It happens to all businesses; you find the perfect candidate for employment – then get stood up. While this sometimes happens no matter what, if it is happening more often than you’d like, there are a few key areas to look at to address the problem of why you’re losing candidates.
Not Enough Communication
A potential hire may be very interested in your offer. But people lead busy lives, and if there isn’t enough communication it could be as simple as them forgetting you’re interested. Make sure you confirm appointments as soon as a week in advance and again the day before the interview. Show that you’re interested!
Their Interview Wasn’t Engaging
The initial interview is as important to the potential employee as it is to you. Make sure you are engaging with them to keep them interested. A potential hire who is bored in the interview may pass up the opportunity thinking the job will be just as dull. Make their experience positive and something that holds their interest. You want them excited about the job, and a bored person may go elsewhere.
A Better Offer
Sometimes you may not be able to compete with a company offering more money, better perks, and things like that. To help combat this kind of situation, make sure you make note of your best benefits from the start. If you have a top-notch PTO schedule for instance, highlight that. Money is important but so are advantages.
Highlighting these advantages is the best way to compete with companies offering a higher salary. It may not work for every potential hire, but some will see that the benefits outweigh the salary from another company.
Your Process
When a candidate engages with your company as a prospective employee, they are interviewing you too. If your interview/hiring process is unclear or seems disjointed, it creates doubt about if your company is well run. The more clear you can be about your interview process and the more predictable you are about next steps will help reassure the ‘A’ candidate that your company is a well run company and a good next place to work.
Takeaways to Stop Losing Candidates
The main takeaways of why you’re losing candidates are not enough communication, the interview wasn’t engaging, you could not tell them the next steps or you did not follow up when you said you would or they had a better offer. Sometimes it’s multiple factors, but the main thing is good communication.
Think of interviews as a way to showcase why they need you, instead of why you need them. Make sure you follow up with those you’re interested in and keep the lines of communication open throughout. Also, don’t take too long to get back to a potential hire. Better yet tell them when you will get back and then do it when you said you would!
If you follow these simple practices, there is a chance that you will be the one where all the good hires end up working.
About Synergy
Synergy Solutions is an executive and search firm focused on roles within the technology sector. If you have questions regarding this article or would like to discuss strategy for open roles at your company, please contact us and someone will get back to you within the next 24 hours.