For every successful candidate for a job there will be many more who are unsuccessful. And for too many of those the experience will not be a positive one – and it needs to be.
If you don’t think it matters here’s an interesting statistic from Virgin Media. It looked at job applicant survey data over a 12-month period in 2014 and found that 6% of job applicants were customers who, as a result of their recruitment experience, chose to unsubscribe. That lost revenue would equate to more than £4 million. As you’d expect, it very quickly set about changing the way things were done.
In marketing it has long been recognised that unhappy customers tend to spread their unhappiness around. Depending on which research you look at that’s anything between nine and 15 people who get to hear about their disappointment, and with social media they can spread that unhappiness very quickly. So there is a compelling business case for ensuring that the recruitment process is positive whatever the outcome for the applicant.
But how can you balance the process against the costs? Isn’t it the case that the more you try to make the candidate experience positive, the higher the costs are going to be? The answer is yes but I would argue that (as the Virgin Media case shows) there are hidden costs if you fail to get it right – and more than a few positive benefits if you are willing to spend a little to ensure that it goes well. What’s more, it doesn’t have to be hugely expensive to be effective.
In many cases it isn’t going to be possible to give individual feedback to every candidate, but how about providing some encouragement? You could offer advice on all manner of areas useful to jobseekers, from interview tips to helpful hints on how to improve your CV. This is a brand-building opportunity – a chance to show that their interest in you is reciprocated.
Here’s one really major suggestion – give them money as a ‘thank you’ for their time and effort. It doesn’t have to be cash, but a voucher would almost certainly pay for itself. Existing customers will be happy to redeem them and you have a chance to convert others. After all, they thought highly enough of you to want to work for you so they may be equally happy to become customers. It’s likely to pay back considerably more than its costs, as well as building up your brand at the same time.
Whatever you decide, you need to do something positive. The Virgin Media example proves just how ‘expensive’ a rejection can be, but at the same time it’s also an opportunity to do something which will not only make rejection less damaging but also turn a potential minus into a big plus. It’s a chance to keep those people engaged with your business – something a marketer wouldn’t consider unusual at all – and nor should those of us who work in the recruitment side of HR.
Jon Porter is managing director of Yocto, the RPO division of TMP Worldwide
