Job Search Advice Archives - Page 3 of 14

Imagine

No, not a reflection on the John Lennon song of that name!

But…..

…. Imagine a CEO allowing their Sales team to say this:

“Because of the number of enquiries we receive we will only respond if we think you are really going to buy”

But they allow:

“Because of the number of applications we receive we do not respond to unsuccessful candidates”

When I posted that on Twitter one of the responses I received was along the lines of there probably being more people in the Sales Team than there are in the HR/Recruitment Team.

To be honest it has been quite the opposite in some instances I have experienced.

But where that is true then my challenge to CEOs if they want to retain/gain me as a customer would be to resource HR/Recruitment properly to give a good candidate experience – surely it makes sense?

Just imagine if the people at the top of organisations gave as much attention to the candidate experience as they do to the customer experience? They might even get more customers or retain existing customers.

Do You Want Me as a Fan?

This is the second in a series of short posts looking at What I (a candidate) want from Recruitment. In the previous post (which you can read here) I suggested that there were some simple things that would make life better not only for the candidate but also the employer.

Those simple things were around including details of the overall process in your advertisement. Now let’s move on to the stage where I have applied for the role. What do I want?

The CIPD (the organisation that sets the professional standards for HR) suggest that when it comes to applicants the following should be a rule of thumb:

” Prompt acknowledgement of an application – whether successful or unsuccessful – is good practice and presents a positive image of the organisation. “

In many ways there isn’t much to add there but let me just expand a little on the various aspects of what the CIPD recommend:

As a candidate I want to know that you have received my application
If I am not going to be invited to interview then I do want to know even if it’s just a short (personalised) rejection email. You want to leave me with a positive impression of your organisation don’t you?
Don’t do what one large organisation did recently to me and reject me within less than 5 minutes
1. Telling me that they had “carefully reviewed my CV against the criteria for the role.”
2. What was really obvious from having worked with various types of ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) was that they had set it to reject anyone who had put a previous or expected salary higher than they were prepared to pay – of course they had not advertised the salary!
3. What a waste of time it was for me to have applied and was I left as a fan, advocate or ambassador for the organisation? I think you can probably guess the answer!
If I am going to be invited to interview and you want me to do a presentation then please include the details. These should include the instructions for either getting the presentation to you or whether I can bring it with me on a Pen Drive. That saves a lot of unnecessary emails clarifying the details.

In the next post I will look at the Interview Experience from the Candidate’s perspective.

Have you had any experiences having applied for a role where the organisation could do better and what could they do better?

The Basics of A Recruitment Experience

I read an article the other day by David D’Souza entitled “What I Want from HR” (you can read it here) which set me thinking. As a current job seeker and with many connections who are looking for a new role I found myself pondering on what would constitute a good Recruitment experience from a candidate perspective.

As I thought about it, I came to realise that, actually there isn’t that much that is needed to elevate the average candidate experience to something better.

The Absolute Basics:

When I am recruiting I have a tendency to sit down with my diary and work out when things need to happen. I put together a mini project plan so that I can map things out against other priorities and put time into my diary. Admittedly things can happen that change the dates I put in my diary and I have to be flexible but I have a sense of when each of the main steps in the process will happen.

I am sure that I cannot be alone in taking a planned approach to recruitment or rather I sincerely hope that I am not.

Be Kind To Yourself

Over the past few weeks I have been sharing some ideas on Twitter around how to Be Kind to Yourself. One of the things that has led me to reflect on is how sometimes we need to change our routines to help us be kind to ourselves. It’s a really good idea to establish routines. However, sometimes a routine can become a rut. If you are feeling unfulfilled, tired, and maybe even a little bit overwhelmed, you probably need to find a way to break your everyday routine.

Here are nine ways to get out of a rut. If you already do one of them, try to figure out a way that you can make it different in some way.

Take a New Path to Work

This might seem silly, especially if you were driving or walking the same way to work every single day. However, something as simple as making a new path to work can totally change your life. Look back on your life and think about the random things that you have done that you put you in just the right place at the right time. What if you happen to meet someone new just because you took a different path than normal?

Try Cooking a Totally New Meal

Even something as simple as your everyday meals can become routine. Most people tend to eat the same things day after day, month after month, switching between eight to ten basic meals. If you look at how you eat, you’ll probably discover the same thing. This is a good way to explore different cultures and learn new things. You might even want to take a cooking class – more on that below.

Sign Up for a Class

To really break up your normal schedule, sign up for a class in something that you think you’re interested in. For example, if you love reading about medieval times, perhaps you should study medieval times in school. Thankfully, today you don’t have to sign up for every single class to go back to school. Instead, you can find a class online that will work just as well.

Walk Instead of Ride

If you normally ride to work but it’s within walking distance, you might want to try walking. When you walk places, you’re more likely to meet other people who are walking places. Plus, you get a lot of exercise, sun and time to think.

Take the Stairs

if you work in an office building or go places and you normally take the elevator, try taking the stairs. See how different that makes you feel. It may seem strange, but the smallest change in your day can make the biggest difference. Maybe by taking the stairs, you’ll lose five pounds this year; who knows?

Introduce Yourself

Often, it’s easy to get tied up in our own lives. We get so busy with our family and the friends that we already know that we forget that there’s a lot of people out there that might be the best friend we ever had in our lives and we just haven’t met them yet. Start introducing yourself to at least one new person every day. It doesn’t matter if they’re a stranger on the street in a store or at work; put out your hand and introduce yourself.

Try a New Colour

Another way that you can change up your day and break your everyday routine is to try new fashions or new decorations. It’s surprising what a new coat of paint on your office wall or your living room wall can do for your mood and your outlook.

Find Top 10 Things to Do in Your Area

A fun way to get out of your normal routine is to do something new right in the area that you live. Many of us live in places that other people pay good money to visit on vacation. Find out the different things that vacationers do in your town and follow what they do.

Listen to Books

The truth is, the more you read, the smarter you’re going to become. But it can be difficult to find time to read. Thankfully you can listen to digital books too. You can get a subscription to Audible and listen to as many books as you want. The more you listen to books, the smarter you’re going to become and the more likely you will be to discover your passion.

Discovering your passion requires that you are willing to break out of your comfort zone and change your routine from what it is now. You might want to start with a few of the small tasks mentioned in this article. You will surprise yourself at where you’re going to end up when you start changing your everyday routine.