As online recruiters, we deal with a huge number of vacancies – and are thus privy to any irks and annoyances from both the recruiter’s standpoint and the candidate’s! We see a number of challenges faced by recruiters that hold back their hiring, and these tend to echo common frustrations on the candidate side. The good news is though that they can be easily solved on both sides.
Accolo have released data from Jibe Inc, on the five hiring practices most likely to grate on candidates. We agree and have got the ones that resonated most with our team below, which have shaped our top 3 hiring commandments.
Hiring Commandment 1: Thou Shall Not Have Long Applications
Well over half of candidates (60%) find job applications more onerous to fill out than mortgage applications, health insurance applications and student loan applications which is staggering when you consider how much information these forms typically require!
And to add insult to injury, 19% of the survey’s respondents claimed they would rather spend a day queuing than applying for jobs… ouch!
Keep application forms short, and start asking the big and more time-consuming questions after the candidate has engaged. Try to reduce the amount of people’s time you waste by keeping things to the point until you need to go into more depth.
Hiring Commandment 2: Though Shall Always Respond to Candidates
We can all relate to the unpleasantness of uncertainty. If a candidate has taken the time and effort to apply and even come in for an interview, follow up is a must. It can be nerve wracking applying for a job and involve a heavy emotional investment. In support of this point, the majority of job seekers (51%) expect to be informed about the status of their application, but only 14% report actually receiving that information during their job search.
Ensuring a response is a quick win for recruiters.
Hiring Commandment 3: Though Shall Check the Technology
Our organisation is heavily reliant on tech – we’re an online recruitment agency so in actual fact everything we do is driven by technology! Applicant portals, mobile recruiting websites, social media response times, video interviewing and conference software… it all involves technology. And tech that fails on the day, is a major gripe for candidates.
60% of job seekers are deterred from applying to a job because of tech hurdles encountered when applying. Common annoyances include not being able to upload a resume (55%) and not being able to follow up on an application’s status.
Having basic, working technology is another quick win for recruiters. Try going through the application process yourself as it may give you an edge in helping someone who is having a problem. A working mobile application process can also help in this area – capturing candidates who wish to apply on the move. And in relation to our first commandment, this is also another reason for keeping the initial application form short!
Stick to these three commandments and your candidates’ irks, will turn into perks!
Castle Hill House