Supporting Career Returners: Tapping into an Overlooked Talent Pool

March 19, 2025

If you want to bolster your workforce and remain competitive, you need to keep the wheels of the recruitment engine turning at all times. This can be challenging, particularly when you have other HR tasks to think about. One of the best ways you can stay ahead of the competition is to get creative about the candidates you consider.

Many companies are on the lookout for graduate talent first. These candidates are eager to learn and open to adapting to the role, making them highly versatile and adaptive. Another popular candidate is the early-career manager. They might be new to management and looking for a new challenge. They bring a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to the role.

An often overlooked sector of the workforce is those returning to work. This could be due to long-term illness, raising a child, or a career break to care for a family member or loved one. With the right support, they can bring a wealth of experience and real-world perspective that is often lacking in workplaces with a younger demographic.

If you’re looking for a way to increase diversity and expand your workforce, consider the following ways you can support career returners back into the workplace.

What challenges do career returners face?

There are many reasons that career returners might feel that their applications are overlooked by employers. There is a misconception that they will be “out of practice” having not been in the workplace for so long. Those who have taken a career break to raise their children, for example, might be told that their skills are no longer relevant, but this simply isn’t the case.

For some, a gap in their CV is enough for their application to be ignored or rejected by AI. This is unfortunate, as it essentially makes their experience before the gap irrelevant.

Others might try to tell white lies on their CV to get a foot in the door, hoping that they can have a chance to explain once they are in an interview. However, this can backfire if the employer views this as a dishonest act.

Finally, there is often a shortsightedness among hiring managers that prevents them from seeing the candidate as a whole. Some may struggle to see past the career gap and really look at the experience on offer. It’s easy to forget that many of the soft skills that recruiters are looking for are inherent and not likely to diminish with time.

How can employers support career returners?

If you want to tap into this often overlooked candidate profile, there are some simple steps you can take to encourage interest from these groups.

• Mention it in the job description – If a role would be well-suited to a career returner, don’t be afraid to mention this in the job description. Many people will avoid applying for roles if they don’t feel represented in the candidate profile. By making it clear that you encourage career returners to apply, you take the first step in supporting them.
• Be open to candidates with a career gap – There are many reasons someone might have a large gap in their CV, so if you like the look of their experience, invite them in for a further chat.
• See the bigger picture – Experience with a new tool or package might seem desirable, but these skills can also be taught very easily. If the candidate has experience with everything that came before, they should have no problem picking up new skills for the role.
• Listen to the experience of current workers – If you have already supported career returners back into work, they might have valuable insight to share. Speak to these workers about what you got right, and what you might be able to improve. 
• Lean into the soft skills – Career returners might not have been racking up career experience, but they have been building up other kinds of experience. They might not see things like parenting as experience that lends itself well to their job role, but it’s easy to see how this can translate into multi-tasking, communication and project management skills. Be creative in your interpretation of where this experience needs to come from, and you could be well on your way to building a more experienced and resilient workforce.

Final thoughts on supporting career returners

Supporting career returners is not just a kinder and more inclusive form of recruitment; it’s also a great way to bolster your workforce and bring in some real-world experience. Career returners will have different motivations and priorities, so it’s essential to see these differences in your workforce.

By taking steps to attract these workers, you can leverage their skills and experience that might be overlooked by other employers. They can also quickly move into mentorship roles for younger employees who might be struggling to pick up some of the soft skills essential for their role.

Want to tap into diverse, experienced talent pools? Submit your vacancy to CMD Recruitment today—and let’s bring hidden experience back into your team.