The Candidate Experience Matters – Don’t Mess It Up

M NeeseCompany Culture

The Chicago tech talent market is competitive, and employers have to pull out all the stops to give themselves an edge. One of the most crucial factors impacting your ability to attract top talent is your candidate experience. Make no mistake, past candidates are reviewing your hiring process online and sharing their experience with others. If you want to protect your employer brand, you must focus on the candidate experience.

Simplify Your Online Application

According to CareerBuilder data, three out of five job seekers have abandoned an online application because the process was too complex. Put yourself through your company’s process and ask these questions:

  • How long does the process take?
  • Can you save your application and come back later to finish it?
  • Can you upload your resume, or must you type out all of the details manually?
  • Do you ask for personal information like a social security number?

If the process is frustrating to you, imagine how candidates feel. Streamlining your application process is crucial to success. Remember, you can always ask for more detail and documentation later.

Create a Positive Interview Experience

The interview experience can be problematic for many companies. Too often, the process is disorganized, complicated and drawn out. If you want to create a positive experience, keep these tips in mind:

  • Respect their time: Candidates are expected to be early, but many managers arrive to the meeting late. If the candidate took time off work to talk to you, they may resent the lack of respect for their time.
  • Make interviews non-negotiable: Don’t make candidates come back because one manager chose to prioritize something else. If three managers must be present for the interview, those three people should be there.
  • Be honest about your timeline: Let candidates know what your timeline is, and then stick to it. If the process goes off track, reach out and let them know your new schedule.
  • Communicate: If a candidate doesn’t hear from you for a while, they will assume you are not interested and move on. Always reply, even if you don’t have any information to provide, to keep them interested.

Be Authentic

The candidate experiences you provide should be an extension of your corporate culture. The process should reflect positively on your organization from end to end and every interaction a candidate has with your company should be friendly, honest and respectful.

Are You Searching for Tech Talent in Chicago?

If you are looking for top tech talent in Chicago and your candidate experience could use a boost, partner with CultureFit. Our Chicago IT recruiters can help streamline your process and create an exceptional experience. To get started, contact CultureFit today.