Take Action
What can be done? First, recognize the fact, and don't say, "Well, we are different. We don't have this problem."9 O4 m9 L( L9 ]$ T4 H( q' W
5 {, c3 T# `3 A* O* G1 rThere's no question: today's relationships with potential employees are poor at best. The new survey by CareerXroads (soon to be released) shows that in 2006, only 59 percent of the best companies to work for acknowledge the response of an application, and a meager 5 percent give an update at the end of the process that the position is closed out and that the candidate was not chosen.) f6 {3 K. D s& l) U6 m! `* `
3 T5 ^1 \! z h9 T+ iRecognize that this is an opportunity for a great branding experience to distinguish your company dramatically. If you're in a retail business, it's also a tool for brand-building and customer perception toward your general products, as many studies have shown that employer brand and company brand are not discrete.
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! G; H$ t P9 o8 C/ _5 R: M& yIf you are a recruiter with no talent management system to help you, mass-mailing will probably be your best friend to minimize the casualties. Remember, candidates like to know that you received their application and prefer to know they are not short-listed than not receive anything.! ~) m7 I" b; }/ n, T9 b3 o, W
- e* G# z1 x" u0 ]5 A8 @Those functionalities can all be automated. In some systems you can even delay automatic responses to make them seem that they were done by real humans. Nonetheless, during the subsequent stages of the hiring process, you still have to push the buttons to make sure you send the personalized communications. It is a small discipline that goes a long way for candidates.0 J$ s8 B0 Y( N# X7 \2 |
4 u" R, Y. c! a' n$ IIdeally, candidates that went all the way to interviews would like to know more. In a perfect world, you should transform this interaction into an exchange that can be a learning experience for the candidate. This must be done for internal candidates; otherwise you are creating disgruntled employees and preparing your next unwanted turnover.
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If you are in charge of a recruiting department, you can monitor that your team practices the tactics described above. You can generate reports on those. Even more important, you can design a process that ensures great communication and superior success of your department. One of the key practices is to segment the candidates. The top three finalists are probably all very good and should be treated differently than the people who did not make the first cut.
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8 F; H8 k) a0 uIf you have a sourcing team, short-listed candidates should be in the team's database, especially if you have recurring needs in those positions. Personalized feedback for the finalists will build future results. These finalists are your next top candidates and your best advocates and sources of referrals.
