High-Paying Jobs No One Wants: Hiring Challenges in Energy

Operators / Skilled trades in remote locations.

Operators and skilled tradespeople are the backbone of oil and gas operations, ensuring the safe and efficient running of equipment, pipelines, and drilling operations. In remote locations, they handle the day-to-day tasks that keep projects on schedule, prevent costly downtime, and respond to operational challenges in real time. Without them, production halts, maintenance issues escalate, and projects become unsustainable.

Project Engineers

Project engineers oversee the planning, execution, and completion of oil and gas projects, ensuring timelines, budgets, and safety standards are met. They bridge the gap between design and implementation, coordinating cross-functional teams to keep projects moving forward. Their role is vital for mitigating risks, optimizing workflows, and ensuring compliance with industry regulations, ultimately determining the project's overall success.

Process Engineers

Process engineers design and optimize the processes that extract, refine, and transport oil and gas, ensuring efficiency, safety, and environmental compliance. They play a key role in reducing costs, improving production rates, and implementing sustainable practices. Without their expertise, facilities risk inefficiencies, increased operational costs, and potential safety hazards.

I&C Engineers

I&C engineers are responsible for the automation and control systems that regulate critical operations in oil and gas facilities. They ensure precise monitoring and control of pressure, temperature, flow rates, and other essential parameters, directly impacting operational safety and efficiency. Their expertise minimizes equipment failures, enhances productivity, and ensures compliance with strict safety and environmental standards.

Each of these roles is indispensable to keeping oil and gas projects running smoothly, efficiently, and safely—without them, projects face delays, inefficiencies, and increased operational risks.

So, what are some challenges in recruitment?

Recruiting for these roles is no small feat. The industry faces challenges that require strategic solutions, especially with projects ramping up in 2025. Many organizations' talent acquisition teams, despite best efforts, run into repetitive challenges that leave these roles unfilled. The biggest ones are:

1. Attracting qualified candidates

Attracting qualified candidates is a top challenge in oil and gas. The specialized skills needed make this task even harder.

Brunel helps hiring leaders reach the right candidates by using targeted recruitment strategies, developed over 50 years. We understand what it takes to appeal to a niche group of professionals and fill critical roles efficiently. Our extensive network of talent and industry connections helps us place vetted candidates faster, reducing high turnover rates and building you effective project teams.

2. Building a strong employer brand

A strong employer brand is crucial. It helps distinguish companies in a competitive job market.

Brunel assists by providing companies with crucial data (such as our Global Talent, Tech, and Trends report, or GTTT for short) to help them effectively adapt employer brand, talent acquisition, and retention strategies to attract leading candidates across various roles.

3. Reaching passive candidates

Many qualified candidates are not actively job hunting. Tapping into this passive talent pool is essential.

Brunel employs advanced recruitment tools to identify and engage with these candidates. By reaching out through personalized communication, and with the support of a seasoned recruitment team, we convert passive interest into active applications, filling positions that might otherwise remain vacant.

5. Eliminating hiring bias

Hiring bias can severely impact diversity and inclusion in the workforce.

Brunel utilizes fair recruitment practices to eliminate bias. Through structured interviews and standardized procedures, we ensure every candidate is judged on merit.

6. Accurately assessing candidate skills

Accurate skill assessment is crucial for successful hiring.

Brunel utilizes comprehensive evaluation methods to ensure candidates meet specific skill requirements. By implementing psychometric testing, background and reference checks, we ascertain candidates’ true capabilities. This diligence prevents mismatches and leads to more successful hires.

7. Personalizing candidate communication

Generic communication can deter candidates. Personalized interaction, however, can enhance engagement.

Brunel's recruitment team implements targeted communication plans to provide a tailored candidate experience. Such personalization demonstrates that the company values each applicant, thus increasing the likelihood of candidate acceptance and retention.

8. Reducing the time to hire

A lengthy recruitment process can cause companies to lose top talent.

At Brunel, we focus on reducing time to hire by streamlining procedures. Using efficient recruitment technologies and their industry insights, we cut down unnecessary delays. This ensures that companies secure talent before competitors do.

9. Reducing hiring costs

Recruitment can be costly, straining company budgets.

Partnering with Brunel saves companies money in the long run. Reducing time to hire, attracting the right candidates, and boosting retention are all ways teams benefit financially by leaving their hiring in the hands of expert recruiters. Companies benefit from reduced overhead while maintaining the quality of hires.

10. Engaging in data-driven  recruitment

Data-driven recruitment is key to making informed hiring decisions.

Brunel's recruitment approach is backed by hard data, providing valuable insights into the hiring process. By analyzing trends and metrics, we are able to enhance decision-making and predict future recruitment needs, minimizing guesswork and improving outcomes.

11. Improving the candidate experience

A positive candidate experience is vital for attracting top talent and maintaining brand reputation.

At Brunel, we take pride in Contractor Care. Companies can count on candidate satisfaction when they partner with us. Our team of dedicated operations professionals, payrolling specialists, and account coordinators ensure each candidate has an enhanced career experience throughout the recruitment journey. From transparent communication to seamless onboarding, we ensure candidates feel valued at every stage, leaving a lasting positive impression.

In summary, Brunel provides oil and gas firms facing challenges in recruitment with tailored solutions. Our expertise and strategic approach help companies navigate the complex recruitment landscape, ensuring the acquisition of top-tier talent efficiently and effectively. Through collaborative efforts and innovative strategies, we can pave the way for successful recruitment, even in the face of skilled talent shortages.

Connect with our team to get started today!