Hiring leaders in several key economies continue to feel pressure to hire quality candidates, according to a survey by HireVue, an interviewing and recruiting automation. The company surveyed over 1,100 hiring leaders in Australia, the U.K., and the U.S., asking them how their hiring has changed in the past year, revealing higher personal stress, longer time-to-fill, and an increased use of automation and remote technology. 54% (including 59% of women) are managing an increase in stress at work.

Related: Hiring Expands in the US in March

The good news: recruiting budgets have often expanded. 39% of respondents reported an increase in their budgets, while 39% remained flat, and 22% reported a decrease.

On the down side, time-to-fill has increased, with 23% taking 1-2 weeks longer than prior to the pandemic, and 14% taking 3-4 weeks longer. According to Australia-based SEEK, there are critical skills-shortages across a number of roles, from dentists to bakers to arborists.

Forty percent of hiring managers said the biggest barrier to hiring was finding qualified candidates in the first place, while a quarter said the longer lead times involved in virtual hiring processes means fewer candidates are available when it comes time to make an offer.

“The pandemic has created a unique opportunity for employers to redesign their hiring processes – leveraging technology that complements the capability of employees at a speed and scale not otherwise possible,” Kevin Parker, chairman and CEO at HireVue, said in a statement.

Parker noted that recruiters are “increasingly looking to virtual hiring to widen access to candidates they may not have had access to in the past.”

52% of respondents said having some sort of video-interviewing tool improves their access to candidates and shortens lead times; and chat and text tools to remove barriers to make the hiring process more accessible. They’re also looking beyond the geographic barriers that have held them back in the past. The survey found 48% of respondents are widening the areas where they recruit new talent, and 47% are looking for candidates to fill remote roles.

Related: 35% of Candidates Have Declined a Job Offer Due to Lack of Remote Work: Fear, Uncertainty, and the Coming Changes

Accessibility is important to hiring managers, one-third of whom said diversity and inclusion is their No. 1 priority in 2021. Fifty-five percent of respondents said they’re taking steps to expand their recruiting networks by working with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, or schools with diverse student populations.

“Employers are looking ahead to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rebuild a diverse and inclusive workforce, and will need to rely on technology to hire at scale,” Parker added.

Along with the use of remote interviewing tools and automation, respondents also expressed an interest in tools that can relieve them of tedious responsibilities, as 51% want to spend less time on scheduling so they can spend more time with candidates.

Digital transformation will continue to drive the growth in the need for IT talent. For Forbes, IT consultant David Moise writes: "What exactly digital transformation means to a CIO or CTO can vary. The one constant is that whenever C-suite executives start saying "digital transformation," that translates to bringing in software developers, cloud engineers, scrum masters, QA/QC and all the other associated roles. As we move toward recovery, the topic coming from more C-suite executives will be digital transformation."

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