By Lindsey Schultz
Recently, I have been evaluating our processes and differentiators as a recruitment firm to better serve our clients and candidates. At MRC we pride ourselves in our communication and partnership with those we work. As a practice for nearly 15 years, we have attempted to respond to every job application and email we receive. Although we are far from perfect, and this practice adds significant time to our workdays, we value our candidate’s time and interest and understand the importance of providing feedback to them.
It was not until recently that I learned this is part of the ‘candidate experience’. I believe the candidate experience that we strive to provide at MRC is critical to our continued success, hinging upon our clients also valuing the concept. So much so that we ask for clients to commit to providing timely feedback and active collaboration in our contracts!
As recently discussed in our mentoring blog post – we are running short on the supply of candidates in the mining industry. I’d characterize our current mining environment as a ‘sellers’ market – meaning, demand for mining talent is greater than supply. We should use candidate feedback and data from digital recruiting tools to improve our recruiting process and thus positively impact candidate experience. Positive candidate experience directly translates to enhanced ability to both attract and retain talent, and many of the suggestions that follow can be done with minimal investment of time and cost on behalf of our client companies.
What is the candidate experience?
HR Technologist (magazine) defines candidate experience as “…the perception of a job seeker about an employer, based on the interaction during the complete recruitment process. This includes all points of contact during recruitment – job search, the application process, interview process and onboarding.”
This is a broad area to cover for recruiters and HR professionals, however, as recruiting becomes more digital we have the opportunity to utilize data from our recruiting processes and technology (applicant tracking systems, customer/candidate relationship management systems, website statistics, job boards, LinkedIn, etc.) to identify opportunities for improvement.
Some key areas to consider in evaluating how your company/recruiting process manages candidate experience are:
How did the candidate find the role they are applying for?
Social media, job advertisements, company website, employee referral, recruiter, job fair, etc.
The candidate’s first interactions with your company and brand are important. Make sure your job postings/careers page are easy to find. Some companies even provide videos about their company and culture.
How can the candidate apply or find out more about the job or company?
Job descriptions should speak to your company culture as well as the role responsibilities. Be descriptive and explain why candidates should choose your organization. Provide clear and concise job duties and provide instructions on how to apply and when candidates might expect a response from you.
Communication/Feedback/Rejection
The primary source of discontent and candidate dropout is lack of timely communication from the recruiter and/or employer regarding the role they have applied for. Many candidates never receive any information regarding their hiring status (being considered or rejected). As a recruiter, we strive to keep lines of communication with candidates open so there are no surprises. If candidates do not receive any details, they are more likely to reject an offer, drop out of the process or have a negative perception of the company. Candidates prefer straightforward honest feedback, even if they are being rejected, rather than nothing at all.
Interviewing
Communicate clearly and promptly with scheduling details, participants names, titles and other relevant information. If the candidate must travel, make sure all travel information is relayed well in advance of their departure and communicate reimbursable expenses so the candidate does not have to ask for this later. Make the experience unique and aim to make your candidates feel special – send someone to pick them up from the airport, ensure a prepared employee is available upon their arrival at the interview to show them in, make introductions, provide water. Small and inexpensive gestures that show off the company’s preparedness go a long way.
Offer
This is another area that you can really stand out and provide a strong positive candidate experience. You want to onboard a happy employee. Take time to evaluate their background and your internal metrics so you can provide a fair and robust offer. Most candidates loathe having to negotiate or ask for clarification on vacation, benefits, etc. Craft a customized offer letter and detailed information on the total package. Provide a point of contact for candidates to reach out to for questions if necessary.
Onboarding
This is a critical step to ensure a positive candidate experience. Onboarding includes background checks, drug testing, relocation, training, proper socialization of employees with the team/managers, etc. Develop a checklist of all items, articles that must be completed for HR and the selected candidate so both are held accountable and can see where they are in the process. Creating an onboarding plan with incremental check points (30, 90, 120 days and then annually) using metrics to evaluate success help to ensure candidates stay connected, engaged, and positive about their choice to join your organization.
Summary
It is not necessary to implement ALL of these suggestions to improve candidate experience, a little tweak here or there that is authentic to your organization’s culture can go a long way. Most candidates are pleased to receive honest customized feedback in this time of automated job postings and rejection letters.
At MRC we appreciate your feedback and insights, we are always learning and aim to continuously improve our processes and provide an excellent candidate experience. As a recruiter, I know I have done a good job when our candidates become clients, and/or refer others to us. Want to discuss this more? Feel free to email me.
If you’re looking to make a career change, MRC can help connect with us or submit your resume.