Why Communication Should Be Recruiters’ Top Focus in 2020

Why Communication Should Be Recruiters’ Top Focus in 2020

The labor market is continuing to grow, and most companies are feeling strained by the competition. Recruiters are already wrestling over top talent, and the tight market just throws more stress into that fray. So, what can your company do better to attract candidates? One of the most important things you can take a look at is communication. It is a core part of your hiring process that often goes overlooked. Good communication can give you the edge you need to grab that next star employee.

David Markus is the Director of Executive Recruiting at SymantecCorporation. He has some poignant things to say about how their company is tackling the challenges in the current market by implementing high-quality communication.

“I think candidate experience is vital here. An extremely important part of this is giving the candidates insights about the company and what it would be like to work there. I think at its core, everything comes down to communication, staying in touch. Consider that a candidate, if they are a hot candidate on the market, could have three or four companies vying for them at the same time. So, we need to be available 24/7, and all this tight communication will give you an edge on achieving a quality hire.”

Ghosting a candidate can hurt your brand

While using effective communication may seem like common sense, a shocking amount of job seekers have reported that companies ghost them entirely after an interview. A Clutch report showed that almost 40% of candidates never received a response when a company rejected them. Most people know how frustrating applying for jobs can be, and this lack of response can contribute to job-search burnout. A side-effect of this that most companies don’t consider is how this can increase negative opinions of their company.

If an applicant feels as though a company didn’t treat them with respect during the hiring process, they will be less likely to apply for other open positions within your company. They may not use your services or products again. This alienation of potential future candidates and clients can contribute to negative brand associations, especially if these bad experiences end up on forums and sites like Glassdoor.

When thinking about your communication processes, it is essential to extend your practices to candidates you reject too. Only 13% of people in Clutch’s survey received a personalized email rejection. When you take time to reach out to rejected candidates, they will walk away from the process feeling more positively toward your company. This can influence them in the future to apply to future openings at your company, or a positive response if you reach out to them for a different position. This task may seem daunting when some opportunities pull hundreds of applicants, so think about looking into automation tools to help assist your recruiting team.

Faster response times

Another way you can improve your communication with candidates is to look at how quickly you respond to them. Top candidates only stay on the market for ten days on average. Every moment counts! Robert Brabo, Vice President of Human Resources at Advantia Health, has good insight on this topic:

“Today, one of the main recruitment challenges is sourcing top-quality candidates, which takes a significant amount of speed and effort. The second one is convincing them to be attracted to your company, so the candidate experience during the whole recruitment process is very critical. Part of that candidate experience is timing or how quickly you can get them through the hiring pipeline. Hiring managers need to understand the importance of responding as quickly as possible and getting those top candidates actually into the hiring process. Companies that can provide a quicker process will end up on top. Thus, it is important to speed up the most time-consuming step in the healthcare sphere – the prescreening. Constant communication with the candidates will also show them that you’re genuinely interested in them.”

Keep those communication lines open

After you hire an employee, continuing a strong line of communication is vital. During the onboarding process, you should continue to be open and attentive to your new hire. For instance, it is a great idea to give feedback on their interview. According to a Linkedin study, 94% of candidates want to receive interview feedback. However, only 41% have ever received any. Something else to keep in mind is that a negative onboarding experience can mean that employees are less likely to stay at a job.

Post interview, communication doesn’t become less important. 80% of workers have said that they have had stress because of poor communication in their company. Retaining top talent is something that should be focused on equally as much as acquiring them was.

Enjoy the results

Communication with employees and candidates should be a front and center focus for human resource departments. Effective communication not only will give you an edge when competing for top talent, but it also helps you retain those valuable employees. Being open and direct helps lower stress in the workplace and create a healthier environment for them to thrive.

Take some time this year to bring quality candidate-centric communication practices into your company, and you will absolutely see results.

Authors

Birch Faber