Hiring the right talent has never been more competitive – especially across specialist sectors like automotive, aerospace & defense, and FMCG. Yet many hiring managers still default to hiring by job title rather than capability.
On the surface, job titles feel safe. They’re familiar, easy to filter for, and seem to reduce risk. But in reality, hiring for a title instead of skills is one of the most expensive recruitment mistakes businesses make today.
Why Hiring by Job Title Is Costing You More Than You Think
- You Shrink Your Talent Pool (and Increase Time-to-Hire)
Job titles vary massively across industries and companies.
For example:
- A Senior Manufacturing Engineer in automotive may perform almost the same role as a Production Excellence Manager in FMCG.
- A Programme Lead in aerospace & defense could be functionally identical to a Delivery Manager elsewhere.
When you hire by title alone, you automatically exclude highly capable candidates who:
- Have the right technical skills
- Bring transferable sector experience
- Can deliver impact from day one
Result: longer vacancies, fewer qualified applicants, and increased reliance on expensive interim solutions.
- You Overpay for “Familiar” Titles
The market places a premium on certain job titles – even when the underlying skillset is widely available.
Hiring managers often compete for:
- “Head of X”
- “Senior Director of Y”
- “Lead Engineer”
…without defining the actual business outcomes the role must deliver.
This inflates:
- Salary expectations
- Candidate negotiation power
- Overall cost-per-hire
Meanwhile, equally capable professionals with different titles are overlooked – even though they could achieve the same outcomes at a more sustainable cost.
- Title-Based Hiring Leads to Poor Performance Fit
Job titles tell you where someone has worked – not what they can actually do.
Two candidates with the same title can have:
- Completely different technical competencies
- Vastly different leadership styles
- Different exposure to scale, complexity, and risk
This is especially risky in:
- Aerospace & defense, where compliance, safety, and governance are non-negotiable
- Automotive, where engineering and transformation are accelerating
- FMCG, where speed, efficiency, and commercial impact matter
When skills aren’t mapped to outcomes, the risk of mis-hires increases – leading to:
- Poor performance
- Longer ramp-up times
- Higher attrition
All of which carry significant financial and operational costs.
The Real Cost of a Mis-Hire in Specialist Markets
A mis-hire at mid to senior level doesn’t just affect one team – it impacts:
- Project delivery
- Leadership credibility
- Client relationships
- Revenue and growth targets
Typical hidden costs include:
- Recruitment fees
- Onboarding and training investment
- Lost productivity
- Team disruption
- Rehiring costs
Industry benchmarks suggest a poor senior hire can cost up to 2–3x their annual salary when all factors are considered.
Why Skills-Based Hiring Wins in Automotive, Aerospace & Defense & FMCG
Better Quality of Hire
A skills-first approach focuses on:
- What outcomes the role must deliver
- Which technical and behavioural competencies enable success
- What experience is transferable across sectors
This leads to:
- Stronger performance
- Faster impact
- Better long-term retention
Job Titles Are Easy – Skills Drive Performance
Hiring by job title feels efficient.
Hiring by skills actually is efficient.
In highly competitive markets like automotive, aerospace & defense, and FMCG, the companies winning the talent race are those who:
- Focus on capability over labels
- Prioritise outcomes over optics
- Build future-ready teams instead of replicating the past
If your hiring process still starts with a title, you may already be paying the price – in time, cost, and missed opportunity.
Want to Improve Your Hiring ROI?
Partnering with a specialist recruitment agency that understands mid-level to senior hiring across automotive, aerospace & defense, and FMCG can help you attract better talent, reduce mis-hires, and future-proof your workforce.
Get in touch today to ensure you don’t make a wrong hire.
