THE IMPACT OF BAD RECRUITMENT FEEDBACK

The Impact of Bad Recruitment Feedback

By

Glenn G Jones

GGJ Global Consulting Limited

[email protected]

 From the recent poll that I ran, this came out as the top area that my network wanted me to write about, and it is pertinent now with so many people looking either for a new job (external) or a new role (internal). Let me start by saying that the following is a generalisation and if your companies Recruitment or Talent Acquisition are already doing this or amending their processes etc., please let me say thank you on behalf of the people who are looking for their next job or role. Also, right now recruiting teams are going through an unprecedented amount of applications, but the issues that I list below were there before this virus impacted so this article still stands. The areas that this article is going to focus on are:

1.    External applicant 'unsuccessful' communication

2.   Internal applicant 'unsuccessful' feedback

3.   Pre and Post interview communications and feedback

However, before we proceed further let me give you a little analogy and the subsequent positive or negative impacts:

Have you ever gone to a restaurant (hopefully sooner rather than later too) where you have had a bad experience? You are disgruntled, you go home, and the next day you tell four friends, who in turn tell four of their friends etc. etc. Before you know it, the restaurants brand damage has gone viral, and the commercials will invariably be impacted etc. Compare that to a great restaurant experience, and you get the rest. 

For many companies around the world, the external application process may be the first introduction to your companies' brand, culture and ethos, plus the first touch of your talent attraction processes and systems. Therefore, getting this wrong may mean the loss of talented people who may never apply to your company again (let's not mention the war for talent!)

External applicant 'unsuccessful' communication

Personal statement - My mindset is very much in the 'Growth' mindset camp, so I expect to receive feedback, and I adjust the elements of the feedback accordingly. 

Before I submit a CV for an application, I always check whether or not my CV meets the criteria for what's required. Therefore, let me share with you an actual example of a recent snapshot of a 'sorry computer says no' email:

“We've received some great applications, and the competition was very high. This time we've decided not to take your application forward; however, this doesn't mean you shouldn't apply for other roles with us. If you see something else that interests you and you think it's a great match, we'd welcome your application. Why not sign up to our job alert, so you don't miss out on an opportunity! “

With my growth mindset hat on, I needed to understand why I had not been selected?  The above did not tell me why I had not been taken forward, so I contacted the company, and this is what I received back (I might add that I was shocked to get a response as I had asked for three other clarifications from three different companies which I will save for later!). This is what I received back:

“The role that you have applied for has received significant interest, and we have decided to progress with candidates whose skills and experience are a closer match in this instance.”

So, I asked again for clarification on where my experience and skills fell short, and here you go:

“It is not that your skills/experience did not match the job requirements in general, but we have received other applications that we think match more closely to the job criteria that we have set out.”

At this point, I left it.

Now let me start by saying that I appreciate that there are probably hundreds of people applying for vacancies right now and that the recruitment teams, processes and systems are not able to do any more than this at this present time; but does this make it right? Add to this the introduction of Artificial Intelligence in the Recruitment Process, and I wonder if this will become worse over time? With so many different and innovative applications coming out on the market today, isn't it time that this was addressed and the tangible return on taking extra care of applicants during their first interactions with your company considered and commercially understood by HR/People teams and Boards around the globe?

As my school report card said, 'could do better'!

Internal applicant 'unsuccessful' feedback

I hear lots of stories about how disgruntled current company colleagues are handled, and this is a cardinal sin in my book. While I am not going to write much on this, I felt that not addressing this lack of proper feedback not only impacts on colleague engagement but also creates bad press internally and externally for the company. Most companies today use a combination of a 'sorry email' or the hiring manager contacting the internal applicant to say “thanks but no thanks”.  For my part, I believe (where possible) that every internal colleague should have a phone call or face-to-face (post-Corona) with the hiring manager outlining why they were unsuccessful in the application process (putting the Human back in HR!) or if the volumes are too high, at least an email outlining why with the offer of a call or meeting if necessary.  I appreciate the overhead that this will create, and I know many people will react badly to this suggestion. However, as my Gran used to say 

"you can't make a great omelette without cracking open some eggs!"

Pre and Post interview communications and feedback

If you have gone through the effort, energy and trouble of creating a job description, an advert, sifting CV/applications etc., then ensuring that your communications with potential interviewees are super important. Often during this time, things will be happening behind the scenes; however, your candidates only source of information will either be through your Recruitment Team or via a Third-Party Recruitment Agency. Before I go any further, I should say there are some great examples of where this is top-class; however, on the whole, they are in the minority. I am sure that you already know the impact of poor communications during this time of pre and post-interview/s, however, let me spell a few out:

1.    Mixed-messages – trust is an essential facet during this time, and applicants should be readily informed of any changes as quickly as possible. Failure to do this may result in the applicant being disgruntled, may drop out of the process, and they may also form a wrong perception of the company.

2.   If you say you are going to do something, do – this often happens to me that a Recruiter says, I will get back to you on x date, but that passes, and they don't, I should hear something tomorrow but guess what etc. There are often things that happen which the applicant may not be aware of; however, if I say to someone, I will get back to them re something I generally do so I expect the same.

3.   Lack of any feedback – this for me is probably the worst! The impact of no feedback in my book is a showstopper! People are often invested if they are being interviewed, and there is no reason why an applicant who has been through an interview should not get feedback (positive or developmental). How else are they to learn and adapt?

Conclusion 

There will be multiple reasons and factors why people who read this article will push-back; however, if we are invested in putting the Human back in HR processes, procedures and systems, then surely something has to change. Companies have to realise the impact of bad/poor recruitment processes and the impact that they have on their brand, bottom line and company culture and ethos.

I have used the following quote by Roy T Bennett before, but it's right for this article: 

"Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular."

Bio

Glenn is a freelance HR consultant and has worked with Tesco, AXA XL, Bank of America, HSBC, Ecolab and Imperial Brands in multi-discipline strategic and operational roles across the world. Before this, he was employed Eversheds LLP, Accenture, Koorb (NZ) and EON as well as numerous other companies. He is working his way to his DBA, becoming a future CEO and evolving his HR consultancy business to ensure that he continually adds value to his clients, now and in the future. Glenn is passionate about coaching, emotional intelligence and company evolution. His book 'Human Resources Changes The World' aims to disrupt the function of HR and change the traditional approach to who becomes a CEO.