Improving the Candidate Experience

by: Mike Foster, Talent Acquisition Leader |
June 20, 2019
Happy candidate

Creating a positive candidate experience is important for not only placing talent, but growing a business and building a brand reputation. According to Career Builder, about 78% of candidates say that the overall candidate experience is a good indicator of how the company treats its people. Additionally, 80% of candidates who have had a negative interview experience are likely to change their mind about both the role and the company that they may have once liked (LinkedIn).

The candidate experience begins even before applying for a position and continues through recruiting, interviewing as well as onboarding/training.  Every touchpoint with your organization impacts the candidate experience. Below are a few suggestions for improving your candidate experience.

Interviewing Process

The current full employment market has shifted the candidate mindset from “being selected” by a company to a vetting process giving the many candidates the power to “select” a position from multiple company possibilities. Candidates are now asking many questions:

  • Culture-focused – What’s it like to work here?  What do you like best about this company?
  • Career-path – What are my growth opportunities?
  • Flexibility – What are the in-office requirements?  Is there flex-time?

Most candidates in today’s market are either passive or they’re staking multiple companies, so Hiring Managers need to be prepared to answer these questions which contributes to a great candidate experience.

According to LinkedIn Business, 87% of candidates who have a positive interview experience will likely change their mind about a role they once doubted.

Culture

Recruiters and Hiring Managers alike should be coached on ways to articulate the company culture as it relates to the candidate. The word “culture” is thrown around a lot, but what really makes a great corporate culture? Authenticity. Being authentic in a world where numerous companies are trying to mimic the same type of environment cultivated by Google and Apple is difficult. Candidates are quickly able to tell if a culture is not authentic, and if it isn’t, they might not want to continue down the interviewing path.

One of the most important aspects of the candidate experiencing the company’s culture is providing an office or facilities tour. According to Talent Works, office visits are important to almost half of all candidates that have never heard of the company for which they are interviewing. By merely allowing candidates to tour the space can give them a good insight into what the company’s culture looks like.

When positioning culture, it’s important to understand the story behind the company, identify the positives from the employee perspective, along with the company’s mission and value statements. For companies that are not young and catering to fresh-out-of-college employees, there is no need to provide accommodations to that specific demographic.

Social Media and Reputation Management

The rise of social media has helped influence candidates – both positively and negatively. Candidates take to social media to learn more about a company and to see other viewpoints about their processes, industry reputation, etc. At this point in time, candidates are in the driver’s seat, and companies need to cater to the candidate’s needs.  Companies need a disciplined process for online reputation management to monitor and respond to comments on various sites including Glassdoor, Facebook, Yelp, etc.

Additionally, if a candidate has a bad interviewing experience with a company, it will most likely affect their views of the company moving forward – even down to potentially not buying a product from the company again.

Always keep in mind: every single interaction candidates have is crucial. Creating the best, authentic experience for the candidate will help them have a better perception of your company, even if they aren’t hired. 

Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) solutions from Advanced RPO can help you evaluate and improve your hiring processes to get the talent you need to succeed. Contact us today to learn more about our high-touch solutions.