Corprate Values in the Recruitment Process

I should like to explore an idea I generated some time ago, the relationship between corprate values and the recruitment process. I will suggest one specific method that candidates for hire can use to identify whether the company they are considering joining is true to its stated values. Finding this out is one aspect of the due diligence process that should always be undertaken by the candidate before deciding to apply for a role or deciding to agree to join a company.

But first, I’ll point out a few of the other most common approaches by which a candidate may know if a company lives up to its values: Researching their general reputation in the marketplace. Asking employees who work or worked there. Asking its customers. Examine its media presence and footprint. Become a customer yourself, etc. In combination, the results of these data points could paint an accurate picture.

So, let me now answer the question, for individuals considering applying to a company, or if a company approaches an individual for recruitment purposes, what could the potential candidate do, in addition to the other common methods stated earlier, to know if the company lives up to its stated values? Answer: Candidates can audit their overall ‘candidate experience’ from the beginning till the end of the recruitment journey and then evaluate if the experience lives up to the values of the company. That’s the ‘what’ part, now let’s look at the ‘how’ part.

I’ll use an example to better illustrate the ‘how’. Imagine that a company approaching a candidate states its values as being: Respect, Attention to detail and Quality. Here are some of the question’s candidates can ask themselves to audit their own ‘candidate experience’. What’s the company’s communication style? Are they timely? What is the quality of the overall coordination effort? Do they follow a structured and organized process? Is their process scientific and objective? Do they respond to inquiries? Is there transparency in the process overall? Do they respect the candidate’s time? Do they keep candidates updated as to where they are in the recruitment stage and as to how they are doing? Do they let candidates know if they didn’t make it through a certain screening stage? If they did not make it, do they tell them why? What’s the quality of the people interviewing candidates? What is the quality of the interviews? Do they apply any assessment tools? Do they allow candidates to ask questions? Do they answer thoroughly all the questions candidates have? How hard are they working to find out If the candidate would thrive in their culture? The answers to these questions are the results of the candidate’s experience audit. Next, candidates are to use their judgment to decide if the result of their audit is aligned with the stated values of the accompany.

If it is concluded by the candidate that there is no alignment, then there is an 80% probability that this deviation from stated values is widespread throughout the organization and not just the recruitment function. It extends to the HR department, to the entire organization and all the way to the very top. Yet still, there’s a 20% possibility that the deviation is limited to the recruitment function only while the rest of the organization reflects the stated values. This conclusion is derived from only one data point. It should be compared against the results of other data points mentioned in the beginning of this article. Other data points will either confirm or negate the findings of the ‘Candidate Experience’ audit.

It is worthwhile for candidates to invest time and energy in the process of knowing the state of a company’s values. Are they simply stated or lived? This time investment pays high dividends in the medium to long run.

Ahmed Basaad

Stakeholder Experience Architect