A new survey by online video recruitment software platform Shortlister.com highlights the risks to brand and reputation that poor recruitment processes pose to UK businesses.
The Shortlister.com survey, which questioned 2,000 UK job hunters, revealed that 80 per cent of candidates who experience an ‘unsatisfactory’ recruitment process tell people about their negative experience.
Eighty per cent of all of those polled said they would tell people about their recruitment gripes with a firm after a poor process. Thirty-nine per cent of respondents across the UK said they would tell people when asked about a particular interview or application, while 33 per cent said they would actively tell close friends and family without prompting.
“One of the biggest threats to retail businesses’ reputation and brand, especially where they have a large number of employees, is the ‘venting’ by candidates who didn’t make it to a job offer. The fact is that often businesses can do better when it comes to the recruitment process and this would help to minimise the impact of negative PR from disgruntled candidates,” said David Dewey of Shortlister.com.
“We started Shortlister.com to help recruiters deliver a better, more effective and convenient process that candidates would engage with, and part of our research has involved quantifying the negative impact of poor process on brands,” he added.
A worrying 6 per cent of failed job-hunters said they would actively tell ‘as many people as they could’ about their experience and 2 per cent shared their views on Facebook, Twitter and other social media.
With the average social media network estimated at well over 400 people for the ‘millennial’ generation (adults 18-34), this online ‘venting’ is potentially hugely damaging for firms that mishandle the hiring process. Poor follow-up communication with candidates was one of the main criticisms.
“When firms spend so much time cultivating positive brand images with ads and PR, they should be very mindful of the fallout that can result from a poor recruitment process,” said Tim Whitworth, who co-founded and built the retail business Republic which had thousands of staff, and who is now backing the Shortlister.com venture.
“There is nothing more emotive than engaging with a candidate, offering them the hope of a role and then disappointing them. Candidate disappointment is an unfortunate by product of any recruitment process, but the interview process and the communication around hiring, can offer a great opportunity to enhance a firm’s reputation and exceed expectations, as well as a huge threat to brand image if HR processes are poor,” he added.
The Shortlister.com video interview software is the first to offer interviews conducted by a lifelike avatar as well as providing many tools for recruiters to assist with managing the interview process, tracking interview feedback and logging communication with candidates centrally, online.
Mr Dewey added: “As a candidate, I felt that the process of interviewing could be improved for job hunters and hiring bosses, and that’s how the Shortlister.com concept came to life. This research highlights that my experiences as a candidate and Tim’s experiences as an employer are typical, and that our software should help to improve recruitment at many firms.”
