Success in recruitment relies not only on finding the right candidate for the job but also on building lasting relationships with those who don’t make the cut. In fact, maintaining contact with rejected candidates can be just as crucial as keeping in touch with those who are ultimately hired. Recruiters can gain access to a larger pool of qualified candidates for future openings and establish themselves as go-to experts by maintaining these connections. Let’s discuss why maintaining contact with former job seekers is so important and how to do so successfully.
Why is it important to keep in touch with rejected candidates?
Although there are many qualified applicants, only a small number of positions are available. You never know when you might get another application from a candidate you turned down.
Maintaining professional relationships and proper hiring etiquette requires keeping in touch with unsuccessful candidates. Despite the pressures of hiring, it’s important to remember that the ideal position for a candidate may become available in your company down the road. Keeping in contact with past candidates can save time and energy for hiring managers and lead to future success in recruitment.
How can recruiters maintain contact with former applicants?
- Making the interview process more human and compassionate
Candidates’ experiences during the hiring process can greatly benefit from this. By maintaining awareness and empathy throughout the hiring process, recruiters can forge stronger bonds with candidates.
Candidates may experience anxiety and disappointment during the interview process, especially if they are turned down for the position. However, recruiters can help lighten the load by streamlining and tailoring the interview process. While it may be impractical to send a unique message to each applicant, it is essential to do so for those who progress through multiple rounds of interviews. This small gesture of appreciation and gratitude can have a significant impact on how candidates perceive themselves.
It’s also a good idea for recruiters to help job seekers prepare for interviews by giving them access to relevant materials. You can advise job seekers on how to improve their self-assurance and interview skills by suggesting resources like books, online courses, and in-person workshops. Having access to these materials can make a huge difference in a candidate’s chances of being hired after subsequent interviews.
Overall, recruiters need to make an effort to be empathetic, informative, and supportive in order to humanise the interview process. Using these methods, businesses can forge stronger bonds with applicants, offer insightful criticism, and, ultimately, draw in and keep the most talented workers.
- Tell the candidates the truth
Successful hiring relies heavily on the quality of the relationships established with candidates. Having open and honest discussions during the interview process is one way to begin building this kind of rapport. The candidate and the recruiter may develop a closer relationship and sense of trust as a result, which is good for the company’s image.
Even if a candidate isn’t the best fit for a position, it’s still important to treat them with openness and honesty. Recruiters can help rejected candidates understand the reasoning behind the decision and open up future opportunities by providing specific feedback.
Rejected candidates should be given constructive criticism in addition to expressions of gratitude. Recruiters can aid job seekers in their professional development by pointing out areas of weakness and providing advice for upcoming interviews. If they decide to reapply, they will have a better chance of being hired after reading this feedback, and it will also help them reach success in recruitment processes later.
This method shows potential hires that you appreciate their hard work and are committed to helping them advance in the company, and it keeps talented people from falling through the cracks.
- Maintain contact
Since there are always new candidates to evaluate, it’s easy for recruiters to lose track of those who might turn out to be valuable assets. However, it is still beneficial for your company to keep in touch with rejected candidates.
Rejected candidates can still be kept in the loop about the company’s happenings and any open positions by inviting them to open house events and other opportunities. This way, you can keep in touch with pre-qualified candidates when new opportunities arise, and rejected candidates can avoid becoming strangers outside of your network.
You should also make use of social media in your recruitment efforts. Social media content announcing your company is hiring can reach people who haven’t seen your job postings but might be interested in working for you. When executed properly, social recruiting can attract qualified candidates to your company’s open positions.
TAAG’s opinion
Keep in mind that finding new employees is not a one-and-done deal. You can save time during the hiring process and give promising candidates a second chance by maintaining a database of those who have already been interviewed. It’s also a good idea to reach out to rejected candidates personally via email or LinkedIn.
Organisations can differentiate themselves in the recruitment and hiring processes by using the right tools and maintaining a growth mindset toward rejected candidates. Building a pipeline of qualified talent and increasing the likelihood of success in recruitment puts you one step ahead of the competition.