Is your Application Process Killing your Candidates?

Feb. 12, 2013 - PRLog -- We have seen many recruitment systems in our time; some good and some bad.  We have directed thousands of applicants from job boards to applicant tracking systems, in box’s and even (dare we say it) bottomless holes.  But, in the rapid developing world of online recruitment, candidates are getting savvier about where their CV goes, what information they have to divulge and how long it takes them to apply for a job.

I agree there is a balancing act;  make it too easy to apply and you get a lot of time wasters and rubbish, but make it too complicated to apply and you risk losing the best candidates.

We have noticed in the last 12 months; that directing applicants from the job boards into to a company’s recruitment system has an even higher potential to reduce the volume of applications and in some cases by 95%.  In fact we recently handled one vacancy that had over 35 “applies” according to the job sites, but not a single CV entered the company recruitment system.  We quickly contacted all 35 candidates who “could not be bothered filling in the company’s application form” and found that 4 of the candidates were spot on for interview.  Why did they not end up in the employer’s recruitment system first then?

Online Recruitment Technology is a wonderful thing, but in my opinion many developers and/or users either

a) Over complicate it or

b) Try to turn an offline process into an online process.

Lets recap the basics:

1. Online recruitment advertising targets your ideal market and generates as much quality response as possible from this source.

2. Once you have that response in a dedicated area you can; filter, communicate, ask questions, reject or interview.

If you don’t have all that response in a nice cosy place to manage it in the first place, how can you be sure you are going to recruit the best candidate?

“If they can’t be bothered filling in the online application forms then we don’t want them”.  Sound like someone you know?  Consider it from an applicant’s perspective.  Getting a job is tough right now; “all applications seam to go to no-mans land, no one ever gets back to me, it takes me 45 minutes to apply for each job and they are asking information that is irrelevant to the job.  Oh, and then my PC crashes on page 4 of 8... My time is better spent finding another advert where I can apply direct to the hiring manager!”

Have you completed your online application process recently?  Have you timed how long it takes to go through your online application form?  Do you know what questions the company asks before even considering the application?  Do you get feedback from your job candidates about your process?  How many applicants get lost in the black hole between job board and your system?

If you want to get the best candidates from using online recruitment methods then I recommend that you test your own application process and consider what changes you could make to make you a more attractive employer to all that response you worked so hard to get!

Get that perfect new hire by calling 0113 322 7243, email hello@flatfeerecruiter.co.uk or visit our website  http://www.flatfeerecruiter.co.uk

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