When manufacturers talk about recruitment challenges, the conversation often starts with the same problem which is finding the right people.
But our latest Manufacturing Workforce Reality Report 2026 suggests there is a much bigger picture to consider. Speaking to 40 manufacturing leaders, we found that the businesses facing workforce challenges aren't simply dealing with a shortage of applicants. They're thinking about reliability, skills, leadership, retention and how they are perceived by the people they want to employ.
In fact, 50% of the manufacturing leaders we spoke to identified workforce availability and reliability as their biggest workforce pressure, ahead of skills shortages at 30%. The challenge isn't necessarily getting someone through the door. It's attracting the right person, giving them a reason to choose your business and creating an environment where they'll want to stay.
And that's where there are some important lessons to be learned about what really makes an employer stand out.
When people hear "employer brand", it's easy to think about careers pages, social media posts and polished recruitment campaigns. Those things have their place, but they're only part of it.
Your employer brand is also what candidates experience when they apply for a job. It's how quickly you respond. It's how they're treated during an interview. It's what employees tell their friends about working for you. And, importantly, it's whether the reality of joining your business matches what was promised during recruitment.
Our research found that 85% of manufacturing leaders received no feedback from applicants about their hiring and onboarding processes. Of the businesses that did receive feedback, some of the recurring issues were slow recruitment, poor communication and negative perceptions of demanding or fast-paced working environments.
That's a significant blind spot. If you don't know how candidates experience your recruitment process, it becomes very difficult to know what could be helping or hurting your reputation as an employer.
We've explored this in more detail in The Employer Brand Problem Most Manufacturers Don't Know They Have, but the important point is that employer brand isn't something you can switch on when you need to recruit. Candidates are forming an opinion of your business at every stage.
Manufacturing employers are also recruiting into a labour market where expectations have changed.
Our report found that leaders are seeing growing demand for greater flexibility, better work-life balance and clearer career progression. As candidates have more choice, employers are increasingly having to think about what they can offer beyond the role itself.
That doesn't mean every manufacturer needs to completely overhaul its operation to compete for talent. Manufacturing will always have operational realities that other sectors don't. Shift patterns need covering, production targets need meeting and certain roles simply can't offer the same flexibility as an office-based job.
What matters is understanding what your people value and communicating what you can offer clearly.
That could be progression. It could be structured training, predictable shift patterns, strong leadership, job security or simply a working environment where people feel respected and supported.
We looked at this more closely in What Attracts Manufacturing Talent Today. The key is to avoid assuming that what attracted employees five or ten years ago will automatically attract today's workforce.
One of the strongest themes to come out of our research had very little to do with traditional recruitment marketing.
It was leadership.
Manufacturing leaders consistently told us that technically strong employees are often promoted into supervisory positions because they're excellent at their jobs, but without necessarily having the people-management skills needed to lead a team. In some businesses, operational pressures also mean leadership development and training simply don't receive enough time or investment.
Why does that matter for employer brand?
Because your managers and supervisors are the people who turn the promises made during recruitment into the everyday employee experience.
You can have an excellent careers page and a brilliant recruitment campaign, but if somebody joins the business and experiences poor communication, little support and unclear expectations, that's the version of your employer brand they'll remember.
As our report highlights, strong leadership can have a direct impact on morale, performance and retention. Employees are unlikely to leave because they dislike a machine or a production system; their day-to-day management experience can have a far greater influence.
For manufacturers serious about improving attraction and retention, developing supervisors shouldn't therefore sit separately from employer branding. It's part of it.
First impressions matter, particularly when candidates have several opportunities to choose from.
A lengthy application process, days without communication or unnecessary delays between interview and offer can quickly change someone's perception of an employer.
And sometimes businesses don't realise it's happening.
Our research found exactly that disconnect, with slow processes and poor communication emerging among the limited candidate feedback manufacturers were receiving.
Think about recruitment from the candidate's point of view. They've taken the time to apply. They may have rearranged work or personal commitments to attend an interview. They might be speaking to several employers at once. If another business communicates clearly and moves quickly while they're left waiting for an update from yours, which organisation is creating the better impression?
Our blog on whether your recruitment process is putting candidates off without you realising looks at this issue in more detail.
The important lesson is simple, recruitment shouldn't just assess whether a candidate is right for your business. It's also their opportunity to decide whether your business is right for them.
Another finding from the report is particularly important for employers worried about skills shortages.
When asked what would most effectively strengthen workforce capability and address skills gaps, 70% of manufacturing leaders chose training and development.
That tells us something important about employer branding too.
You don't necessarily need to compete for a small pool of "perfect" candidates who arrive with every skill on day one. There is an opportunity to become known as an employer that develops people.
Our research found that 60% of manufacturing leaders identified soft skills such as communication, initiative, reliability and problem-solving as the hardest qualities to find. Another 30% highlighted finding people who aligned with their culture and values, while only 10% pointed to shortages in specific technical occupations.
If technical skills can be developed, manufacturers can potentially widen their talent pools by looking for attitude and cultural fit and then giving people clear opportunities to learn.
For candidates, "we'll invest in you" can be a powerful reason to choose one employer over another. But, as with every aspect of employer brand, it needs to be genuine.
Attraction gets a lot of attention because it's visible. Vacancies need filling, applications can be counted and time-to-hire can be measured.
Retention tells you what happens next.
Our report found that poor hiring decisions create disruption far beyond an empty position. Existing employees may have to pick up additional responsibilities, managers spend more time supervising and retraining, morale can suffer and businesses can find themselves paying for another recruitment cycle sooner than expected.
That's why the strongest employer brands aren't simply designed to generate more applications. They're built around creating an employment experience that attracts suitable people and gives them reasons to stay.
Onboarding, development, leadership, communication and progression all contribute to that experience. Recruitment opens the door, but what happens after someone walks through it determines whether the promises you made as an employer hold up.
Perhaps the biggest lesson from our Manufacturing Workforce Reality Report 2026 is that recruitment can no longer be viewed in isolation.
Skills shortages, reliability, leadership capability, changing candidate expectations and retention are interconnected. The manufacturers responding most effectively are taking a longer-term approach by investing in people, strengthening leadership and developing sustainable talent pipelines rather than repeatedly returning to the market to solve the same workforce problems.
That's ultimately what a strong employer brand should represent.
Not a slogan. Not a glossy careers page. Not simply saying you're a great place to work.
It's the experience people have when they discover your business, apply for a role, meet your team, start work and build their career with you.
At Westray Recruitment Group, we work closely with manufacturers to understand those challenges from the factory floor upwards. That means looking beyond individual vacancies and helping employers think about attraction, candidate experience, retention and the talent they need for the future.
If you'd like to know more about how we work with businesses across the region, take a look at what makes Westray Recruitment a top recruitment agency in the North East.
Because attracting people is only the beginning. Building a workplace where the right people can succeed is what makes the difference.
A representative from Westray will be in touch with you shortly.