The Talent We’re Still Overlooking
We hear it constantly from organisations:“We can’t find the right talent.” And yet, every day, we meet people who prove the opposite.
At Back to Work Connect, we work closely with returners — individuals coming back into the workforce after a career break. And what’s striking isn’t a lack of capability. It’s the opposite. These are people who are skilled, experienced, motivated, and ambitious. People who want to contribute, grow, and add real value.
So the question isn’t where is the talent? It’s why aren’t we seeing it?
Who are Returners, really?
The term “returner” can sometimes feel reductive — as if it describes a small or niche group.
Returners are professionals who have stepped away from the workforce for a period of time — often for caregiving, raising families, or other life commitments — and are now ready to come back.
Many are in midlife. Many are women.
In fact, 90% of homemakers recorded in the 2022 census were women. But focusing only on labels misses the bigger picture.
Behind the word “returner” is a diverse, highly capable talent pool with years of experience behind them and a strong desire to re-engage with work.
The scale of the opportunity
Globally, there are 96 million skilled workers aged 30 to 54 currently on career breaks.
Take a moment to sit with that.
96 million
Research commissioned by Vodafone in 2016 indicated that there are an estimated 96 million skilled women aged 30–54 on career breaks worldwide, with around 55 million of them having experience at mid-manager level or above.
That’s not a marginal group. That’s a workforce and yet, most organisations are not set up to access it.
The disconnect
Here’s what we see time and time again:
Companies say they want experienced hires. They say they want diverse teams. They say they want to close skills gaps and build stronger leadership pipelines. But their hiring practices still filter out the very people who could help them do exactly that.
👉Career gaps are penalised.
👉Linear CVs are prioritised.
👉Confidence is mistaken for capability.
The result?
A huge pool of talent remains invisible.
Why this matters for business
This isn’t just a diversity conversation. It’s a business one.
When organisations become returner-friendly, the impact is immediate and tangible:
- Access to an untapped talent pool with real-world experience
- Improved gender and age diversity across teams
- Progress toward reducing the gender pay gap
- Stronger pipelines for leadership and critical skills
These are not long-term, abstract benefits. They directly affect performance, innovation, and growth.
So what needs to change?
Not the talent but the system.
Because Returners are not lacking in ability — they’re navigating hiring processes that were never designed with them in mind. If we want different outcomes, we need to rethink how we define potential, how we assess experience, and how we open doors.
From intention to action
This is exactly why we built our Returner Friendly Recruitment Training at Back to Work Connect.
It’s designed to help organisations move beyond good intentions and into practical change, equipping hiring teams with the tools, mindset, and strategies to recognise and access this talent properly.
Because once you see the opportunity, you can’t unsee it.
The talent is there.
The question is whether we’re ready to meet it.
For more information and supports on creating a Returner Friendly recruitment process reach out to our team at info@backtoworkconnect.ie
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