January 8, 2019
It's a Candidate's Market Part 5: You Need a Thoughtful Plan for a Great Candidate Experience
My brilliant colleague, Jim Citrin, conducted some fascinating research on the candidate experience. In conversations with “game-changing” talent who had made bold career moves, Jim posed a series of questions to tease out what catalyzed each candidate to make the change.
For many, the themes were what you would expect. In fact, they are a bit startling in their simplicity, but incredibly helpful to ground you and your team in appropriate expectations and provide a keen sense of what to get right through the recruitment process. What Jim discovered was that circumstance, or readiness for change was “the push.” Following closely was the quality of the opportunity/company and the sense of fit, which served as “the pull.”
The third factor was the effectiveness of the process itself, and in particular, the sense candidates got from the organization that they were the “right” answer. Ideally, candidates felt both attracted and attractive to the organization. Delivering an experience that conveys not only that the candidate is wanted, but also compels the candidate through a process that blends rigor, discretion, candid dialogue, chemistry and confidence.
This means that each interviewer needs a plan.
The interviews should be orchestrated for each interviewer. Each interviewer should have three tasks: Get to know the candidate and let the candidate get to know them; assign and probe specific areas of interest to the team; and communicate one or two areas about the company (i.e., strategy, culture, values, structure, challenges, etc.).
A slate of four to five interviewers is optimal. An hour for each is sufficient. Ninety minutes is better. Thirty to 45 minutes communicates that the interviewer and the process are not that important.
Make the candidate feel wanted — welcome them warmly, offer beverages, show them the location of restrooms, etc. Either walk them to, or await the next interviewer if they are stationary, and have a caring hand-off. You want them to be a brand advocate at the conclusion of the process. I recently had a client who walked the candidate to their waiting car in the rain at the end of a long and energizing day. In looking back over the process, that small act of kindness was a window into the culture of the team and highly influential on the candidate’s view of the company and the opportunity. Over index on thoughtfulness, as these acts distinguish your company in what is a candidate’s market.
In Part 6, we explore attracting and retaining millennial talent.
Art Brown is a member of Spencer Stuart's Board, CEO, Consumer, Private Equity, and Marketing and Sales Officer practices. He concentrates on the consumer sector, advising on talent and leadership. Reach him via email and follow him on LinkedIn.