The best relationships are built on trust – whether it’s employer/employee relationships or connections in your personal life. But from a Human Resources perspective, the relationship with employees begins long before you meet them. So how do you create trust with candidates before they step in the door for an interview?
One effective approach is to ensure that every step of the hiring process promotes transparency – every interaction that a candidate has, whether online or in person, should accurately represent what it’s like to work at your organization. Here are three ways to ensure that what applicants see is what they’ll get, if they join your team.
Pay attention to your job descriptions. Typically, a job description is the first interaction that a candidate has with an organization. Without exception, every job description should accurately reflect the true nature of the position you are recruiting for. Nothing kills trust more for candidates than applying for a job, coming in for an interview, and then discovering that the hiring manager is looking for something completely different than what was publicized in the job description.
Other ways to increase transparency through job descriptions is to mention the culture, employment benefits, and the organization’s commitment to intangibles like work/life balance or community involvement. Job descriptions that are posted to job boards can’t be too long, so consider embedding links that connect back to your organization’s web site.
Highlight on your career web site why the organization is a great place to work.Candidates naturally want to know the responsibilities of a job, but they are also interested in what a typical day might be like or what kinds of people work in the organization. You might consider posting videos on the career web site which highlight different employees talking about their jobs and what the work environment is like. Taking the time to offer these brief insights into the work environment is a great way to give applicants a view into the organization and motivate them to apply for a job.
Once contact is made with candidates, be sure to communicate often about the hiring process. Organizations that commit to transparency ensure that applicants are informed at all times about where they stand in the hiring process. You should notify candidates when their applications are received, as well as whether or not they will be invited to participate in a phone or in-person interview. Although this may seem like a lot of effort, most applicant tracking systemsautomate these types of emails. That means greater trust between candidates and hiring organizations, with a minimal amount of work.
A positive candidate experience depends on trust. Fortunately, it’s easy for organizations of all sizes to create a transparent hiring process that guarantees what applicants see online is what they’ll get after they accept the offer and are on the job.
