Xist4’s Hiring Campaign Diagnostic
Before your role goes live, or after it has stalled, make sure your hiring campaign is set up to succeed.
Most recruitment campaigns fail before they start. We find out why, and we tell you what to do about it.
Why Most Hiring Campaigns Underperform
Most campaigns do not fail because the right person does not exist. They fail because the salary, the brief or the process was not ready for the market, and nobody said so out loud. By the time it shows up in the results, you have lost weeks, two rounds of interviews and at least one candidate who was genuinely right.
The most common reasons are straightforward:
The salary is out of step with what the market is actually paying, so the best candidates do not apply, or decline at offer stage.
The job description reads like a wish list rather than a real opportunity, so strong candidates self-select out before they apply.
The advert goes live once on one or two job boards and is never tested or refreshed, so it fades before it reaches the right people.
The search relies entirely on active candidates, missing the 70% of the market who are not looking but would move for the right role.
The outcome is familiar. Empty seats, wasted spend, declined offers, and a hiring manager wondering why it is so hard to find the right people. If your campaign has already gone live and is not producing, the same problems are usually behind it, and the Diagnostic finds them just as effectively after the fact as before.
What You Get
Xist4's Hiring Campaign Diagnostic is a two-day engagement, fixed at £1,500. It gives you a structured, expert review of your recruitment approach, whether you are about to go live or trying to work out why a live campaign has stalled, built on 26 years of specialist recruitment experience in data, technology and leadership.
It includes:
The Hiring Campaign Diagnostic Report
A detailed, evidence-based analysis of your hiring approach across ten key areas: salary and benefits, job description, advert and messaging, sourcing channels, active versus passive strategy, talent pool realism, candidate journey, interviews and assessment, outcomes and metrics, and employer story. Delivered as a branded report with a red, amber, green scorecard and the market data behind every rating, so you can see where you are strong, where you have gaps and what to fix first.
A Four-Week Posting and Optimisation Plan
A practical roadmap showing where, when and how to advertise your role: channel prioritisation, posting cadence and testing guidance, so your campaign reaches the right people and stays visible instead of peaking on day one.
Strategic Recommendations
Specific, practical actions you can take this week to improve your reach, sharpen your messaging and lift the quality of applications you receive. Tailored to your role and market, not lifted from a generic checklist.
A Playback Call
A structured conversation to walk through the findings, answer your questions and agree what happens next. This is where the report comes to life and you leave with a plan, not a document to file.
There is no obligation to use Xist4 for the search itself. The Diagnostic stands alone.
Ready to Go to Market the Right Way?
Xist4's Hiring Campaign Diagnostic costs £1,500 and takes two days. A failed campaign that runs eight to twelve weeks rarely costs less than £15,000 in management time, advertising and delayed productivity, before you count the role sitting empty throughout.
Whether you are planning to recruit in the next few weeks or trying to rescue a search that has stalled, get in touch and we will talk it through.
How It Works
A proven 5-step process
1. Discover
2. Benchmark
3. Assess
4. Advise
5. Deliver
1. Discover
You complete a short discovery questionnaire and join a consultation call. We use this to understand your recruitment goals, the role you are hiring for, the challenges you have faced and what success looks like.
2. Benchmark
We analyse your salary position, sourcing channels and talent availability against live market data in your sector, so you know exactly where you stand, whether your campaign is yet to launch or has already been running.
3. Assess
Using our ten-point framework we evaluate your recruitment approach across job adverts, candidate experience, employer brand, sourcing mix, role design and more, identifying where you are strong and where you have gaps.
4. Advise
We translate the findings into clear, practical recommendations backed by 26 years of specialist recruitment experience in data, technology and leadership. No generic guidance. Specific actions you can take immediately.
5. Deliver
You receive your branded Hiring Campaign Diagnostic report, complete with a visual scorecard and market data. We then walk you through the findings on a playback call, answer your questions and agree what happens next.
Enquire
Xist4’s Hiring Campaign Diagnostic
Before your role goes live, make sure your hiring campaign is set up to attract the right candidates. Book Xist4’s Hiring Campaign Diagnostic for practical, expert recommendations before you go to market.
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