5 Proven Ways to Improve the Candidate Experience in Your Organization
We are all familiar with social media posts criticizing the hiring practices of various companies. Some call them out for ghosting candidates whereas others talk about their unprofessional conduct in interviews. There is a lot more emphasis on the perception of a company today than ever before. A positive candidate experience is therefore one longer an afterthought; it is a necessity. A candidate’s perception of your company impacts not only your brand but also your ability to attract top talent. So, let’s find out what constitutes a memorable candidate experience, how to create one, and why it helps build a strong pipeline of qualified candidates.
What is Meant by Candidate Experience?
Candidate experience refers to the overall experience that job applicants have about a company’s hiring process. It encompasses the company’s interaction with a candidate, starting from the moment they come across an opportunity to the end of the hiring process. The following factors shape the candidate experience:
1. Application Process
The process of applying for a job should be smooth, with clear and concise job descriptions to prevent confusion. Moreover, candidates should be informed about the status of their application, whether they have an interview or not.
2. Interview Experience
Many factors, such as punctuality, the interviewer’s attitude, and the relevance of questions, impact a candidate’s comfort during interviews. There should be clear information about what to expect in each round and which skills are evaluated, apart from giving feedback on their performance.
3. Onboarding
The process of inducting a candidate must be seamless and well organized. It is also important to create a welcoming environment. Furthermore, there should be enough resources to enable the candidates to thrive in their roles.
4. Rejection
The tone and manner of a rejection must be communicated professionally to the candidate. Ideally, they should be given constructive feedback that can help them in the future.
ALSO READ: All You Need to Know About Incentive Compensation Management & its Importance
Why is Candidate Experience Important?
Nearly 42% of Indians are likely to change their jobs in 2024 (1). In other words, companies will be interacting with a lot of prospective folks for whom they will have to create a positive experience. Here are some benefits of a positive candidate experience:
1. Employer Branding
A candidate’s perception of your company has a direct impact on your brand’s reputation. A positive reflection can lead to a favorable word of mouth.
2. Talent Acquisition
A candidate’s experience can significantly improve your ability to attract and hire top talent because candidates are likely to accept job offers from companies that treat them well.
3. Employee Satisfaction and Retention
An ideal candidate experience sets the tone for employees as making them feel valued improves their satisfaction and engagement.
4. Time and Cost Savings
A well-organized hiring process can undoubtedly save the company time and money. For example, it reduces the number of candidates who drop out, helping the company wrap up the hiring process quickly.
5. Referrals
Happy candidates are more likely to refer their friends and colleagues to your company than disgruntled candidates.
ALSO WATCH: Q&A Session- Importance of Communication in Remote Work Era by Megha Gupta, HR Director, Fiserv
Challenges That Affect the Candidate Experience
A poor candidate experience can hinder the company’s efforts to attract top talent. Let’s see what you need to avoid:
1. Slow Response Times
Delayed responses to applications, interviews, and other communication can frustrate candidates and leave them feeling ignored and underappreciated.
2. Lack of Transparency
A lack of clarity about the hiring process, including the timeline, requirements, and decision-making process, can create confusion and uncertainty for candidates.
3. Ghosting
Nobody likes to be ghosted, personally or professionally. A company risks creating a negative impression if they fail to respond to candidates after an interview.
4. Unorganized Interviews
Unprepared or disorganized interviews can make candidates feel unprepared and consequently damage the company’s reputation.
5. Poor Communication
There should be no misleading communication throughout the hiring process. Hence, a company must steer clear of unclear instructions or conflicting information.
6. Unrealistic Expectations
The organization should not set unrealistic expectations for candidates, such as requiring excessive paperwork or unreasonable time commitments, which can frustrate qualified applicants and deter them from joining or recommending you.
ALSO READ: What is People Analytics and What are its Most Useful Applications?
What is the Role of a Candidate Experience Specialist?
A candidate experience specialist is responsible for ensuring that applicants have a smooth experience throughout the recruitment process. They have the power to reimagine every touchpoint in the hiring journey.
1. Key Responsibilities
A. Streamline Application Processes
They help ensure that the application process is user-friendly and accessible. Additionally, such specialists review online job portals, simplify application forms, and reduce friction points. They also set up systems to convey application status, interview schedules, and feedback.
B. Ensure Consistency Across Touchpoints
Specialists oversee candidate interactions with the company, ensuring professionalism and consistency. For example, they handle email communication, interviews, and rejection notices. They also have to contact hiring managers to ensure the interview process is respectful.
C. Provide Feedback
The feedback ensures that candidates know whether they are moving forward in the process or not. It is ideal to help guide candidates through the process and understand their needs. They conduct surveys to assess candidate’s satisfaction with the process. They can use metrics such as Net Promoter Score (NPS), time-to-hire, offer acceptance rates, and feedback survey results.
D. Leverage Technology
They deploy Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) tools for an efficient experience. AI, too, is becoming a very handy tool to assist with the entire hiring process.
2. Essential Skills of a Candidate Experience Specialist
The requirements that satisfy what is a role of candidate experience specialist include the following:
- Ability to communicate clearly and effectively with all involved
- Understanding of the candidate’s perspective
- Organizational skills to manage and optimize the entire recruitment process
- Ability to collect, analyze, and act on candidate experience metrics
- Familiarity with HR tools and technologies, including ATS and CRM
ALSO READ: Employee Retention Strategy: Meaning and Benefits
How do You Evaluate Candidate Experience?
The evaluation of a candidate’s experience is key because it helps identify the scope for improvement. Here are key steps and methods to effectively evaluate candidate experience:
1. Feedback Surveys
You can ask questions to candidates after the interview process to gather feedback on their experience. There are exit surveys for rejected candidates and new hire surveys for onboarded candidates. Here are some sample questions:
- How would you rate the overall application process?
- Were you provided with clear and timely communication throughout the process?
- Would you apply to our company again or recommend it to others?
2. Candidate Experience Metrics
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a scale of 0–10 on how likely candidates are to recommend the company to other folks. The score provides an overall measure of candidate satisfaction.
- A score of 9–10 are highly satisfied candidates
- Scores of 7–8 are neutral
- While 0–6 are unhappy candidates
3. Time-to-Hire
Another way for how to evaluate candidate experience is to measure how long the recruitment process takes from application to offer or rejection. Also track how many candidates start but do not complete the application process. High drop-off rates often indicate issues with the application system.
4. Interview Process Analytics
The interview completion rate tracks how many candidates complete the interviews versus those who drop out voluntarily. The interview-to-offer ratio is another useful way to measure how many interviews it takes to extend an offer.
5. Offer Acceptance Rate
You must track the number of candidates who decline job offers and their reasons. The candidates decline offers due to a poor experience so make a note of them. You can track candidates who accept offers but later rescind.
Grow Your Career With Emeritus
The job market continues to evolve along with the expectations of candidates. And now that you know what is meant by candidate experience, it is clear that it is tied to making or breaking reputations. In this scenario, companies must strive to improve their candidate experience. They will look for professionals who can navigate these challenges. There is a range of HR management courses at Emeritus designed to impart knowledge to offer a seamless candidate experience and stay relevant in the industry. They cover tools to implement effective people strategies to attract the best talent. Sign up at Emeritus and unleash your full potential today.
By Mitaksh Jain
Write to us at content@emeritus.org
