To enhance the candidate experience, businesses don’t need a large amount of funds or resources; instead, a few modest adjustments might have a significant impact on the hiring process and its outcome.Consider the Golden Rule as the cornerstone of all potential suggestions for improvement: Treat your candidates the way you would like to be treated. Here are some concrete suggestions for enhancing the candidate experience at each stage of the application process and at important touchpoints in the candidate’s journey.
Job searching
Make an attractive career page
Your career page is a great way to highlight your corporate culture. If someone visits this page, they are probably interested in working with your company. You don’t want to make a poor first impression and turn off potential applicants before they even start.
Employee-generated material and testimonials, for example, are effective recruitment marketing tactics for demonstrating what it is like to work for your organization. Include a corporate culture film that explains various roles—from leadership to front-line workers portraying normal workdays. By displaying the work atmosphere and culture through video, the company can attract more high-intent and potential individuals who understand how you function and may want to join the team.
Creating accurate and motivating job descriptions
Suitable individuals should be persuaded to apply right away by the job adverts. To encourage and excite your target prospects, take into account their professional aspirations and ensure that you can meet their expectations. Include a realistic description of the position and the required skills and qualifications; although recruiters don’t want unqualified applicants to apply, they also don’t want to scare off entry-level individuals who are qualified for the position.
Be where your ideal prospects are
You need to be present where your potential applicants can see you. If you want to pique their attention and get them engaged with your business, opt for the channels that suitable candidates often frequent, be it social media or popular job boards. Recruit on campus if you’re recruiting for entry-level positions and if recent college graduates are the best choice.
If you’re looking for more senior profiles, think about becoming a member of organizations that are unique to that sector and going to their events to hire individuals with rare skills and expertise. Additionally, you should engage in the appropriate online discussions; post your job vacancies on social media with pertinent hashtags and join the appropriate LinkedIn groups to tap into potential talents.
Application procedure
Establish clear expectations by outlining the procedure in advance
So that candidates know what to anticipate, let them know early on how the hiring process will go. For instance, let them know in advance if you want to use recorded video replies or if an in-person interview would be the next step in the hiring process. Explain to them if there will be a face-to-face interview with the team after they succeed in the current round of assessments. This is a crucial area to improve because inadequate communication is one of the main causes of candidate dissatisfaction and discontent. Recruitment software or solutions like ATS, candidate management system
Ensure a simple application procedure
Make the application procedure as easy as possible for your candidates. It is better not to make them jump through hoops and using recruitment software or other hiring solutions is a great way to make the application process simple. For instance, a lot of firms just want applicants to complete a form. More and more job seekers choose to search for employment on their phones and submit their applications through mobile phones. Even advertising a position on mobile-friendly platforms may boost applications by 11.6%.
Utilize recorded video interviews
During the application process, using pre-recorded video interviews will be advantageous to both recruiters and applicants. Candidates get a special chance to express themselves, and they are free to record their video responses anywhere and whenever it is most convenient for them. Furthermore, the video questions and video introduction provide them with a clearer idea of the company. Additionally, video interviews enable recruiters to only schedule in-person interviews with qualified prospects, saving your hiring process time. So, there is no reason to waste time if you find that a candidate is not a good match for the role or the company. Recruitment software applications now have instant messaging and video conferencing facilities that can help conduct recorded video interviews.
Give applicants the chance to demonstrate their capabilities and personality
While most employers evaluate resumes as part of the screening process, not all applicants feel comfortable conveying their talents and abilities in writing. Additionally, a CV can only reveal so much about a person’s mindset, drive, and personality.
Because of this, many businesses now let applicants use pre-recorded video interviews to demonstrate their abilities and personalities. According to a candidate survey, candidates of all ages are pleased with video interviews, and 84% advise using them for recruiting.
The interview procedure
Attempt to impress potential recruits
In a face-to-face interview, both the recruiting professionals and the candidates are attempting to make a good impression. Candidates should have undivided attention and must be treated with respect. By being on and staying within the agreed time for interviews, one can convey respect to candidates’ schedules and time. Allow prospects to ask questions to learn more about the position and your company’s culture. Ask thoughtful queries. After the interview, offer prospective employees a tour of your workplace to give them a glimpse of your workspace.
Inform your hiring schedule
The length of your hiring procedure will depend on the position or role the recruiter needs to fill. However, one may prevent candidates from becoming discouraged by clearly stating the timeframe from the beginning. Just be honest about it if, for instance, you want to meet possible applicants but know that you won’t be able to recruit anyone for at least two months. Also, if it is an immediate requirement, make it clear to the prospect so the expectations are clear and there is no confusion among candidates.
Respond quickly to questions regarding the next steps
Candidates frequently have no perception of how the hiring process will go. One applicant may be your top choice, but they may have already rejected your organization because they had not heard from you in a while. Proactively connecting with your applicants will demonstrate to them that you appreciate their time. If you find out early on that candidates are not a good fit, be honest rather than giving the prospect false hope. Tell the candidate the circumstances if something happens at your organization and you need to wait before hiring.
Deliver personalized messages
A more personal approach to communicating may have a long-term influence on the candidate experience. Whether you’re reaching out to a passive prospect or providing feedback to someone you recently interviewed, personalize your messages and communication. This will strengthen your employer brand, increase response rates, and help you build trust with potential candidates. Sending customized communications also allows you to prevent alienating any applicants, who may not be suitable for the current role.
Introduce the team
You may expose candidates to their potential co-workers by having different team members record video interview questions. Candidates would also have the option to ask team members questions that a hiring manager or recruiter would not be able to address during face-to-face interviews.
Involving several team members in the recruitment process also minimizes the possibility of making biased hiring decisions.
Offer and receive feedback
94% of job candidates want feedback on their interviews. Giving precise comments as soon as possible is a simple approach to demonstrate your concern for a candidate’s success, and it creates a positive impression of your business. In fact, if hiring managers or interviewers provide positive criticism, prospects are more likely to consider your organization for future opportunities.
Inquiring about your applicants’ experiences will provide you with the information and insights you need to improve. If someone tells you about a particularly unpleasant incident, listen without interrupting or becoming defensive. Then, apologize and apply their input to enhance the candidate experience. Whether the feedback is favorable or adverse, whether you’re dealing with top talents or rejected prospects, always thank them for their time.
The onboarding process
Make a plan
Your new employees will notice if you do not have a strategic onboarding plan. Share your onboarding program, including a timetable, with new recruits so they know what to anticipate in the following weeks. To offer prospects a clear idea of your culture, provide a summary of your company’s narrative, including its goal, values, and people. Recruitment software or employee management systems often possess onboarding applications for new hires.
Do not overwhelm new hires
The first day of a new job may be stressful for new hires. So, do not overwhelm your new hire with new information and paperwork on their first day. Instead, disperse information and training to ease new employees into their new roles and allow them time to process everything.
Wrap Up
Technologies can be extremely useful in optimizing candidate experience. Standalone recruitment software or recruitment modules in HR solutions are essential for any organization. Also, there are many types of recruiting solutions like applicant tracking systems, candidate management applications, and recruitment chatbots that are being employed in organizations to enhance the candidate experience and the entire hiring process.
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