Why are job seekers treated so poorly?

Don’t call us; we won’t call you.

I have often wondered why so many constituent parts of the ‘talent acquisition’ process seem to treat potential employees with the sort of distain which they would never dream of exhibiting towards their clients or customers. And I include recruiters, headhunters and HR teams in this discussion. From the generic, unfriendly job descriptions which scream ‘don’t even bother applying if you haven’t got all this and more’, to the archaic, time consuming, online job application forms and talent repelling interview processes which ignore every scrap of evidence showing that natural, friendly conversation is the way to really get to know an individual. Should we really be surprised then when accomplished applicants don’t appear in their droves, or when they do – they’re more than a little disenchanted? And this is all happening in a world where everyone is complaining about how difficult it is to attract the right ‘talent’ to any given opportunity.

I recently read an article over on Forbes that perfectly summarised the monumental number of problems, practices and processes that make job seekers feel like a commodity to be traded. In response, I’ve picked some of these issues, and tried to flip them on their head to help those who are looking for exceptional talent, treat them like the potential heroes they are… right from the start.  

Vet and Woo

We, as talent seekers (and to re-iterate, I’m looking at myself, fellow recruiters, talent acquisition professionals and anyone involved in the interview process) should be able to both vet and woo the very best talent at the same time. In order to do this, we need to nail the art of real, human conversation. We should be interested and articulate. We should talk to potential employees as people who might contribute to a business and the bottom line (this is what we’re hoping for, no?). Conversation has long since been the best way to figure out who people really are, what they’re capable of, and whether or not they’re the best fit for the role on offer. So, if you can’t conduct a good conversation, then I’d suggest you start a job hunt of your own.

Badverts.

The job advert gone wrong. At what point did we decide that in order to be taken seriously we, the talent hunters, needed to write job adverts in such a passive aggressive, unfriendly manner? It can’t just be me that reads job ads daily that come across as combative rather than applicant inspiring? Our job in HR, staffing and headhunting is essentially an extension of the business’ sales and marketing team.  The job adverts should reflect the company brand and we need to stop being lazy and start getting creative. The more people we inspire to apply, the more likely we are to find that golden hire.

We are big, you are small.

The entire process of hiring seems to project an image of big, important employer versus small, insignificant job seeker. Not sure what I mean? Here are a couple of typical examples showing how employers expect much and frequently give very little…

1) Put the work in…

Employers ask for forms, presentations and online applications from job seekers – they return the favour with slow replies or by giving minimal or none existent feedback. Job seekers are often left to figure out they weren’t successful by wading through days of radio silence, rather than a professional email, call or letter. We’re all busy, but a little acknowledgement goes a long way in preserving the way even unsuccessful applicants will talk about your brand and business in future.

2) Let me see your cards…

We demand personal information including current and past salary details – yet often refuse to be upfront about the remuneration potential employees can expect from the role they’re applying for. We reason that by knowing someone’s current ‘worth’ that it will make an iota of difference as to whether we should give them the job or not. When in reality it doesn’t, and is in fact a way to make sure employers don’t give up negotiating advantage.

As Liz Ryan, CEO of Human Workplace, said in her article for Forbes, “Broken recruiting is damaging to employers -- so why do they hang onto the failed systems that cause them so much grief? They do it because they put a lot of time and money into the current process over the past two decades, and they don't want to change things now. They do it because the pain their broken recruiting apparatus causes them is "soft" pain. It's human pain, and they cannot put a dollar figure next to it. They do it because the nature of bureaucracy is to reinforce itself against outsiders and new ideas. Leaders around the world find it easier to complain about "talent shortages" than to look at their own accountability for designing jobs that living humans can fill, and then finding those people.”

It’s not just here in the UK we’ve got employer/employee problems either. Want to hear something staggering? I recently read that some of America’s less-than-wonderful employers are refusing to hire the unemployed, even to the point of listing current employment as a requirement in job announcements! As a blog I read on ‘Minding the Workplace’ rightly said, “These dots connect. It’s all about kicking people while they’re down. It’s part of a culture of cruelty — or at least pathological insensitivity — towards those who could use some respect, a helping hand, and hopefully a job.”

As with many things, continuing to keep doing something (in this case, recruiting) as you have done it before – even if the methods are pointless or destructive – is the easiest thing to do. And, in all fairness, I too have been guilty of slipping at times, writing an uninspiring job ad or not disclosing salary to candidates at the outset. But if we want to fix recruiting, and stop job seekers feeling like dirt, rather than the valuable assets they are, then we need address, and reinvent the processes – and aim to make potential employees feel (and show) the love, right from the very beginning.

So, don’t settle for feeling like “just another” job seeker. And remember; if a company isn’t projecting the culture you’re seeking during the interview process, then it’s probably best that you looked elsewhere.

Mark.