You don’t have to be told that this is one of the tightest job markets in the history of our country. Nor do you do have to be told that more people are quitting their job than ever before. That’s why it’s called the “Great Resignation.”
During the past few years, “ghosting” has become all the rage with job candidates. Specifically, because it’s a candidates’ market and they have the leverage in hiring situations, they’re simply choosing not to show up for things. Important thing, too, like a phone screen, a face-to-face interview . . . or their first day of work.
So how can you prevent “ghosting”? And how does recruiting time and hiring time factor into the equation?
To answer these questions (and more), we’re going to enlist the experience and expertise of recruiting and staffing industry trainer Barb Bruno of Good as Gold Training.
Recruiting time and the problem of ‘ghosting’
Although Barb is one of the most renowned trainers in the industry, she has also worked a desk for many years. Like any professional recruiter or executive search consultant, she knows how frustrating it is when a job candidate “ghosts” on an employer, especially when it’s supposed to be their first day of work.
“This is especially frustrating when you talked to your candidate the evening before their start date, to wish them good luck,” said Barb. “It’s just as frustrating for the hiring authority who thought their job search was done and had arranged onboarding for this new hire.”
According to Barb, timing is critical in the recruiting profession and in hiring in general. There are all sorts of facets to recruiting time, including the following:
- Average recruitment time
- Recruitment turnaround time
- Recruiter response time
However, the recruiting time that we’re addressing in this blog post ideals specifically with timing in regards to job candidates. This would be important during the best of circumstances, but the conditions that currently exist in the employment marketplace have made timing even more critical.
“In today’s tight labor market, you are facing stiff competition for talent,” said Barb. “It’s great when everything falls in place, but unexpected things often happen in life that impact timing. When a candidate no shows their start date it is gut wrenching for both the recruiter and hiring manager, delays the hire and is often very costly.”
The impact of perfect recruiting and hiring time
Just like candidate control is a myth, being able to 100% control the timing of people and situations is also not attainable. However, you can exert a certain amount of influence over people and situations, and as a result, that influence can have a positive impact on the outcome.
“Throughout my extensive recruiting experience, I’ve realized the impact of perfect timing,” said Barb. “It is critical that your target date to hire aligns with the timing of your candidates.”
According to Barb, there is a bevy of reasons why this is crucial. Those reasons include the following:
The best candidates are regularly being contacted by multiple recruiters.
These candidates are choosing from multiple opportunities and don’t necessarily stop interviewing, or even hand in their two-week notice, after they’ve accepted an offer.
Some candidates will request an extended notice to see if they receive other job offers or to shop your offer.
You can see how if you don’t exert positive influence over the recruiting and hiring time, then the process can end in an unsatisfactory manner.
Hiring time vs. hiring timing
Hiring time and hiring timing are critical elements for recruiters (and the clients they represent). But what’s the difference between the two?
Hiring time refers to the amount of time it takes for an organization to hire the candidate they want for its open position. Hiring timing refers to the events that take place during the process (the “hiring time”), specifically the sequence of those events and when they occur.
If you have a suitable hiring time but the timing of the events within that frame of time is off or some critical events are missing, then the results will be spotty, at best. On the other hand, all of the important events could be included in the process and the timing of those events might be optimal, as well, but if the hiring time is months and months, it may not matter. Since the hiring process took so long, top candidates may have dropped out along the way.
So in the grand scheme of things, you need both a suitable hiring time and good hiring timing. When you have both, you greatly increase your chances of success.
Now that’s settled, let’s return to exerting a positive influence over not only the recruiting and hiring time, but also the recruiting and hiring timing. Fortunately, Barb has some tips and suggestions in the form of steps for how you can exert that positive influence and help to ensure a positive outcome. You’ll notice that these steps involve both the job candidate and the hiring manager, not just the candidate. Since the timing of the events involve both groups of people, the steps involved in managing that time should also involve both groups.
According to Barb, below are five steps for positively impacting recruiting and hiring timing during the placement process:
Step #1:
Determine a specific date to hire and share it with everyone involved in the hiring process.
Step #2:
Confirm the availability of everyone involved in your hiring process, to ensure that you can successfully fill your open job by your target date. Set up specific dates for interviews and block those times off on their calendars.
Step #3:
Send a copy of your job requisition to everyone involved in the hiring process to make sure they agree on the specs.
Step #4:
Continue to confirm the target date to hire and present candidates who align with your timeframe to hire.
Step #5:
Ask both the hiring managers and candidates the same question in every subsequent conversation, “Has anything changed since the last time we talked?” This question will help you anticipate timing issues that could delay your ability to fill open requisitions.
Start recruitment success with an ATS
“Ghosting” continues to be a challenging problem in the employment marketplace and also within the recruiting profession. And considering the current state of the marketplace and the job market, it will most likely continue to be a problem for at least the foreseeable future. The better that recruiters and search consultants can overcome the challenges presented by “ghosting,” the better the process will become and the more placements those recruiters will make.
When you’re proactively aware of the impact of timing and anticipate changes, timing will work in your favor and you will attract and place the best talent,” said Barb.
One way to be proactively aware of the impact of timing and anticipate changes is to use an applicant tracking system. The best ATS software can help you to not only save time during the recruiting and hiring process, but also ensure that the right things happen at the right time—the essence of timing!
Top Echelon’s ATS for recruiters has the features and functionality focused on saving recruiters time so they can focus on those tasks that lead most directly to making placements. Some of that functionality include the following:
- Adding records
- Scheduling activities
- Adding notes and comments
- Email and texting
The good news is that you can try out all of the features and functionality of the Top Echelon ATS with a free trial of the recruitment software. In addition, you do not need a credit card to start your trial.
But if you don’t want to start a trial just yet, you can also request of live demo of our top ATS. When you request a demo, a member of our team will show you how the software can help you with recruiting time and recruiting timing—all with the goal of saving you time and helping you make more placements!