Pick up the phone.

According to CareerXroads Source of Hire Report for 2011, 50% of candidates have absolutely zero contact with a company upon completing their online application via phone or electronic.  It doesn’t hurt to pick up the phone.

• Candidate Referrals. Using your current candidate talent pool as well as your workforce as a candidate referral source makes sense.  Not only does it reduce the average cost per hire, but it also increases engagement and builds relationships differentiating you from your competitor and strengthening your referral community.

• Changing Perceptions. In the consumer-facing world, all we expect is average service, average customer engagement, and average conversations.  If I want to be treated with luxury I shop at Lexus where they pick up and deliver my car to my home before and after its scheduled oil change. Imagine if we went out of the way, created an environment focused on the candidate how it might change perceptions from job seekers and competition. If you just pick up the phone and touch every candidate, delighting them instead of avoiding them as part of the hiring process.

• It’s Not As Hard As You Think. Making a change and creating a culture focused on conversations instead of candidates isn’t as hard as you think.  The 2011 Zero Unemployment Recruiting Trends Survey tells us that nearly 80% of those surveyed receive less than 100 applicants per open position.  You or your company’s operator can spend ten minutes, or a couple hours picking up the phone. Tell the candidate they didn’t get the position, offer them feedback, and most importantly piece of mind.

Give feedback. And options going forward are another way to make it right and a way to stand apart from your competition.  This will further differentiate the culture, environment and level of service you provide to your candidates compared to the rest. Don’t be afraid to say why this isn’t a good fit. Suggestions and aid can could come in the form of a minute of your time, a resume template or LinkedIn organizational tip. This provides value  for the candidates time.

As Jerome Ternynck says, “Nothing’s worse than recruiters who don’t give feedback to candidates.”

One simple action can help provide job seeker closure and value even if they didn’t get the job at the company you represent. As a recruiter and an organization, you not only build relationships, improving your employment brand while also growing your talent community, but most importantly you’ve made a difference in someone’s life, one phone call at a time.

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a HR consultant, new media strategist, and author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. Jessica is the host of Job Search Secrets, an internet television show for job seekers.

• New companies starting to use SmartRecruiters will now see a test job and a test applicant, which are created automatically

• You can jump right in and check it out for yourself on how easy it is to manage jobs and applicants

• Use the easy actions to view, share, email, schedule interviews…or simply reject your Test Applicant

• This week we also implemented an update to tackle certain situations where a confusion might occur:  Is this job that I see on your website for Richmond, Virginia  or for Richmond, Texas?  Well, no need to worry any more about causing confusion for applicants:

• Job Widgets and Career Site now display the job location with both the city and the state in the format. ex.: “San Francisco, CA”

• An update to the email templates ensures that all default templates are available for all newly created accounts

• Remember that you can fully customize them and also create your very own templates for any type of communication

• Whether it be scheduling interviews, confirming appointments, turning down applicants, sending job offers, or virtually any type of communication you plan on sending to applicants, you can make it easy, fast, and efficient

• The email templates allow you to send fully personalized emails (even to multiple candidates at once) in seconds!

• Another update to the job location now ensures that even some smaller cities are recognized and can be displayed on the Job Ad.

• Also fixed this week was an annoying issue that caused some of you to inadvertently take down posted jobs.

• An issue with the parsing email address that caused a delay in email applications being processed and imported, has been solved.

• Some Internet Explorer users were experiencing difficulties with the drag and drop components on the Career Site setup and Online Application customization. This is now solved.

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In the United States, business professionals associate their self-worth with their job title. So when a job seeker is suddenly let go, they are left unsure how to engage and introduce themselves in a business-networking environment. The financial stress of being unemployed along with the urgency of the job search in addition to a professional identity crisis makes for a very emotional and irrational time.

As a job seeker, I can say there is never anything worse than not hearing back from a company. When I first moved to Oklahoma, I was among the final two candidates for a Human Resource Director position at a Houston based oil and gas company. The interview process involved two flights to Houston along with a third interview at the offices in Oklahoma City where the position was based. Two weeks passed from my final interview, without a reply. From Barcelona, Spain, during my honeymoon, I called the hiring manager to inquire about the status of my position.  Thirty-five dollars and seven minutes later, he told me the following, “You should be hearing something soon from us.  Likely in the next three days.”

I never did.  Not a single solitary word, letter, phone call, or even email.

• Be Honest. If you’ve already made a hiring decision, give it to the candidate straight. No news leaves the job seeker cold, wondering, and alone. They could spread stories that could damage your reputation.

• Call Them. The hardest phone calls are the phones that make us most uncomfortable. They are also the ones that we avoid, but shouldn’t. As a recruiter, you are the first point of contact for the job seeker. A bond has been formed, and you owe your candidate a call even if it’s not to deliver good news. Call them and tell them, “I’m sorry.  You didn’t get the job, but we’ll keep your application on file for the next six months.”

• Email Them. Emailing is not my first choice when letting the candidate down easy. Once again they are left to create stories base on pure speculation. Technology isn’t always 100% , but depending on the amount of candidates, type of candidates, and the relationship established, an email can be acceptable. Send all your candidates an email even those who were not selected for an interview. Give them peace of mind knowing that you received their application and it was reviewed. However, someone else was the better fit.

• Written Correspondence. This is the most impersonal form of turn down for the candidate. Nothing says I could care less about you, than a standard form letter send the same day you interviewed for the job. Pick up the phone and call the candidate first, and then send them a letter that reinforces your earlier message.

• Provide Feedback. As I mentioned, the job search is a long and frustrating process for some. Provide them some insights into hiring best practices or suggestions on how they can improve or better prepare for the candidate selection process.  A job seeker toolkit send via email attachment is a great way to say, “I’m sorry you didn’t get the job, and I want to help.”  Depending on your industry, candidates are often also your customers; a toolkit can provide value and set you apart.

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a HR consultant, new media strategist, and author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. Jessica is the host of Job Search Secrets, an internet television show for job seekers.

Photo Credit Volt and CareerCast

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