Constant communication has become the norm. iMessages are stamped as ‘Delivered’, Instagram messages are marked as ‘Seen’, and anyone can easily ask for a read receipt on an email – and these are only a few examples. With the technology we now have available to us, claiming you haven’t checked your messages or you didn’t receive a text, call, or email isn’t a valid excuse anymore. Whether the email app on your smartphone shows a new notification, or your Apple Watch just vibrated letting you know you have a new text or incoming call, it isn’t easy to come up with a reason why you didn’t answer someone in a timely manner.
With that being said, everyone starts to take it a bit personally when they don’t get a quick response from family, friends, or coworkers. It’s important for hiring managers to remember that this holds true during the hiring process as well.
Besides the obvious that it’s disrespectful to not respond to an applicant going through your interview process, here’s why responding to candidates should be a priority at your company:
- Bad news is better than no news. Choosing to ignore a candidate can negatively impact your employer brand. You never know what a stressed out and upset applicant will post about your company on a social platform, or who they might tell. A bad Facebook review can easily be avoided by simply letting a curious candidate know that you have chosen to move forward with another candidate for the position. If you’re avoiding the applicant because you don’t want to give them bad news, you’d be surprised by how many candidates will appreciate a polite rejection and any honest feedback you can provide.
- No news is taken as bad news. If you are genuinely interested in hiring a candidate and are being unresponsive because you are waiting for answers within your company, the candidate will most likely assume they didn’t get the job, and accept a job elsewhere. Keep things moving as fast as possible before you lose them, and if you can’t get the answers you need, at least respond and let them know what’s going on.
If you know that you are too busy to maintain the communication that is required to hire successfully, or too busy to hire in general, let KRG streamline the hiring process for you. Our experienced recruiters will handle the majority of the communication for you so no candidate is left in the dark. Intrigued? Call us today to learn more about how we can help you with your staffing needs. 716-631-3951