That small gesture or effort can amount to a big difference in the way a candidate feels about you and your agency. Get candidate care wrong and you could be losing top talent. Get it right and you keepcandidates, clients, and your business booming. Here we outline a few ways that help you manage those important relationships with candidates:
Placeability
A busy recruiter can have anything between 40 to 100 active candidates within their network at any one time. You’d be working 24/7 if you were expected to regularly email, call, or meet up with so many candidates. We like placeability scoring which is a tiered structure for your candidate pool. It means that candidate care never waivers, with the right focus placed on the right candidates. Scoring should be set within your recruitment system, and automated if possible. For example, if ranked 3+ (candidates that have interviewed but not been placed): you’d meet candidates face to face and send them a card on their birthday, those ranked 4+: (candidates that you have placed) then you’d do the above and invite these candidates to hospitality events and those ranked 5+ are your VIP’s so these will receive a gold service from your agency. For these candidates you’ll go that extra mile so you will always know what they are up to as you’ll be in regular contact with them, you’ll do all of the above and will be on your Christmas or birthday gift lists.
Communication
Think about your candidate; what information do you think they’d like to receive and how often? There are many ways you can communicate, the traditional method of email is still popular andsending a regular newsletter will also keep them well-informed, but consider other communication channels. For example60% of recruiters are now using SMS as part of the hiring process. Why not use Skype for Business to hold video interviews with candidates, or host interactive webinars with all candidates applying for a certain position? So find out how and when your candidates want to hear from you and record this information in your system. Then simple workflows will be able to automate communication with candidates throughout any stage of the recruitment process.
Don’t Forget Permanent Candidates
It’s so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day of searching for top talent, that before you know it, the months have flown by and contacting that great candidate you placed in a permanent potion has slipped further and further down your to-do list. While it is important for recruiters to place priority on building their candidate network and helping candidates find their dream role, it’s also important that recruiters take the time to communicate with their permanent candidates. We suggest that once you have placed a candidate in a permanent position, take the time to email them within the first 6-8 weeks, asking how they are finding their new position. Set an automated reminder for one year post commencement - congratulating them on their work anniversary. Two to three years after placing a candidate send a further catch-up email, ask if they are still enjoying their position, and if not, you could follow this up with a gentle email or phone call, letting them know what’s currently available.
