Hiring Processes are BROKEN - How do we fix this?

This may be a “Jerry McGuire memo” moment for me, but what I see in hiring and recruiting today begs to ask this question.

Remember back in the day, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and "recruiter" wasn't a synonym for "spam emailer"? ?Recruiters were like the Hitch of the working world, expertly connecting people with their dream jobs and employers with the talent they need to grow.

Now? It's the Hunger Games version of recruiting. Candidates apply, wait in applicant oblivion, maybe getting a form rejection, maybe being ghosted by the employer.

Meanwhile, recruiters are drowning in resumes scanned by dumb scanners ?programmed to find the word "synergy" 87 times. <insert the vision of me smacking my forehead here>

The Hiring Process is BROKEN. And, it is negatively impacting recruiters, employers and applicants - ALL OF US.

When I first started in recruiting, I refined what I did as a recruiter and all the roles I have had with the staffing and recruiting industry into a few words to explain to someone what I did for a living.

I collect people and I tell stories.

The role was not transactional as it is today.? When I talked with a potential candidate, I might have had a job I was working, and I might not have a job working at the moment.? I collected people.

I never knew until I spoke with someone how I might fit into their job search today and in the future.?

If I couldn’t help them at that moment, I would tell them.? I would offer them suggestions of things they could do to increase their chances with their search.? Re-skilling, up-skilling, additional experience, or formal training.?

But they knew at the end of that conversation whether or not they may hear from me again in the short or long term.

I laid out very specific expectations with them.? What they could expect from me AND what I expected of them going forward.? Everything was clear.

That was how all recruiters were trained.? What the heck happened to that?

Is it because technology has changed job duties so much that we’ve forgotten about the human touch?

Is it because we spread recruiters too thin thinking that technology should make them more productive with less support?

Whatever it is, please make it stop.

Hey - I love recruiters.? Recruiters are heroes (with carpal tunnel). Recruiters change lives every day.

I know that they try their absolute best to please a multitude of people in their daily work lives.? I tell anyone who will listen to me in my coaching practice to ALWAYS talk to the recruiter (these days as long as they can confirm it is a real recruiter and not some bot).

Recruiters work their tookus’ off.? It is NOT an easy job.? It’s like being a matchmaker on steroids.

What I can tell you is this.? When recruiters are allowed the time to “collect people and tell stories” they are much more productive.?

So, what’s the answer?? I don’t know.? I have some thoughts on the subject.?

For one thing, I would not rely on Applicant Tracking Systems and their “dumb” scanners looking for a few key words and phrases in order to move applicants to a human being for further consideration OR the equivalence of a black hole where candidate information is stored never to see the light of day.

I wouldn’t rely on AI to decide whether or not a candidate’s information gets moved to the eyes of a human being.

Use technology to create more time for recruiters to do what they do best - actually interact with people.

The gentleman who trained me to be a recruiter, taught me that “a resume is nothing more than a 30-second commercial for what someone THINKS someone else wants to know about them.”?

I’ll go further.? The best resume in the world only gives someone a small peek at who a candidate is and all the wonders of their history, knowledge, skillsets, accomplishments, etc. So, relying on technology to screen applicants is not a best practice that should be continued.

Hiring practices are BROKEN.? It’s taking weeks, sometimes months for candidates to hear anything about their applications, if they hear at all.

Companies are putting people through 5, 6, 7 or more interviews and still not calling the ball on a hiring decision.? In fact, even after all those interviews, candidates are GHOSTED!? Can you believe it?? All the time the candidate has spent with an organization in hopes of a job only to never hear from them again.?

What on earth are employers thinking?

Yes, candidates ghosting employers has been happening for years.? But, using the excuse that “candidates ghost us all the time” as their reasoning for poor professionalism from an employer is just not acceptable.

Two wrongs do not make a right.

Here’s the end of my “Jerry McGuire memo.”

It is going to take a major shift in philosophy about how finding and hiring talent is done.?

Use technology to be more efficient, not less human.

If technology is being used to create a faster pace, then USE IT.? Set up auto-response emails so the candidate knows the information made it into the system AND what their expectations should be.? Don’t call us, we’ll call you, would be better than nothing.

I don’t know what the answer is, but something has to change.? Companies need talent and people need jobs.

Let’s rethink our processes keeping in mind that people are not one dimensional, they aren’t what’s on a resume.?

Let’s rethink recruiting and hiring processes. I'd love to hear your thoughts. What would you do to fix the situation?

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Kitty Warren is a Senior Career Management Consultant.? She focuses on career management and coaching for people who are in the midst of career transitions due to company reorganization. Her career in the staffing industry started with recruiting legal professionals and has evolved through many different industry verticals.?