Imagine successfully narrowing down your candidate pool to about 10 from several hundreds of applications – only to find out that only two can attend the interview. What happened?
Despite their best intentions, recruiters and employers may sometimes lose the top candidates. The simplest explanation is that the interview and hiring process are long drawn out.
Consider this: Why would a candidate (a highly sought-after one at that) spend months waiting for an offer? They won’t. Instead, they’ll move on to the organisation that would hire them sooner.
Here’s some data from Robert Half’s Time to Hire survey to back that up:
- For almost six in 10 workers (57%), the most frustrating part of the job search is the long wait after an interview to hear if they got the job.
- Nearly one-quarter (23%) lose interest in an organisation if they don’t hear back within one week after the initial interview; another 46% lose interest if there’s no status update from one-to-two weeks post-interview.
- When faced with a lengthy hiring process, 39% of survey respondents lose interest and pursue other roles, while 18% decide to stay put in their current job.
- Nearly one-third (32%) said a protracted hiring process makes them question the organisation’s ability to make other important decisions.
In addition to losing out on top candidates slipping away, companies deal with some detrimental effects like the following:
- The role remains unfilled, which means there are employees who need to shoulder the open position’s responsibilities. This will likely lead to lower quality output and job dissatisfaction.
- The vacancy leads to unproductive hours and revenue loss. The longer the position stays unfilled, the larger the revenue loss.
- Poor online reviews in employment websites like Indeed and Glassdoor due to long recruitment processes.
So what do you need to do to avoid all this? Here are a few quick but effective suggestions.
Keep communication lines open
Never leave your candidates hanging. It’s crucial that you inform them after each step in the hiring process. For instance, setting up an autoresponder email confirming that you received a candidate’s CV is a huge deal; your applicants will know what to expect next.
Whether the news is good or bad, candidates want to know what’s going on right away. If they don’t, they’ll assume the company isn’t interested and will move on to other opportunities.
Clarify details from the outset
Details matter; if you publish inaccurate information, you’ll end up losing candidates. You must ensure that everyone concerned (e.g. hiring managers, leaders, employees doing similar tasks) agree on things like the compensation and benefits, tasks and responsibilities and other related details.
Show your interest right away
If one of your top candidates shows a little more enthusiasm for your open position compared to the others, make it a point to reciprocate their interest.
You can do this by:
- Replying. That alone is already a good sign of interest from your end.
- Crafting a personalised answer. Canned responses are a no-no.
Otherwise, other organisations may snatch up your candidate before you do.
Ask the candidate about their job hunt
When meeting or speaking with your candidates, don’t forget to ask them how their job search is doing. Are they applying for other roles elsewhere? Have they received a job offer from other employers?
By knowing the status of their job hunt, you’ll be able to better expect how situations may pan out for each candidate, and this will help you make right decisions.
Maximise your time for interviews
Interviews can be time-consuming. Arranging them is sometimes a chore because a candidate isn’t free during certain hours. Likewise, using effective approaches like behavioural interviewing typically takes more time.
But if you rush through the interview process, you face the risk of not knowing candidates well enough. Fortunately, you can speed it all up through technology.
For instance, you can do initial interviews over phone or video (e.g. Skype, Zoom), then use apps (like Calendly) to schedule as many candidates as you can during specific days and times you’re available.
Close the deal ASAP
After the interviews, certain steps can still delay the hiring process (e.g. background checks, preparing the job offer). In any case, if you want to hire a candidate, seal the deal by giving a verbal offer as soon as possible. Even if your offer comes with certain conditions, it shows the candidate your interest.
Here’s the important part: when you make a verbal offer, candidates are less likely to slip away.
Partner with Remote Workmate
Here’s an effective way to keep top talent from slipping away: hire your remote assistants via Remote Workmate. Compared to freelancing platforms where you do everything yourself, we do all the heavy lifting for you, including onboarding and payroll.
You can actually choose from our pool of top candidates right away. Simply visit our Hotlist at:
https://remoteworkmate.com/hotlist
You can browse a range of profiles on our Hotlist page. Once you find a qualified VA, simply fill out the form at the bottom and we’ll get in touch with you at first opportunity.
