s the same for hiring process at this level. It’s a completely different ballgame to what has preceded it.?

So, Where Does Your Organization Stand?

The best companies don’t just follow the rules – they define them based on what actually works.

Some rules should never be broken – like compliance and fairness.?

Some rules need to be challenged – like outdated hiring approval processes.?

And some rules shouldn’t exist at all – like treating all hiring as a one-size-fits-all process.

Hiring excellence isn’t about adding more processes. It’s about building the right ones.

Ask yourself:

• Are our hiring workflows documented and consistent, or do they vary widely by team or location?
• Do we have clear checkpoints to evaluate and refine each stage of the hiring process?
• How effectively do we handle fluctuations in hiring volume or urgent requisitions?
• What feedback mechanisms exist to continuously improve process efficiency and candidate experience?
• Are our processes flexible enough to accommodate different role types without sacrificing quality?

Next Up: KPIs – Are You Measuring the Right Things?

In the next installment in our Hiring Excellence Maturity Model series, we’ll tackle Hiring KPIs – because even the best process is useless if you’re measuring the wrong things.

See you next time!