According to Indeed.com, nearly 50% of all candidates ghost an employer by not replying to recruiters or hiring manager or simply not showing up for a scheduled interview. A smaller percentage, around 20%, do so further in the hiring process such as not showing up on their first day on the job or accepting an offer but failing to sign the paperwork. This plainly means that employers are being affected by ghosting throughout the entire hiring process. This ultimately puts employers in a very difficult situation of having to start from scratch suddenly when time isn’t on their side. But why is this happening in the first place?

It seems that the top reasons for candidates to ghost are not a real surprise. The majority, just over 50%, state that they just decided against the job, others ended up receiving another, better job offer and some even sited lack of salary or benefits being offered was the final straw causing them to walk away. But outside of ghosting being unprofessional and irresponsible to do, are there really any true consequences for the candidate? Surprisingly, over 90% of job seekers that Indeed surveyed stated that they didn’t really experience any kind of negative impact from ghosting in terms of them finding future opportunities. They are not having to answer for their actions and can simply move on to the next interview or opportunity. In addition, while ghosting appears to be prevalent among younger job seekers (between the ages of 18-34), ghosting seems to have penetrated all age groups and demographics.

While it may feel as if there is nothing employers can do when this occurs, this may not be the case. Ghosters have provided just a little insight into what may keep them from ghosting in the first place. According to Indeed’s survey, the majority of job seekers who ghosted an employer stated that they felt the hiring process took too long and that there wasn’t enough transparency regarding the job from the get go. These are both easy problems to remedy and both surround the same idea, communication is key! Keep your candidates continually up to date make sure you are being transparent and honest with them throughout the process. You may not be able to make everyone happy in this regard but every little bit will help!

While ghosting feels like it has become a norm in the hiring process in today’s professional landscape, it is the hope that the actions of these job seekers will eventually catch up to them. But in the meantime, all of you hiring managers and recruiters out there need to take care with each and every prospective hire. The job market is too competitive for candidate’s to wholeheartedly give you their undivided attention, but in order to keep their interest, you have to make communication your number one priority.

The Trillium brand of companies is privately owned by René Poch and provides more than 30 years of industry leading recruitment and staffing services through its divisions including: Trillium Staffing, Trillium Construction Services, Trillium Driver Solutions, Trillium Marine, Trillium Technical, Trillium Environmental, and Trillium Techs. With approximately 90 offices nationwide and nearly 400 internal recruitment professionals, the Trillium brand is proud to be recognized by Staffing Industry Analysts as a Top 25 Largest Industrial Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Largest Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Fastest Growing Staffing Firm in the U.S., and a 2015 winner of National Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. For more information please visit www.trilliumstaffing.com.

Think about this way; if you put forth the effort to apply for a position online and maybe even perform a follow-up call or email for a phone interview, you would expect the same level of participation from the hiring manager or recruiter, right? Check out these 7 simple steps that Indeed believes will help you and your team provide better candidate feedback and overall boost your company’s reputation among job seekers.

1. Every candidate deserves feedback. This is not rocket science and means exactly what it says, if they take the time to show interest in your role, reciprocate and provide a little feedback.
2. Start with the material. Always try and be clear and upfront with your job seekers, making sure they are aware of your hiring process. If there are multiple interviews or a waiting period involved, keep the candidates updated along the way.
3. Offer ongoing insight. Give them specific industry stats regarding hiring. If you have an over abundance of applicants for a role, statistics will show that you obviously can’t hire everyone and unfortunately that may involve the candidate in question.
4. Acknowledge the awkward. I think everyone will agree that the worse parts of hiring is having to A. let someone go or B. explain why are they are not qualified and will not be hired. However, in both instances, it will do much more good than harm if you are upfront and honest. Don’t beat around the bush, explain the situation, making sure they understand the reasons behind the decision even if it is as simple as they didn’t make the final cut.
5. You’re never too busy. You will always have enough time to make a quick 30 sec – 1 minute phone call notifying a candidate that unfortunately, you went another route. Although, the conversation is short, this action is much more powerful than you think.
6. Make it actionable. If you come across a candidate that may have just fallen short of being qualified, help them along the way. Provide constructive criticism and provide avenues in which they make be able to better their situation and resume. This could something as simple as improving their communication skills to taking some online courses.
7. Practice what you preach. Try and remember the human side behind recruiting. You don’t always know the back story behind each of your candidates. What if they have been struggling for months to land a job to not only provide for themselves but to better their future. A simple act of treating others the way you would want to be treated, if you were in their position, will go a long way!

In the end, it is very simple to lose sight of the big picture when going through resume after resume. Behind every cover letter and application is a person who is simply trying to find work. By making sure we provide those candidates with the proper courtesy of some kind of feedback, we are ultimately improving the overall job seeking experience for candidates and employers alike.

The Trillium brand of companies is privately owned by René Poch and provides more than 30 years of industry leading recruitment and staffing services through its divisions including: Trillium Staffing, Trillium Construction Services, Trillium Driver Solutions, Trillium Marine, Trillium Technical, Trillium Environmental, and Trillium Techs. With approximately 90 offices nationwide and nearly 400 internal recruitment professionals, the Trillium brand is proud to be recognized by Staffing Industry Analysts as a Top 25 Largest Industrial Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Largest Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Fastest Growing Staffing Firm in the U.S., and a 2015 winner of National Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. For more information please visit www.trilliumstaffing.com.

Let’s think about this from the candidate’s perspective. Typically, when we think of places or activities that we would recommend to someone we know, we do so because as an individual, we had a positive experience. Whether that means the food was excellent, the show was entertaining or the service was top notch, we want others to have the same positive experience as we did. The same can absolutely be said in the job market. Candidates are only going to refer their colleagues or acquaintances to a company or Recruiter if they feel the experience they had was a positive one. So how do hiring managers ensure that we have a pool of talent that we can garner referrals from? Simple, make a positive candidate experience a top priority for your hiring strategy.

Check out these simple and seemingly straight forward tips provided by RecruitingDaily.com to give your team the upper hand in creating a positive and welcoming candidate experience.

1. Engage job seekers in enjoyable conversation. This seems like a no-brainer but surprisingly many hiring Managers and Recruiters tend to keep conversations with prospective candidates as impersonal as possible. Where there can be a benefit to keeping the candidate relationship like any other business transaction, there is also a huge downside. It is basic human nature to trust those that make you feel at ease. Having easy and light conversations with your candidates can instantly make them feel more comfortable around you. This can even be achieved through personalized emails. Try to communicate in a friendly manner and ensure the candidates that you are always looking out for their best interest.
2. Respect the job seeker’s time. Time is valuable to everyone, including your job seekers. We all know how annoying it can be when we have an appointment set and it has to be cancelled or rescheduled last minute. If you make an appointment with a candidate, keep it. As you will be interviewing more and more candidates that are currently working elsewhere, it may be difficult for them to make the appointments or interviews in the first place so rescheduling or cancelling last minute can certainly put a bad taste in their mouth.
3. Keep job descriptions consistent. It is important to provide as much information up front in a job description posted online as possible. However, whether you include everything in the online ad or not, you must stay consistent with job details throughout the entire process. The information provided online should reflect what is discussed in the interview and pre-screenings. If something with the job changes, update your ads accordingly. This way the candidate already has a really good idea of what to expect when the interview process starts and isn’t in for any surprises along the way.
4. Respond clearly and within one week. Responding to candidates in a timely fashion may be the most important tip that is offered here. You have to remember that you are not the only person seeking out passive talent. It wouldn’t be a surprise to learn that your candidate has actually been contacted by 10 or more companies at the same time you reached out. With that said, staying in touch with your candidate is imperative. In the two extra days it takes for you to offer them the job, your competition may have already swooped in. Basically, you need to land the candidate before your competitor does.

By following these tips to improving the overall experience of your prospective candidates, you will find it much easier to not only fill current openings but also to fill your pipeline with experienced and eager referrals.

The Trillium brand of companies is privately owned by René Poch and provides more than 30 years of industry leading recruitment and staffing services through its divisions including: Trillium Staffing, Trillium Construction Services, Trillium Driver Solutions, and Trillium Technical. With approximately 100 offices nationwide and nearly 400 internal recruitment professionals, the Trillium brand is proud to be recognized by Staffing Industry Analysts as a Top 25 Largest Industrial Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Largest Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Fastest Growing Staffing Firm in the U.S., and a 2017 and 2018 winner of National Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. For more information please visit www.trilliumstaffing.com.

According to Staffinghubs.com, the following statistics were found after surveying 350 Human Resources leaders across the country.

• Only 40% of respondents said that their on-boarding program was successful at retaining new hires
• Nearly a quarter indicated they have no on-boarding program at all.
• More than half of those survey said that managers don’t have time to dedicate to improving the on-boarding process.
• 60% say that the purpose of on-boarding is to integrate new employees into the company culture, but only 30% indicate that their on-boarding process focuses on culture.

What does this tell us? Basically, that the low unemployment rate and qualified worker shortage isn’t the only reason that companies are struggling to locate and retain top talent. It is extremely important to remember that the on-boarding process is one of the 1st introductions to your company for a new hire. If the process is too lengthy, feels disconnected from the company culture or paints your company with an unflattering light, this could be enough to deter a would-be candidate from continuing on in the process.

It is true that on-boarding can feel like a daunting process for companies large and small. However, if this is the case for your company, there are staffing companies out there that specialize in the paperwork and administration side of on-boarding, allowing your company to focus on the long term success of each new hire. As we have entered fourth quarter in 2018, the ball is certainly still in the employee’s court, forcing companies to adapt new policies and upgrade existing processes in order to attract what talent is out there and seeking work. The result of studies such as this one is proof that with a few tweaks to internal processes, companies can once again regain the competitive advantage. For more information, please visit www.kronos.com for the full report.

The Trillium brand of companies is privately owned by René Poch and provides more than 30 years of industry leading recruitment and staffing services through its divisions including: Trillium Staffing, Trillium Construction Services, Trillium Driver Solutions, Trillium Marine, Trillium Technical, Trillium Environmental, and Trillium Techs. With approximately 90 offices nationwide and nearly 400 internal recruitment professionals, the Trillium brand is proud to be recognized by Staffing Industry Analysts as a Top 25 Largest Industrial Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Largest Staffing Firm in the U.S., a Top 100 Fastest Growing Staffing Firm in the U.S., and a 2015 winner of National Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. For more information please visit www.trilliumstaffing.com.