What are some of the best practices for creating a positive candidate experience?

I love sharing with candidates the value my company places on each unique employee, along with the skills and life experience they'll bring to the team. To drive home this idea, I talk about how our safety-focused culture is an example of this, because we value each individual and want to ensure they make it home safe at the end of every shift, and we'll never sacrifice our employees' and community's safety for the sake of production or profit. We also have our benefit coverage beginning day 1 of employment, because we want our new hires to focus on learning the tasks at hand, and not thinking about things like a lapse in benefits.

Working with internal leaders at my company and external candidates takes balance during the recruitment process. I always schedule an intake with the hiring manager/team before posting the position and have a discussion about their expectations on the amount of interviews they're envisioning. This sets the tone for the process and allows me a chance to ask why they feel that 3 in-person interviews are necessary to make a final decision, or whatever they've said, & explain we might lose us top talent doing this! Having these conversations with the hiring team early also enables me to inform the candidates of the timeline as I complete prescreening conversations, so they know what to anticipate.

I agree and when you have done this work it is good to tell the candidates what the application process and / or recruitment process will be like in the advert or on your website. Communicating why an application requires certain information will encourage candidates to complete the application or stating the average time to complete the application is another way to alleviate candidate apathy.

I thoroughly enjoy the candidate management component of Talent Acquisition because I am innately a people centric individual and I enjoy getting to know and understand my candidates. One thing that works really well for me is acquiring candidate engagement by taking the time to converse with each candidate and understand their motivators, preferences, job switch criteria and their ideal career journey. I furnish them with as much information as possible about the job and the company, making sure to highlight both the wows and the challenges of the opportunity. Equipping each candidate with as much information as possible helps them to make data based decisions and determine if the opportunity is right for them at this juncture.

I find it helpful to provide reminders about their interviews and to follow up after the interviews are completed to check in on how their conversations went. This keeps the candidate engaged throughout the interview process.

Keep candidates warm by updating them about their hiring progress is really works in order to create a positive candidates experience. Sometime it might be hard due to uncertain circumstances on a final decision of management. Thus, very important for management to get everything in place (i.e.; approved budget, box of the vacancy in org chart and JDs) before HR start sourcing and interview candidates.

A remarkably memorable candidate experience is pivotal. It must support and underscore a company's employment brand and value proposition, and it must furnish very salient insight into the cultural underpinnings of a company, and the value that is placed on people and relationships. It should engender a feeling of safety, belonging, excitement and interest in candidates when the candidate journey and experience are not just prioritized but executed with care and precision. It gives me immense joy and satisfaction to make a genuine and impactful connection with each and every applicant and candidate regardless of whether or not they are converted to new hires, as it's a platform to showcase what life could be like working for the company.

According to me transparency builds trust. So, It is always best to discuss everything upfront during the screening process. I keep candidates informed about the hiring process, timelines, next steps and even iron out salary expectations before we move forward. Also being transparent in keeping them informed on any delays or hurdles during the hiring process is very helpful

One thing that I have always relied on is that it's important to treat your candidates the way you would expect to be treated if you were a candidate. Treat them with respect, stick to what you commit and ensure you maintain a constant chain of communication (After all no one likes to be ghosted). I always find that something as simple as asking my candidates for their preference when scheduling interviews and taking their personal commitments into consideration can play a huge role in helping them make or break the decision about considering the offer and their future with the organisation.

In my experience, honesty is the key.. the candidate would feel respected if you are honest about the process. Be truthful about the role, company culture and expectations. And the other most important element would be for the recruiters to be easily accessible and responsive to any queries or concerns they might have.

Every candidate is another professional that you have a chance to network with. Some are great fits for your open roles, others can be great referral sources, and others can help spread the word out your organization. It’s important to take every interaction with a long term approach. Even when the opening(s) you have are not the right fit, you can still offer coaching, resume tips and contacts with other companies.

"As a Talent Acquisition Professional, I've always cherished the significance of fostering a positive candidate experience. Early in my career, a wise manager imparted invaluable advice - remember that we never truly know what's happening in a candidate's life when they connect with our company. Job seeking and interviewing can be incredibly stressful, and it's our responsibility to approach this process with kindness, honesty, and compassion. Timely and transparent communication is key, and providing constructive feedback along the way can make a world of difference. I've carried this wisdom with me throughout my career because, at the heart of it all, we are in the People business. People are a company's most valuable resource.

Providing a positive candidate experience is essential in order to compete in today’s talent landscape. It starts with respecting the candidate’s time through a streamlined application process and extends to transparent, honest dialogue about the role, expectations, compensation, and company culture. Keeping candidates informed about each step of the interview process and sticking to those timelines is not just courteous, it’s a necessity.