Is your behaviour harming your company reputation?

We all understand that company brand relies significantly on reputation.

It may just be a perceived reputation but with word of mouth so powerful that can spell disaster when people start speaking negatively. Whatever you imagine you are communicating through logo, company image or style the reality might be the opposite. Everything you do, every email sent, every social post, every action underpins perception.

Interestingly in the recruitment business I find that companies forget that reputation can be impacted positively or negatively even within the recruitment process.

Think about the times you have been frustrated by an application process, a lack of communication or a poor experience. Nowadays people can communicate their displeasure at the press of a button. Your lack of thought can do far more harm than you might think.

Next time you fail to communicate regularly and thoughtfully with candidates remember they will see lack of communication as the equivalent of ghosting.

What happens is there is a lack of closure and candidates are just left hanging. Candidates are human beings not just application numbers. I am going to hazard a guess that managing the candidate experience is a big challenge for many companies and this week I thought it was worth listing some of the observations I have experienced when working with companies to fill vacancies.

Does your company do any of these?

11 ways to put off job applicants in 2019

· You leave plenty of time to shortlist but then don’t bother reviewing candidates for weeks

· You don’t bother picking up the phone to keep people informed regarding changes in recruitment process, dates changing etc.

· You don’t bother offering any interview feedback

· You don’t consider the candidate experience as being part of your reputati0on management. If the experience is poor now what will it be like if someone takes up a permanent position?

· Do you manage the recruitment process carefully to enhance perception and protect and enhance your brand perception? Do you actually have a recruitment strategy?

· Do you ensure your candidates really fit into a salary band? Are you being realistic regarding relocation costs?

· Do you do your very best to manage expectations, manage the whole process sensitively?

· Do you begin the recruitment process and keep the pressure on until the final result has been achieved?

· You might think this is pretty basic advice. Yes, it is but I see it ignored so many times

· Do you have a solid interview practice? Employers don’t necessarily have the upper hand anymore. If you’ve seen an uptick in unfinished interview processes and rejections you will have already noticed this

· Do you still believe that candidates should feel privileged to be called for interview? Honestly, do you truly value candidates’ time? Are you acting quickly enough to secure talent? It takes around a month in Europe to hire but top candidates are snapped up within ten days. This is a disconnect that needs to be sorted before your next recruitment drive.

· How much care do you take to give the candidates a good experience? Do you plan your interview strategy? Do you meet as an interview panel before the day?

As an independent recruiter we work hard to contact potential candidates directly.

We do our best to underscore your company’s reputation so it is frustrating to find that a company takes far less care of the candidates in the next stage of the recruitment process. It makes sense. In fact during the recruitment process I act as an ambassador on behalf of my clients to promote them as the employer of choice. The only successful way that this can be achieved is by investing time at the beginning of our relationship and getting to know the client and key people involved in the recruitment process. It really is worth the time investment.

We have to remember that candidates have many options and they really are in the driving seat. Perhaps it’s time companies were a little more humble and did their best to do everything to communicate sensitively and regularly with the people they need. What do you think? Do you feel there are things candidates could also do to improve the recruitment process?

I am Always Seeking Out Exceptional Talent In The Food & Drink Industry - Call +44 (0) 7793 526078 mike@meyrickconsulting.com