Lately, there has been a lot of focus on the importance of candidate experience. The value that candidate experience brings to a company is extremely powerful. A poor candidate experience can ruin an otherwise great company and employment opportunity. On the other hand, a great candidate experience has the power to give a company that competitive advantage in the hiring market place.
I have come to realize that there are just not enough “positive” candidate experiences out there. In my own past job searches, I can’t even begin to count the lack of communication, lack of answers, and lack of genuine “care” for my candidacy. Any offers I received, my preference almost always went to the company that provided me with the best overall interview experience – the one where the recruiter was responsive and kept me informed, where the managers were very informative and interactive, and where I felt I was being treated like a human being rather than a “just another resume”.
When I began my own interview process at SuccessFactors, I was overjoyed to find that my recruiter cared and made my interview experience fantastic. I could not have asked for more. As a company, SuccessFactors has always preached that we should “drink our own champagne”. And, so here I am, as a SuccessFactors Recruiter, sharing how I hope to provide you with a great candidate experience.
SuccessFactors strives to keep as connected as possible with candidates through Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn andGoogle+!
To me, the definition of candidate experience is how a company (and its recruiters) approach the recruiting process – how they interact with the candidate, how the candidate feels throughout the process, and ultimately how that all affects the candidate’s decision making process. I firmly believe that recruiters have the power to influence an applicant’s attitude towards the company. They are, after all, the first “face” of the company an applicant comes in contact with.
1) Be warm and knowledgeable. Answering all candidate questions with warmth and enthusiasm seems to matter heavily in the eyes of the applicant.
2) You can never over-communicate. “No news is good news” does not apply in recruiting. As a recruiter, I try to let my candidates know of their application status weekly and will send them an email even if just to say “I don’t have an update for you yet”. This goes a long way. Be honest and keep the candidate as informed as possible – even if they are no longer being considered for the position.
3) Offer feedback. The interviewing candidate thought he was a good fit for the role, which is why he got to interview with the manager. Offer to provide any feedback on why they did not get the job, where their weaknesses were, and/or how they can do better next time. This falls under the “communication” category (see #2).
4) Be reachable. Whether it is by phone, email, or text messages, I try to make myself available to my candidates at all times. I will answer promptly when they have questions about the interview process, interview preparation, or candidacy updates. How many times have you felt your recruiter fell off the face of the earth? Not with me. I’m at your disposal for any question, big or small. On Twitter or LinkedIn.
In the end, when a candidate has a positive experience, whether they were offered the position or not, they are more likely to recommend the company to a colleague or another candidate, or return again in the future for a new opportunity.
That said, we promise to try to provide you with a great candidate experience. And, if we’re not, please let us know so we can fix it! We appreciate your interest and look forward to working with you.
** This blog appeared here on the SuccessFactors Blog
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