Creating a strong candidate journey in recruitment

A good candidate journey in recruitment is one of those magical things. It has the power to change minds, increase engagement and cement a wonderful relationship between your agency and candidates. It is the same as banking goodwill that will help you out, one way or another, somewhere down the line. According to a recent report by Human Resources Today, ‘98% of candidates who had a positive candidate journey in recruitment would refer others to apply.’ That’s a golden statistic too good to ignore, so the question left is how do you create a candidate journey in recruitment that can create that loving feeling?

1. Switch perception

The first thing you can do is change the way you view your people, so start by switching candidate for customer. An age-old idea is that recruiters are doing candidates a favour by finding them a job in the first place, and gratefulness is therefore due. Your candidate is your customer and your bread and butter, so it’s time we started thinking of them as such. A good way to implement this across the organisation is to start calling them customers to slowly change the way your consultants view them.

Posted 10/07/2020

2. Ignorance is not bliss

People don’t like to be kept in the dark. In fact, no one likes to be kept in the dark. In the absence of information, we get worried, unsure and negative. Keep the communication levels high with your candidates, keeping them in the loop every step of the way. Even if it is obvious to you what will happen, even if you’ve worked with them before, constantly engage with them by communicating what happens next.

3. Pick up the phone

Rejection stings, and in this game, you’ll do it a lot, but how we do it can change everything about the way people feel about us. Pick up the phone and have a conversation with your candidates when the answer is no and tell them why. Give them feedback. Commiserate with them. Start talking about next steps and plans. It will always make them feel like you’re fighting for them in their corner.

4. Put chocolates on the pillow

Not literally, as that’s undoubtedly inappropriate and creepy, however, when you go to hotels it is the small touches, like chocolates on the pillow, that make you feel taken care of. Apply these touches to your candidates, whether it’s sending a driver to pick them up, sending a congratulations card on getting a new job, or having a candidate concierge service that looks after them throughout the entire process. Make them feel like superstars and they’ll always come back for more.

5. Ask them what they want

In most relationships, we never ask the person opposite us how they want to be loved or cared for. We just assume and apply the things we like, regardless of their desires. Try asking your candidates for feedback and improvement tips. Ask them at the beginning of a hiring cycle what they need from you for this to be successful. Ask them how often they’d like communication, when are the best times, what information would they ideally like and what can you do to make them feel cared for. This makes creating a positive candidate journey in recruitment easier, and more bespoke. One size won’t fit all and the very act of asking will already elevate you in the eyes of candidates, and that is always the aim.