It’s no secret that recruitment plays a major role in the success of a company. To get the recruitment process going, you need to practice effective communication strategies. A lot of your recruitment tasks will require you to reach out to candidates, respond to job applications and inquiries, or coordinate with the hiring team of your recruitment agency.
Knowing what methods and tools to use in your internal and external communications then becomes crucial as you aim to make quality hires and enhance your overall recruitment process.
The following infographic sums up everything you need to know, including statistics and tips in recruitment communication.
How Modern Recruiters Are Communicating
Today, it’s common for recruitment companies to explore all available channels to find and engage talent for various job positions. They’re investing in new technologies, such as automation and other programs powered by artificial intelligence, since these are proving to be useful not only in streamlining recruitment processes but also in gaining higher engagement among candidates.
When it comes to more traditional forms of communication, text messaging has overtaken phone and email as the tool that most recruiters use. With text messaging, it’s easier for recruitment agencies to send job listings to applicants as well as schedule their interview dates and confirm other arrangements with them. Recruiters also know that smart phones are the go-to device of jobseekers, so they see to it that their websites are optimized for mobile users.
Last but not least, social recruiting is also more prevalent these days. Recruiters have reported positive results in using social platforms, led by LinkedIn, to advertise jobs, find passive talents, and hire quality candidates. Recruitment teams also take time to look at candidates’ social media profiles to find out more things about someone they’re likely to hire.
Communication Tips for Recruiters
These must-do things can help you improve communications in the hiring stage:
1. Choose a communication channel for your candidates
There are varied ways of communicating with candidates, namely phone, text messaging, face-to-face interviews, email, video conferencing, and so on. To get the most out of these channels, you have to determine when it’s most appropriate to use them. Here are some general rules to follow:
- Reserve email communications for unsuccessful candidates using a positive tone as much as possible.
- Send immediate notifications to applicants regarding changes on interview schedule or venue via text messaging.
- Conduct initial screening of candidates through phone, making sure that you prepare interview questions beforehand.
- Take advantage of video interviews to showcase your office environment and company culture to top talents as well as give practical, hands-on exams to applicants.
- When sending job offers, you can use a combination of text, phone, or email communication, stating complete details like job position, start date, salary, etc. Request the candidate to acknowledge or confirm your offer, too.
2. Always coordinate with concerned parties
Recruitment involves both internal and external communications. Make sure that your support staff knows and follows your recruitment agency’s standard operating procedure, so they’ll be able to convey consistent information to candidates during the recruitment process. It might be a good idea to determine who’s responsible for sending correspondences to which candidate to avoid duplication or inaccuracies.
3. Build your employer brand
Job candidates look for companies with a strong and positive brand image. That said, it would be easier for you to attract candidates if they could have a glimpse of what’s it like to work in your company.
Show your company profile on your website and actively engage with them on social, giving them the information they need to help them choose your company as their potential employer.
You can also highlight your company’s milestones and culture when you post your job listings and job descriptions to reinforce your employer brand.
4. Establish your timeline
Candidates also take into consideration the length of the recruitment process when applying for a job. Statistics say it only takes 10 days to lose the best candidates, so try to set a reasonable amount of time to complete your hiring process. Discuss with applicants the various stages that they’ll go through and how long it will take to process their application, so they’ll know what to expect.
5. Do more with technology
As a recruiter, you need to be a quick and efficient worker to deliver a good candidate experience for potential employees of your company. You can use automation software and other similar technologies to ensure that you’re quick to reach out and respond to candidates – whether you’re sending job invites to passive candidates or giving status updates to shortlisted applicants.
6. Monitor incoming and outgoing communications
It’s highly likely that your recruitment agency is interacting with hundreds to thousands of applications, and it’s a grave offense not to know what to do next. Tracking all HR communications allows you to set priorities and manage your resources better.
7. Ask and give feedback
Recruitment can be costly, especially when you’re not able to attract the right talent despite all the effort you put into it. This is where a feedback exchange mechanism can be helpful. Request feedback from interviewed applicants about the challenges they have encountered, so you could improve the overall recruitment experience of current and future candidates. Their insight can also help you minimize cases of applicants withdrawing their applications.
At the same time, you should be generous in providing actionable feedback to candidates to help them become more marketable for employment. Point out the strengths that they should nurture as well as what they can do better the next time around.
Communication Mistakes to Avoid
Communication during the hiring process is very important for job candidates. For starters, you should never keep candidates in the dark. They’re counting on you to tell them what they need to do to move forward with their application, so they’ll feel confident in making the necessary preparations based on the initial information they receive from you.
Uncertainty has no place in recruitment communication either. As the recruiter, you should be able to answer their most pressing questions, including those about salaries, benefits, policies, and even customers doing business with your company. In the same way that you are evaluating candidates for skills match and culture fit, people applying in your company also need to reflect if they will be happy and productive in your organization.
Perhaps the worst thing that candidates could ever experience is the lack of communication from recruiters. Candidates want to know about their chances of getting hired in your company, even if it means receiving a letter of rejection from you. The key is to communicate your message in a timely, honest, and professional manner. Personalizing your messages can also work better for you, especially if you’re trying to win over your most ideal candidates.
Effective Communication in Recruitment
Communication is a core human activity, which makes it all the more important in the recruitment space. By following the best practices in sending, receiving, or sharing information, recruitment communication can be beneficial for candidates as well as for the whole team of your recruitment agency.
