Break the cycle
Recruitment reflected, pt 9
As I was running around and around the park this morning, humbly breaking my half marathon PB in 1 hour and 38 minutes, I got thinking about cycles in recruitment.
(Don’t worry - I do change direction from time to time to even out the strain on my knees and hips.)
One of the reasons I started writing job seeker advice in the first spin of the pandemic, was because I talked to many execs who were unexpectedly out of work and they often told me the same things over and over.
Common stories related to how surprisingly bad candidate experience was everywhere, from job boards to agencies to employers.
And they’d say how ironic it was that despite the fact they were hiring authorities when employed, no one respected the turn of the wheel that they would be again in future.
“All these recruiters I used to give business to aren’t even bothering to return my calls. And when I’m back in work, I bet they’ll be the first people on the phone, trying to drum up business.
Don’t they realise they’ve burnt their bridges?”
I’d have to explain that while adverts were still listed, many were on furlough and probably not allowed to do any work. Not always the case of course.
I’d also asked if they might have perpetuated the behaviour they experienced when in leadership roles.
More often than not it would be the case.
So, then, that’s the challenge isn’t it?
To fix the issues you’ve identified as a job seeker, when you have the agency to drive positive change.
I wonder how many have.
From the evidence of following them on LinkedIn it doesn’t appear to be many.
Transactional works for a reason, when time is short, and other priorities take the rein.
Is it so much of a sacrifice that the experience of unsuccessful candidates fall by the wayside, when you should be prioritising on the successful ones?
(It is too much of a sacrifice)
The irony is that I’ve always been candidate first in my approach, and this seemed appealing to them when they were those candidates, yet less so when they became employers.
Even when they were candidates who experienced poor processes, many would unconsciously repeat the cycle they perpetuated as employers.
You need only look at transferrable skills.
Can’t you see my transferrable skills?
Strategic leadership
Communication
Attention to detail
Stakeholder management
Intermediate excel
Pioneering
Innovative
Those same ambiguous statements you see line for line in job adverts. Every CV and every job advert in harmony.
It’s no wonder it’s so hard to pick 5 CVs from 200, when many say similar things tailored to generic adverts that ask for the same things then wonder why there are no candidates.
What’s the solution?
How to break the cycle?
I’ve written a lot about outside-in recruitment and how I work with employers.
The principle is to put candidates first and have a process that caters to all their needs, yet is entirely in service of the vacancy.
It’s how I’ve filled 100% of vacancies in the past three years (except for economic cancellations).
Everyone gets a good experience. Candidates, the agency, the employer. Win-win.
Yet in this cycle described at the top, it’s all inside-out.
Us first.
Whether that’s the employer describing their needs and hoping others find meaning, or a candidate describing their needs and hoping others find meaning.
To break the cycle, you need to invert it and always think “what’s in it for them?”, rather than just spinning faster and faster with employer-first, going nowhere quicker, like a hamster on a wheel.
And that’s why the lessons of job seekers are so valuable in looking at how we can improve our processes.
Learn from their experience, to give them better experiences, and from there gain a better experience as an employer.
Experience which is a consequence of a good process focused on their needs.
clear and accurate job descriptions
what good actually looks like in a candidate
all the things I’ve said before on repeat
All things that allow better outcomes for the employer, fills more vacancies quicker and more cost-effectively, working well for everyone…
including for the exec job seekers you decline who’ve experienced poor processes elsewhere.
Thanks for reading.
Regards,
Greg
P.s. while you’re here, if you’re finding a vacancy difficult to fill, and your process is all about you and not about your ideal candidates - I can fix that for you.
Don’t be shy, email me at greg.wyatt@bwrecruitment.co.uk.
I can fill that vacancy directly, with employees who often exceed expectations, or help you do it better yourself.