In this week’s #ThrowBackThursday, we take a look back at an article written by @Simon Gomez, titled ‘What Candidate Experience?!’ published back in December 2017.

Summarising the article, Simon highlighted several crucial points, including:
– Continuity: Reflecting on whether the candidate experience has genuinely improved since 2014 and the challenges in maintaining a consistent and effective candidate customer experience.
– Technology and Tools: Examining the availability of advanced technologies and platforms like @Meet & Engage and how effectively these tools are utilised to enhance the candidate experience.
– A Case Example: Sharing a specific instance of an in-house team’s failure to engage candidates properly, including neglecting feedback, which exposed shortcomings in the recruitment process.
– Impact on Brand Perception: Emphasising the importance of considering factors such as candidate experience, employer brand perception, quality of hire, and their influence on an organisation’s reputation, not just internal metrics like time to hire.
– Best Practices: Highlighting the significance of effective communication, personalisation, managing expectations, and better utilization of technology to create a positive candidate journey.

Back then, in 2017, the candidate experience seemed to have room for improvement. The question is, have things significantly changed since then? Keep in mind that we’re looking back retrospectively three years to 2017, so one would hope for improvements.

Based on recent conversations with both companies and candidates, mixed feelings and thoughts emerge. Candidates share stories of some companies excelling in specific areas but lacking in others. Companies report that providing a great candidate experience is becoming increasingly challenging, especially with a growing number of applications. In some instances, companies have had to take down job adverts within hours due to the overwhelming response. Budget allocation priorities in HR have sometimes impacted their ability to enhance the candidate experience.

So why is the candidate experience so important? In a 2022 article for @Recruiting News Network, @Heidi Cardenas highlighted the following:

– Candidate Sharing: The majority of candidates share their recruitment experiences, whether positive or negative, thus influencing a company’s brand and reputation.
– Prevalence of Bad Experiences: Research indicates that a significant percentage of employees (46%) are dissatisfied with their overall employer experience. Candidates have high expectations and tend to disengage when disappointed.
– Wider Consequences: A negative experience not only deters candidates but also influences lost purchases, recommendations, and business relationships, extending the cost of a bad candidate experience beyond recruitment.
– Losing Good Candidates: In a competitive talent market, a subpar candidate experience can lead to the loss of excellent candidates. Negative online reviews and complex application processes drive candidates away.
– Moments That Matter: Deloitte identifies crucial moments in the candidate experience, such as job applications and interviews, which should be streamlined, personalised, and efficient.
– Impact on Employer Brand: A bad candidate experience negatively affects the employer brand, resulting in negative word-of-mouth and detrimental online reviews, which potential candidates can see.
– Excess Interviews: Conducting an excessive number of interviews, often more than three, discourages candidates, damages your brand, leads to abandoned interview processes, and delays time to hire.
– Unhappy Candidates to Unhappy Customers: A poor candidate experience can deter candidates from becoming customers. It influences their buying decisions and their influence on business contacts.
– A Case Example – Virgin Media: Virgin Media’s analysis found that their bad candidate experience, which cost millions, affected a significant number of rejected candidates who were also customers. They realised that a positive candidate experience is not just a recruitment matter but can also impact revenue.
– Affordability: The article underscores the importance of conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the candidate experience to avoid losing top talent, damaging the employer brand, and creating unhappy customers, all of which can result in substantial financial losses.

In summary, a bad candidate experience can have extensive consequences, including financial repercussions and harm to your brand’s reputation. Therefore, if your company has been prioritizing spending in other HR areas, it might be worth reconsidering and exploring how GMZTAlent can assist you.

What candidate experience?! https://gmztalent.uk/2017/12/01/candidate-experience/