Are you struggling with a high candidate drop-off rate during your recruitment process? In this episode of the Hire Calling Podcast, Pete Newsome and Ricky Baez examine the pitfalls and consequences of a high candidate drop-off rate and offer insights on overcoming it.
They also focus on the candidate's experience during the hiring process, as many withdraw due to disorganized procedures or a lack of engagement from the recruitment team. Pete and Ricky emphasize the importance of respect and transparency regarding expectations and the recruiter's role as the candidate's "GPS."
Lastly, they explore the importance of improving job descriptions and speeding up the hiring process to address candidate drop-off rates. The two discuss how companies need to expedite their processes in response to the urgency felt by candidates.
Tune in to hear their personal experiences and tips for improving the candidate experience and minimizing negative word-of-mouth to enhance the overall success of your recruitment process.
Tips for Improving Your High Candidate Drop-Off Rate:
Streamline the Application Process: Ensure the application process is straightforward and user-friendly. Lengthy or complicated applications can deter potential candidates.
Communicate Clearly and Consistently: Keep candidates informed about their status and next steps in the process. Regular communication can keep candidates engaged and reduce uncertainty.
Optimize the Interview Process: Schedule interviews promptly and be respectful of candidates' time. Consider reducing the number of interview rounds if possible.
Feedback and Follow-Up: Provide timely feedback after interviews. A constructive feedback loop can leave a positive impression and encourage future applications even if a candidate is not selected.
Enhance the Employer Brand: Showcase your company culture and values in your job postings and on your career site. A strong employer brand can attract and retain candidates.
Use Data to Identify Issues: Analyze your recruitment data to understand when candidates drop off. This can help you pinpoint specific issues to address.
Leverage Technology: Use recruitment software to automate and streamline parts of the hiring process. This can improve efficiency and candidate experience.
Are you struggling with a high candidate drop-off rate during your recruitment process? In this episode of the Hire Calling Podcast, Pete Newsome and Ricky Baez examine the pitfalls and consequences of a high candidate drop-off rate and offer insights on overcoming it.
They also focus on the candidate's experience during the hiring process, as many withdraw due to disorganized procedures or a lack of engagement from the recruitment team. Pete and Ricky emphasize the importance of respect and transparency regarding expectations and the recruiter's role as the candidate's "GPS."
Lastly, they explore the importance of improving job descriptions and speeding up the hiring process to address candidate drop-off rates. The two discuss how companies need to expedite their processes in response to the urgency felt by candidates.
Tune in to hear their personal experiences and tips for improving the candidate experience and minimizing negative word-of-mouth to enhance the overall success of your recruitment process.
Tips for Improving Your High Candidate Drop-Off Rate:
Streamline the Application Process: Ensure the application process is straightforward and user-friendly. Lengthy or complicated applications can deter potential candidates.
Communicate Clearly and Consistently: Keep candidates informed about their status and next steps in the process. Regular communication can keep candidates engaged and reduce uncertainty.
Optimize the Interview Process: Schedule interviews promptly and be respectful of candidates' time. Consider reducing the number of interview rounds if possible.
Feedback and Follow-Up: Provide timely feedback after interviews. A constructive feedback loop can leave a positive impression and encourage future applications even if a candidate is not selected.
Enhance the Employer Brand: Showcase your company culture and values in your job postings and on your career site. A strong employer brand can attract and retain candidates.
Use Data to Identify Issues: Analyze your recruitment data to understand when candidates drop off. This can help you pinpoint specific issues to address.
Leverage Technology: Use recruitment software to automate and streamline parts of the hiring process. This can improve efficiency and candidate experience.
You're listening to the Hire Calling podcast, your source for all things hiring, staffing and recruiting. I say recruiting.
Ricky Baez:
You know what. Keep going, pete. You are the expert of recruiting, please explain to everybody what is a recruiting.
Pete Newsome:
I'm the recruiting master of today. Barely, we're going to start again, victor, here's where we start. You're listening to the Hire Calling podcast, your source for all things hiring, staffing and recruiting. I'm Pete Newsome, joined by Ricky Baez. Once again, ricky, how are you today?
Ricky Baez:
I am doing amazing Pete. It has been raining in such a disrespectful way here in Central Florida.
Pete Newsome:
It is not sunny Florida, right now and hasn't been all week.
Ricky Baez:
It's Seattle. Florida is what it is right now. That's right. That's how it feels, yeah.
Pete Newsome:
But let's talk about something that maybe can brighten some days. How about that? That's awesome. Yes, Recruiting. Recruiting always brightens everyone's day, especially when it's done well. That's what's most important. One of the things that keeps recruiting from being done well at times is a high candidate drop-off rate, which no one likes. Today, we're going to talk about how to improve your candidate drop-off rate. Offer some tips, suggestions. Turn that bad recruiting process around real quickly.
Ricky Baez:
Pete, what is this drop-off rate? Because I don't know If a recruit is doing their job and communicating what the job is supposed to be. There should be no drop-off right.
Pete Newsome:
Well, there's a few other factors that come into play, so why don't we start by just describing what that is? And it's basically the rate at which candidates drop from the time they first apply to a job until you've completed the recruiting process. And if that rate is high, that means you should assess how you're doing things and you probably need to make a lot of changes to your process. Maybe not a lot, maybe just one, but we want to talk about the common mistakes that are made, that, if you think about it, you assess and apply a few changes, it can make a big difference in your drop-off rate.
Ricky Baez:
And of course I was being facetious right as far as the recruiter wanted to do everything. But you know what it is a good indicator to pay attention to right, Because there's a lot of good information in that assessment that tells you whether you're on the right track or not. On the right track, right, so finding out why people drop off. And if you find out that you're able to affect or pull some levers to change that for the better, it's the powers that are going to be much happier and the candidate is going to have a much better experience because you fine-tuned the entire recruiting process to get the right candidate. So definitely a good idea to do.
Pete Newsome:
And that's what it all comes down to with this that candidate experience. If it's positive, your drop-off rate is going to be very low, which is the goal. If it's negative, you'll get the feedback one way or the other, and the average drop-off rate is about somewhere between 10 and 20%. Now, that's still pretty high, and what that means is almost everyone has opportunities to improve, some more than others. Sometimes we see really high candidate drop-off rates. Now, I'm, of course, on the third party side as a staffing company, so a lot of times we have to live with our clients' process, so we often encourage them to speed it up. That's the biggest one, ricky, that I've seen is you take too long. You have too many interviews, you don't facilitate them quickly enough and you just drag it out, and as someone who's done this a long time, I truly believe time is a deal killer. It kills deals and it will leave you wishing you had your best candidates, because they're not going to stay around if you drag out the interview process.
Ricky Baez:
No, that's right, you know, especially because, look, candidates, especially these days, pete, these days candidates have options, way more options than what they did 30 years ago. I mean, one great example that I use in class, like it's if I work for corporate America right now Pete and I got fired today and I have to make a quick, easy six on the bus this weekend. Legally, I go to Uber, I go to Uber Eats, I got to do all these other things and this is what recruiters are competing with, right, that sense of independence. So, yeah, if you have a drop off rate that keeps climbing, right, you want to bring that as low as possible to keep the candidate, to keep the candidate as engaged as possible. And then and there's a cost associated to do right, pete, because the more people who apply, who don't complete the process, that's money down the drain.
Pete Newsome:
Well, that's right. You could waste a lot of time and effort through that and along the way you're hurting your business. So we've talked recently on a podcast about the cost of an open position and there's real costs associated with that. So go listen to our other podcast about it, go read our blog about it. So the cost of a vacancy is hurting your business and if your drop off rate is high it's going to keep that vacancy open longer. There's other costs, so that one's easy to quantify. But then there's some subtle things like burnout among your team, right, if you have a position open and someone else is having to pick up the load, the longer they're having to do that for the worse it's going to feel to that employee. And then you may have a double problem because if you don't fill the position fast enough, your employee who's been burdened with those tasks they may be out the door next.
Ricky Baez:
Now you got two positions to fill, right, and I'm glad you brought that up because this is important for a recruiter to know, because the recruiter doesn't necessarily feel that pain immediately. You know who feels that pain the business partner, the boss, the leader of that department, who is able, who manages that work. So the recruiter doesn't get to see that. It's a good idea for a recruiter to know that upfront. That way it's just another incentive to make sure you're taking a deeper dive into what's causing these drop-off rates. So 10 to 20%, right, so I'm assuming. So what is a perfect rate besides zero? Obviously right. So what is an acceptable rate to you?
Pete Newsome:
I think, as close to zero as you can get right. And if you have a drop-off at all, it's important to assess what happened. Sometimes it's unavoidable If you are moving quickly but a candidate who you are attracted to and want to try to hire for a role is already interviewing elsewhere. You may just be too late to the party. That's a reality of it. But you want to assess your own actions and your time frame and compress it. Let's talk about, before we get into all of the different reasons for a low drop-off rate, let's talk just a little bit further about the negative implications of it. We talked about employ morale. Right, You're creating burnout, but it's also going to hurt your brand in the market, because if you don't treat candidates well in that interview process, they'll talk. They'll talk to other candidates, they will let them know. Now more than ever, I mean, spend a couple minutes on LinkedIn. You'll see that people aren't shy about sharing their opinions and experiences, good or bad.
Ricky Baez:
And it's not only that, it's not only whether they get treated well or not. There's even some things that the recruited is not necessarily involved with personally that could affect the situation. What if it's a disorganized process? What if it takes two hours to apply? What if the job description has no resemblance of what the real job is like? Yeah, there's a lot of things the recruiter can fix to recruit a level. The recruiter that can pull to make sure those things are off that table. Because, you're right, these candidates talk. Recruiters talk as well, but candidates do talk, especially especially the ones that are high caliber. Right, Because here's the thing, the higher the caliber of the candidate, the lower the patience. That's what I've noticed, right, I don't know if you've noticed that too.
Pete Newsome:
Sure, it comes down to simple supply and demand, and the best candidates are acutely aware of their value in the market. And if you're someone who's being let's be honest LeBron James understands that every team wants him to play for them. Well, at least he used to, maybe not he used to, yeah, not anymore. But if you're at the top of your game, you generally know it. And if and if and so those candidates who are probably the ones that you do want the most, they're not going to have patience or tolerance for a lengthy process. So there's other reasons Poor follow up, poor communication, lack of engagement from your team. So, even if you think your process is moving along quickly, even if it is, objectively, you have to engage with the candidate along the way. Can't leave them in the dark, because they will assume the worst every time.
Ricky Baez:
And Pete, it's like a relationship, right? If you're looking to call, you know to call out that one person to go out on a date. The first date goes well, second date goes even well. You can't go too much time without calling that person, right, Because the person's going to think they're not interested. Then guess what, If you, as a recruiter, do not engage with that candidate in between the process, they are going to think the worst. They're going to think they're not interested. And you know who they're going to gravitate to that one recruiting organization that does everything right, that talks to them, that keeps in contact with them, right? That's who they're going to gravitate to. So the whole idea and I know you didn't say this, Pete, but I know the whole ideal of an organization to have this, this energy, to have this, and there I say an attitude that candidates should be happy that this opportunity exists and they should buy down to the opportunity.
Ricky Baez:
That was 30 years ago. These days, I think, I think the tables have turned. Was it in the office? Or was it Michael Scott who says, oh, how the turn tables turn? I'm going to see in the office. Sorry, it's squirrel. It's squirrel moment for me.
Pete Newsome:
Well, you're right that tolerance is low and you have to treat candidates the way you'd want to be treated, Of course. So, even if speed isn't possible and we have a client who we've worked with for a long time who told us upfront our interview process takes a month- Wow. A month. As a third party recruiter, your eyes glaze over when you hear a month, because you may as well say a year.
Ricky Baez:
But here's the reality of it.
Pete Newsome:
As long as we're able to communicate effectively and be consistent about what we say we're going to do, that can be okay. Now, the reality is you will lose some of the best candidates who aren't able or willing to wait a long time. But it's going to make a significant difference if you set the stage appropriately, upfront and say Ricky, here's our process, here's how long it takes, and it's going to be two weeks, three weeks, even four weeks, until we realistically can get to the finish line. Are you okay with that? So people just want to be treated again the way, the same way. Treat others the way you want to be treated. It's so simple. It is Ask them. Ask them Are you, is this acceptable to you? If not, I understand. I have to understand. But if I don't ask or I keep my head in the stand with that, that's how I'm going to end up being disappointed and spending a lot of time on a candidate who was never going to be there by the time we made the hiring decision anyway.
Ricky Baez:
I always tell all of my students, pete and I've said this on this program in the past you was the best way for you to communicate the entire process to a candidate. You, as a recruiter, have to be the candidate's GPS. You have to lay down that map and let them know exactly what they go into. Respect, because, look, I've been there on the candidate side. There's nothing worse than going to interview one and then you knock it out of the park and then interview two and then you knock that one out of the park and you're thinking, all right, there's no more interviews. This is it.
Ricky Baez:
I am going to get the call. The next call is going to be that I'm hired, and then the recruiter calls me. They're excited, ricky, guess what? Am I getting the job? No, you're going to a third interview. Right, it's that unexpected stuff that this organization that just leaves a bad taste in my mouth as a candidate. So, yes, be the candidate's GPS. Let them know exactly what they're going to expect, because, look, nobody is going to be disappointed by a surprise when there are no surprises.
Pete Newsome:
They know what to expect. That's right. We don't want surprises. That's a perfect way to phrase it. And on that point, the last thing I'll say about setting the stage or reasons why there's often a high drop off rate, is when the job description doesn't match the actual role that you're going to be interviewing for. And what happens if the recruiter doesn't fully understand that upfront they may screen candidates, they may pass them through to the hiring manager, who is intimately aware of the details and is the one making the hiring decision. And if you're just relying on a standard job description for that that hasn't been looked at in five years, 10 years and we know those exist out there then it may not accurately resemble the job, it may not even closely resemble the job, and that's a great way to have high candidate drop off. So always start with a thorough understanding of what the hiring need really is, then go from there, then start accepting applications. But if you get that wrong on the front end, you're screwed from the start.
Ricky Baez:
So here's a bonus pro tip. So, recruiters, if a business partner comes to you and says, hey, I need to open a requisition for this position, you pull that job description. And that job description is 15 years old. You need to have a separate conversation about updating it. You have to need to. It's got to be updated before you recruit, because if you recruit with that and you tell the candidate, ah, that's that, that's outdated, we'll update that later. Red flag from a candidate's perspective. Right, absolutely yeah, so you might want to. It's a good idea for anything. Just five years, that's about right. Right, but 15 years ago my Facebook wasn't invented.
Pete Newsome:
Then, right, and I can be an eternity right. Did your did your job? Did your job description reflect your Change in working habits and working conditions? If it's hybrid, define that clearly. We see a lot of that. We see a remote roles post. I see this as a constant complaint. Anyway, I don't. We don't deal with this with our clients, of course, but Because we ask the questions. That's why we don't. We don't suffer these consequences if we see the job is remote, hopefully, my team is always asking is it fully remote? Do you ever have to come in the office? Because we'll we'll see companies pull a fast one at times. Again, we don't work with these companies because it would be. It would not be a good situation at the end where they Advertise a remote job but you have to come in the office once a month Right now, remote, it remotes, remote.
Ricky Baez:
It's remote the other times of the month.
Pete Newsome:
Mostly remote, call it hybrid. Define exactly what the expectations are on a hybrid role and you'll hopefully receive a lot fewer applicants who aren't a good fit or who wouldn't want to stay involved in the process. So I Get why you'd say, hey, a five-year job description may still be relevant. I say start from scratch every time, at least to the point where you assess it, reconfirm yes. This is still a Plot applicable today, as it was six months ago when we hired for this role. The world's changing pretty rapidly right now. So our needs in the, in the, in the workforce and in the technology world, where we spend a lot of our recruiting time Well, it's changing almost every day right now.
Ricky Baez:
So don't take anything for granted when you're, when you're looking at an old job description and assume there's changes agreed a hundred now and now some business leaders are like, wow, every time, every time we have to, because you are gonna have some business leader like it's been five years, we don't have to do this every time. Invest the time and effort, folks. The time and effort you invest and to make you sure this is right at the beginning Would yield much better sustainable resource. Or see it. So put in the elbow grease now it works, trust me.
Pete Newsome:
So we've talked around all the issues on why you may have a bad Low. Can it drop off? Let's make sure we we get to the the good part, which is what you can do about it. And the good news is most companies, most organizations, can just make a few tweaks and have an entirely different outcome. So let's focus on those. So, as we started we're talking about, we'll go back to it speed up your process. That's right. Speed up your process, whatever it is. Today, if you're satisfied with your drop-off rate, if that is something you do not consider to be a problem, no one's Upset your hiring camps quickly. Your morale is great. You're not Putting the burden of an empty job on someone else's plate While they're having to cover two roles. If you can look at all that and say we're good, then you don't need to speed up your interview process. But if you can't check all of those boxes, start with the timeline and odds are Improvement there will make a big difference and folks just remember.
Ricky Baez:
Remember, because I know, I know, I know what people are thinking right now. They're like what? You know? What, ricky, we got to make sure we get it right. I, I get it. I understand you want to make sure you get everything right, but here's the reality of the situation. Nine times that it in that candidate out there looking for a job. They need that job, they're neat, they need to find something and if you're taking your time with your process and somebody else is more efficient and it's quicker, then you're done. You're done. Do not underestimate the sense of urgency on the candidates's behalf, and especially the higher caliber they are, the more choices they have and they're not gonna go with the unorganized one.
Pete Newsome:
Right, so I'll know it.
Ricky Baez:
Make sure they. Of course they won't know it. You know who's not gonna care, the people who don't have a shot anywhere else.
Pete Newsome:
They're not gonna care. It sounds harsh, but it's true. We have to be realistic about this. So how can you speed it up? Well, internal communication and buy off that. There's a problem, because if you don't acknowledge that, you're probably not going to be Motivated to make changes. So that's step one getting the buy-in at the top. Whoever all the decision-makers are, to say, we need to fix this, that means your internal interview team needs to be accessible, they need to be committed to it, they need to be aware that it's important, and then you know you need to buy in. That's what we're talking about here. So the next thing you could do is look at what is your application process. Is it confusing? Is it lengthy? What if you're losing candidates right up off the, from the jump, because they look at it and say, yeah, this is too much work, I don't want to do it?
Ricky Baez:
The folks. An application process should not require an engineering degree or you to be a rocket scientist to complete it. I shouldn't have to ask a week off of work for me to complete the application process. And look and I think you and I have had conversations about this because in my previous job it's over at a big call center here in Central Florida we had an issue where 90% of the people that applied would not finish the application process and it drove me nuts. I started looking into it. The application was an hour and a half long because it was the it was. You had to submit a resume, you have to fill everything manually. There was a personality test, there's other tests and there's other tests and by the time you're done, the person it's like you know what? I'll just be homeless, I'm done.
Pete Newsome:
I'm not going to work.
Ricky Baez:
I'm good. Just you've got to be able to take a look at those things. And if you have an applicant tracking system right now, folks, if you don't know how to use, they find your nearest local HR I mean, I'm IT person they'll show you how to pull a query. You can pull it in easy. Whether it's people solve, whether it's TAS, whatever the case may be, there's a query that says that shows you application completion rates. That's an important thing to take a look at, right. And if you see that you want to make the application process as short as possible, now you have. Now you said before Pete that an application should not be too easy. Neither right.
Pete Newsome:
Well, that's its own challenge these days is the one click apply that's become so prevalent. If you make it too easy, I'll tell you what I prefer in this is let everyone apply on the front end, but before you engage directly with a candidate, if it's a high volume role. So I tend to think of recruiting in two buckets and now this is a very broad, general statement that's much more nuanced than this. But there's high volume positions that if you put it at job posting out there, you will get hundreds or thousands of applicants. That's one thing. And there's other positions that are more niche, higher level, whatever they might be. There's a smaller candidate pool where you may struggle to get out any applicants at all. So what we're talking about here. So in that latter scenario, you want to make it as easy to apply as possible. One click is okay. If you're looking for the guy who's going to send people to Mars, right, and that engineer who can build that rocket, well, you better take anyone who's qualified and thoroughly vet them right.
Pete Newsome:
You're not going to have too many candidates, but as you go into the broader candidate pool, that's where possible. I think you can let people apply initially but then give them questions to answer, to further self-select that they're qualified for the role. Because we know that people just blindly apply If it looks close, if it has a job title, if it has a few keywords on it that cause that job description to come up in their search on LinkedIn or on Indeed. They're going to click and think, well, I have no, I'm going to miss 100% of the shots. I don't take right the Wayne Greski quote, so I may as well apply. Well, that's great for the candidates. That's a little flawed thinking, in my opinion.
Pete Newsome:
That's a different show, but it puts a big burden on the recruiting team, who has to sort through all of these unqualified candidates. So what I like to do is send an auto reply to those candidates and say thank you for your application. Please confirm the following you have this degree, if it's required. You have this skill set, if it's required. You're within this geographic distance, if that's part of it. So there's ways to mitigate that volume and take advantage of technology. That's my advice there. That's a bit of a different show, but you can take advantage of the systems and tools that you have to create more efficiency and ultimately communicate better with your candidates.
Ricky Baez:
That's right. And then, going back to something we said a little bit earlier, but I believe it really deserves a little bit more airtime is how many interviews. You said it and you harped on it. It's minimized the time it takes to interview. Now I get it from a recruiters perspective, from a hiring authorities perspective. You want to make sure that they meet the right people and you get the right information right there in front of you. But if you got six interviews, one person goes through six. I don't know what you're going to get out of that person Interview number six that you couldn't get out of, interview number three. So if you're ended up, if you get into a point when you have five, six interviews, either you don't have the right person or you don't have the right process. Either one of those two options are not good for you. So, yes, go back, make sure that you are as concise as possible. I know we talked about it, but I'm really big on that one.
Pete Newsome:
Well, it's a signal to the candidate that you're not that motivated to fill the role and not subtle. But candidates will feel that we all know what it's like when someone chooses. If someone tells you I don't have time for this, what they meant is they're not willing to prioritize that thing. And so if you can't get another interview scheduled for a week because your internal team is too busy, what that simply means is they have different priorities and candidates will pick up on that. So to the point you made earlier the bad ones will stick around. The good ones will bail. That's right, because they don't want to be part of that. So they don't have to be right. Not if they have a valuable skill set, that's right. Go communicate internally, communicate externally. Let the candidates know where they are in the process.
Pete Newsome:
We talked earlier about setting the stage up front, but that's not enough. You have to stay engaged with them along the way and say all right, ricky, great job interviewing today. Here's the next step. Always follow up with that and then put a timeframe on it. And if you can't commit to doing that, that's when you have to look internally and be a little more introspective and say why can't I commit to it. Why can't I give you a timeframe on that follow up? Well, let's go back to priorities. It's because your organization hasn't deemed that important enough. So all of this improvement has to start with the realization that there's a problem and that there's something you can do about it.
Ricky Baez:
There's a part in the hiring process that I like to call the dead period right. There's a period of time where it's crucial to become in line.
Pete Newsome:
That's scared me. I never knew that.
Ricky Baez:
I was not expecting it. So, yeah, there's a dead period, and the dead period is after the candidate accepts the offer and before they start new employee orientation, which is at least two weeks. Folks, this is the time when you have to engage with them the most okay. Do not forget about them. If you make them an offer and they accept it and you don't talk to them again for 14 days, you are increasing the chances of you to being ghosted by new employee orientation. That's the dead period. Do not forget about them. Reach out to them, let them know what they can expect. Send them some videos about the organization. Here's what Darden restaurant did to me when I started working with them many years ago. And that dead period they now. First of all, they interviewed me like five times. That's where I got my idea. But after each interview they gave me a $50 gift card to the Olive Garden right. Each and every time I had like 300 bucks worth right and I told them at the end of the week.
Pete Newsome:
That's where you're okay with the multiple interviews 20, I don't care.
Ricky Baez:
20 interviews, right. But I told them, I told the hiring authority. At the end I'm like, look, I got all these gift cards. So, depending what you tell me, either I'm gonna use it to celebrate my new job or cry in my sorrows. Either way, I'm going to the Olive Garden.
Pete Newsome:
Well it's, but that's such an important thing. If they're going to have a drawn out interview process, they're making you feel better about it. Employer branding is a huge component of this. You want to keep that high. So, even if it, like you said, it doesn't work out for you, you have a positive recollection of that and you're gonna speak well of that organization. And the other thing that they're doing which I'm glad you brought it up for this reason is that we see a lot of companies wanting candidates to jump through hoops to do projects, to do assignments. Sometimes they're lengthy. If you're gonna ask for someone's professional time, you should compensate them for it. Pay them, yeah, for it.
Ricky Baez:
That's a pain. I mean I got paid to food, but I mean they get paid to food, but you know what that's meaningful.
Pete Newsome:
It's meaningful, it's real dollars and that's you know. Go into their restaurants.
Ricky Baez:
That's a great thing to do, and here's the part that I really loved right In that dead period they sent me a questionnaire to see what I like, what I didn't like that way for new employer orientation. They have my Reese's peanut butter cups they're waiting, my Diet Coke waiting. They send me glasses to my house. They were courting me, man. I felt like they were asking for a date after I kept telling them no. But that's how you do it. That is how you keep people engaged. And, pete, that was 12 years ago. 12 years later, I'm still talking about it. So what does that tell you?
Pete Newsome:
What a perfect example. But this is a top employer, a great organization, and no surprise that they're doing things like that. So good lesson for others. So I think we've covered the ground that we needed to cover here, ricky, but let's just recap the best practices, because, as always when we talk, we don't necessarily stay in a straight line with our conversations.
Ricky Baez:
I know it's hard to believe.
Pete Newsome:
So best practices to avoid a can't drop off, let's go one at a time. We'll trade about the first one. Speed up your interview process, don't let it drag out. That's my first one. What's next?
Ricky Baez:
Communicate, communicate, communicate, overcommunicate. Tell them, make them say OK, ricky, I got it. I know what's going to happen next. You will have so much better results if you overcommunicate, whereas the exact opposite If you undercommunicate a little bit, that could create a big issue for your branding.
Pete Newsome:
Next one take advantage of technology, the tools that you've paid for. Make sure you're using them. That will help you increase efficiency and it will also help you stay in touch with candidates, help your engagement and communication along the way. So leverage your technology.
Ricky Baez:
Here's a pro tip. So now we've been talking about the people who got the job. What's your communication with the people who didn't get the job, your final three, your final three? What are you going to do with those two people who didn't get the job? Here's what you do. If you got three final candidates for one job and one person got it, obviously that one person to be employed, you are not responsible for making those other two people who didn't get the job and make a marketing ambassador for your organization. That's why you respond. And what does that mean? That means that you treat them so well that when they go home at night and they're having dinner with a significant other, like, did you get that job? No, but let me tell you I'm going back because I didn't get it, and here's how they treated me. If I didn't get the job, could you imagine how to treat employees? It sends a message about who you are as an organization. Don't skip on that part.
Pete Newsome:
No, pay attention to your employer brand. That's a big one. That is something that organizations need to do. Social media being what it is, the word will get out. It's a lot faster and easier for the word to get out today than it was in the pre-social media days. So if you haven't changed your approach there and, as we talked about earlier, if you still think you hold all the cards in this process, you need to update your thinking. You need to catch up to modern times and then act accordingly. That's right, is that it? Yeah, there's one more.
Pete Newsome:
This is probably the most important thing that I could speak to on the topic of a company and improving their candidate drop-off is commit to it as an organization. So what I mean by that is, as I said earlier, but it's worth restating acknowledge that you have a problem. That is step one. Commit to solving that problem, which is, hopefully we've done a good job of explaining today. There aren't that many changes. They're relatively minor changes. They're significant in the impact they'll have. But you don't have to reinvent the wheel to do this and then make sure everyone in the organization who's involved has bought in. Even if they don't want to, they need to act as if they're bought in because otherwise you're going to lose candidates you want and it's just going to end up with a bad outcome at the end. So a lot of things you can do. Most of them are minor. The impact from each of them can be huge.
Ricky Baez:
That's right. And again, that last one is crucial, because one of the things that I worried about the most is going out there, recruiting and then selling the idea of coming to work only to bring them in, and that's not reflected back at the office and now I'm like a liar, so that that thing is probably not. Sorry For those of you not watching. There's this little things I bring up boys 2023. I bring up a thumbs up, and there's AI all kinds of little cartoons on the screen with you see, the video is actually pretty.
Pete Newsome:
That's what I was thinking. Ai is taken over, even even when you don't want it to be 2023.
Ricky Baez:
I'm thinking we're already have flying cars. No, we don't have that, but we got little emojis on zoom.
Pete Newsome:
We have cartoon emojis and we don't know how to turn them off. Perfect. Well, if you've listened this far, hopefully enjoyed Ricky's cartoon emoji that just popped up. If not, and you're listening, this is a great reason. Oh, perfect, more Now you have.
Ricky Baez:
I got to confirm you all over.
Pete Newsome:
Great, well, perfect reason and excuse to go on YouTube and watch the video there, or go to our 4cornerresources. com at com and navigate to our blog section. You can see the video and, if you have questions, as always, email us hire calling, hire calling at 4cornerresources. com We'd love your input and a suggestion for topics. So, ricky, I think that's it.
Ricky Baez:
I think that's it. We, uh, we are able to end this without a famous phrase, and I'm not going to say it.
Pete Newsome:
Let's just say good night. We have to listen to other ones to go see that, so goodbye for now. Thanks for listening. Have a good one, bye.