Hiring strategy
Why your critical facilities requisition is still open
If qualified candidates have seen the role and passed, the reason is usually in the scope, the pay, the shift pattern or the location.
Founder & Principal Recruiter · Published September 14, 2026
Why your critical facilities requisition is still open
When a critical facilities role stays open without progress, the cause is usually one of four things: the comp band is below the market for that plant and shift, the scope combines two jobs into one, the shift pattern or location rules out most candidates, or the process is losing candidates to faster competitors. Sourcing more people for the same role at the same pay gets the same result.
Causes
- Comp band below the market for the plant and shift, usually because it was set from a survey
- Two jobs written as one role, such as 'chief engineer who also covers critical environments and manages vendors'
- Night-shift differential, site location or on-call load ruling out most candidates
- Slow process losing finalists to employers whose offer comes first
Diagnosis
Look at where candidates drop out. Plenty of applicants but no finalists points at scope or screening. Finalists who decline at offer points at comp or shift. Thin applicant flow from the start points at comp, location or both. Offers accepted and then countered away point at comp and speed together.
A market map answers it directly: what the people who would take this role are paid, where they work and what would get them to move. Do that research before you repost the job.
Fixes
Change the requirement that is blocking you: reset the comp band against named comparable employers, split the scope, restructure the shift differential, or commit to fast feedback and fewer interview rounds. Then go back to candidates, including the ones who declined earlier. Once something has changed, it is worth asking them again.
Sources
- Uptime Institute Global Data Center Survey Results 2024, Uptime Institute
- Occupational Outlook Handbook, Electricians, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
By market
Markets
Candidate supply and pay differ by metro. These pages cover the markets where this comes up most.
Market
Chicago
Many experienced facilities candidates, and comp bands often trail the union-influenced market.
Market
Columbus
Fewer local candidates, so location and shift design decide whether the role fills.
Market
San Antonio
Hiring from adjacent industries often works faster than waiting for local candidates.
Questions
Questions
- When is an aging requisition a warning sign?
- When a well-scoped, correctly paid role with a fast process still does not produce qualified finalists. At that point, recheck the requirements before spending more on sourcing.
- Should we just raise comp until the req fills?
- Only after you have confirmed pay is the problem. If the scope or location is wrong, a higher salary brings in someone who is likely to leave. Find the cause first, then change that one thing.
- What does the vacancy itself cost while we diagnose?
- Overtime for the rest of the team, deferred maintenance and gaps in shift coverage. The cost-of-vacancy calculator puts a daily number on the open role that you can bring to the comp discussion.
Keep reading
Related work
AI infrastructure recruiter
How we research named companies and screen candidates across the five functions.
Cost of vacancy calculator
Put a daily cost on the open role before you discuss pay.
Talent intelligence
A market map that shows why the req is stuck.
Critical facilities engineer guide
What the role owns, what it pays and how to qualify candidates.
Czarina Tabayoyong
Founder and principal recruiter, Critical Path Hiring. Czarina recruits commissioning, MEP, power and critical facilities people for data center builds. She previously recruited cloud and data center architecture talent at AWS Professional Services, and PMO and project delivery talent for hyperscale data center campuses in Texas and Virginia.
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