Hiring is a lengthy process – from post job advertisements to onboarding candidates, it could take up to several weeks or even months sometimes. Also, it takes a considerable amount of time and effort from the hiring staff. So, when any candidate drops off from the process, it can be pretty agonizing and frustrating.
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Putting in efforts and time on candidates only to find later that they have walked away can be a huge let down for the hiring team. So, instead of fretting, it would be a lot wiser to contemplate and reflect on what went wrong.
There can be multiple reasons why candidates are opting to drop out of your hiring process. Here we are listing several possible reasons that might be affecting your recruitment process,
Major Reasons Why Candidates Are Dropping Out
1. A Complicated and Long Application Process
Filling an application form is the first interaction that a candidate will have with your organization. So, it is absolutely vital to keep it short and simple as possible. If filling an application form takes too long, then applicants are likely to give up in between.
You must be wondering how long it can be termed as too long, right? Well, studies suggest that application filling should last between 5-10 minutes, anything more than it can be called too long.
Another thing to consider is the simplicity of the application form. An application form should be self-explanatory; otherwise, candidates may find it too complex, and it would discourage them from filling further. Many companies still put some complicated and lengthy questions for candidates to answer.
Well, it is definitely understandable that they want to know the person, but it is of no use if it’s restraining them. And remember, you can always clarify or ask more questions if candidates come for a face-to-face interview.
Therefore, it is clear you should make every attempt to make the application filling quicker and easier, whether it is online or offline.
2. Your Process Isn’t Mobile-Friendly
This might seem like an exaggeration, but still, you can’t overlook its significance. The rise in mobile usage has been unfathomable. Now, more and more people are relying on their phones for many things – searching and applying for jobs included.
So if your recruitment process isn’t mobile-friendly, then you’re not only missing out on a large chunk of candidates, but there is also a risk that candidates will walk off due to a lack of mobile support. If your hiring system allows resume parsing from the desktop, then it will make things a lot easier and faster for the applicants as they won’t have to enter the same information again and again.
3. Not Being ‘Candidate-Centric’
In this extremely competitive marketplace, it is of utmost importance to be candidate-centric. It’s just like thinking about your candidate as a customer. The better you treat them, the better are the chances of them sticking by.
One particular thing that is often seen in many companies during the recruitment process is they don’t respond to candidates, or they just delay their response. And this could prove to be a major laid back for the candidates. In fact, candidates who don’t get timely or proper response from any company are likely to get disinterested.
So, you need to make sure that communication with candidates is happening in a timely manner. You need to train your staff to be more responsive. Providing positive candidate experience will prevent them from dropping out of the hiring process in between.
Also, Read: Hiring Bias: What They are and How They Affect your Organization
4. Elongated Hiring Process
A lengthy hiring process is a major reason why candidates opt to drop out. The best candidates are sought by multiple companies, and your recruitment team needs to realize that. So, the shorter the duration of hire, the better are the chances for you to get the best available candidates.
Research by SHRM reveals that the average time to fill a position is 42 days. Hiring experts suggest that a vacant position should be filled within a week; otherwise, applicants might get lured away by your competitors.
One straightforward question arises here – how can you make your hiring process faster? Well, there are various ways. The most common and easiest one is to make your recruitment process automated by implementing any hiring system.
And there are other manual things involved in the process which the companies can control, i.e., avoid conducting multiple interviews or try to conduct them on the same day. You can also be more responsive by implementing scheduling technology so that you can reach the offer stage much quicker.
5. Not Considering Taking Candidate Feedback
It is evident that your organization’s hiring team is going to attend hundreds of applicants during the hiring process. So, why not consider asking them about their experience?
This will not only leave a positive impact on the candidate – as it will enrich their participation – but you will also get to know what’s working and what’s not. This can be done quickly by letting applicants fill a short feedback form at the end of the interview. Then you can evaluate the collected feedback and work on the areas that need improvement.
6. Not Being Honest and Transparent
Let’s keep all the complexities of the hiring process aside for a moment. As humans, the least we can do is to be kind and humble to others. No one wants to be lied to or get to feel like they’re not getting a clear picture of what they’ve been told.
You need to build some kind of credibility so that candidates would feel like they can trust your company. Being honest and transparent is how you can achieve that.
7. Exaggerating About the Company or the Vacancy
This might be the worst thing to do. Suppose your hiring staff bragged about your company or over-promised a job, but candidates find out that it isn’t as exciting as it was presented to them. Then they feel like they’ve been betrayed and decide to drop out.
Also, Read: 8 Mistakes to Avoid During Online Recruitment Approaches
8. Not Providing up to the Mark Interview Experience
Candidates may also walk away from your company because of a bad experience, and most of the time, it is because of the way they were treated during the interview.
If applicants feel that they’ve been treated poorly or the recruiters showed little or no interest during the communication, then they are likely to leave straight away.
Another thing regarding interviews that creates a negative impact is the lack of flexibility. For instance, a candidate is already working in some other company, and he/she doesn’t want their employer to know that they’ll be leaving. So if you’re strict about your interview dates and timings, it might not go down well with such candidates, and they will certainly consider other options.
Final Words
You can’t stop every candidate from walking away, that’s quite certain because sometimes, they will simply have a better offer or opportunity or they pull out due to a personal reason or other circumstances that are beyond your reach. In such scenarios, you’ve to accept that you can’t do anything about it.
But you to evaluate your hiring process continuously, and if candidates are dropping off due to one of the aforementioned reasons, then you definitely need to step up your process. And if everything is going smoothly, then you just need to make sure that you prevent the following reasons from happening to minimize the candidate drop out rate.
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