Am I being unrealistic and naive?
Bob Walker
Career Coach | Outplacement Specialist | Recruiter | Helping people find jobs and jobs find people | 185+ LinkedIn recommendations
I wrote an article at the start of March which talked about the experiences of candidates actively looking for work in New Zealand. In particular the proliferation of recruitment advertisements that informed potential applicants they would only hear back if they were deemed worthy of shortlisting. A brief search unearthed numerous examples with hiring companies and recruitment consultancies equally guilty.
The article https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/dont-call-us-we-certainly-wont-you-bob-walker/ certainly seemed to resonate and opened up a number of conversations at the time. A comment posted today nudged the article back onto my notifications and I thought a follow-up might be in order. A quick search on SEEK highlighted in excess of 100 live advertisements informing the would-be applicant that if they didn't hear back they they could assume they were unsuccessful. Big companies, small businesses, large recruitment agencies, small recruiters. It might only be a small percentage of overall vacancies (less than 2%?) but that is still thousands of job seekers seeing their applications disappear into a black hole.
I understand we are living in unprecedented times. Redundancies in New Zealand are widespread and ongoing, and ever-increasing numbers of candidates are hitting the market with urgency. Job applications are at what must be an all-time high. I ran an advertisement on SEEK last week for a sales role and applicant numbers have gone past the 225 mark in just 9 days. Businesses are under huge pressure and the recruitment sector is no different.
That said, and at the risk of banging my head against an impenetrable wall, why is it so difficult to treat people with a basic level of dignity and let them know where they stand? Everyday we are encouraged to 'be kind' and, irrespective of political leaning, it's not a bad thing to aim for. And yet, when people are at desperation point and scrabbling to get back in the workforce, kindness is the last thing many candidates are experiencing. In this day and age, managing candidate applications is not difficult. There are numerous recruitment systems that automate so much of what used to be laborious processes. Being blunt, I've had to reject 220 candidates in the last week. It's not the most pleasant thing I've had to do recently, but it is nothing if not quick. And at least those individuals know what is happening to their application.
If you are involved in recruitment processes at any level, please take a long hard look at how you manage the candidate experience. Think how you would like to be treated if you should find yourself on the other side of the equation. Whether it be motivated by customer service, kindness or just basic commercial common sense (people have long memories), challenge yourselves and your organisation to treat people better.
Or am I being unrealistic and naive?
Category Management | Shopper Marketing
4 年Great article Bob, interestingly I just wrote a post about the lack of response from hiring managers/companies and I am not in the recruitment industry.
The Million Dollar Biller Turned Recruitment Trainer / Founder of The Recruitment Academy. (MRCSA) Making Recruiters better.
4 年An automated rejection email is pretty easy to set up, bulk reject once you’ve found your candidate. I agree with your “candidate is a potential client” mindset, however a personal response to each applicant is not practical at those numbers. Based on your 220 rejections, a 10 minute call to each would take 36.6 hours straight (basically a working week without a break). Just for that one role. There are also a number of nuances at play, candidates that bulk apply, didn’t read the ad etc. take your time away from adding value to your client. You’re there to deliver at the end of the day. In saying that, always treat people with respect, if they are proactive and call you, give them a couple of minutes. Educate people who want it, be a good recruiter! I’m glad you care about this issue Bob, it’s important, yet complex at times. Candidates (not all) are your future clients, play the long game:)
Career Contractor | HRIS Implementation and Improvement | HR & Recruitment Operations | Business Analysis | Reporting | Available June 2025
4 年Absolutely agree. This is bad candidate experience based on laziness. And honestly, most recruiters use systems that allow to use templates and send them as bulk with just a couple of clicks. And even if not, you want something from the applicant in the first place (their application to review) so have the decency to thank them and let them know where they are standing. At any time in the process.
Co-Founder JOYN | Director Rice & Co | Projects superHUMAN Software
4 年Bravo Bob Walker very well said. The refrain “if you don’t hear back you’ve been unsuccessful” is short-sighted, lazy and cowardly. Sadly it’s also a reflection on how people treat each other in general in this digital age.
Cyber Mitigation Consultant
4 年Hi Bob. Great post. It's a shameful and lazy practice that treats people in need like cattle. This behavior has led myself and people I know to avoid agencies and go direct and/or through networks and it works great. My message: if your going to behave like that then "we dont need you"