In today’s rapidly evolving remote work culture, candidate ghosting is one challenge many recruiters face. But what is causing this surge in candidates dropping off mid-conversation, and how can recruiters ensure their messages don’t disappear into the void? I recently tuned into an insightful episode of the “So You Think You Can Talent” podcast. Dan delves into these questions with guest Kelly White, former Executive VP at T3 Talent, a division of T360 and CEO at Kelly Rae White.
Here’s what they discussed
Ghosting: A Growing Trend
The talent acquisition landscape has transformed significantly over the past decade. While ghosting was once a rare occurrence, it has now become a common concern in recruitment, especially in the post-pandemic era. This could be attributed to the low unemployment rates, resulting in candidates receiving multiple outreach efforts from recruiters, making it difficult for recruiters to capture a candidate’s attention and maintain their engagement.
Breaking Through the Noise
Despite the growing trend of candidate ghosting, Kelly’s unique approach to outreach has helped her stand out. Embracing a sales mindset, her strategy involves:
- Catchy Subject Lines: To pique the candidate’s interest.
- Authentic Verification: Offering links to verify the authenticity of the outreach.
- Personalization: Highlighting specifics from the candidate’s profile that align with the opportunity presented.
- Concise Calls to Action: Ending with a simple yet engaging question like “Would you like to learn more?”
Building Genuine Relationships
Relationship-building is crucial in the recruitment industry. Kelly emphasizes initiating genuine relationships right from the start. Her process includes sending comprehensive information packets that help candidates self-assess their fit for the role. This strategy not only reduces time and energy spent on mismatched candidates but also fosters deeper connections, as it showcases genuine interest in the candidate.
The Power of Referrals
Even if a candidate isn’t the right fit for a specific role, there’s value in the engagement. By offering a positive experience and building rapport, recruiters can tap into the candidate’s network and gain potential referrals, amplifying the reach of their search.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Like any strategy, recruitment has its pitfalls. It’s essential to remain agile and adapt. Kelly shared an example where she made a mistake in outreach by addressing multiple candidates with the wrong name. Such errors can be detrimental, but they also provide learning opportunities. The takeaway? It’s crucial to be genuine, personalized, and diligent in outreach efforts.
The Balance of Subjectivity and Objectivity
Kelly stressed the importance of avoiding confirmation bias in the recruitment process. While it’s essential to identify potential matches, it’s equally vital to remain open-minded and ensure decisions are based on objective assessments of both the candidate and the role.
A Human-Centric Approach
The conversation wrapped up with a key insight: successful recruitment is about the person, not just the position. Rather than leading with the job description, approaching a candidate by acknowledging their unique achievements and expressing genuine interest in learning about them can yield more positive results.
In Conclusion
The recruitment industry’s challenges may have evolved with the remote work era, but the essence of successful talent acquisition remains rooted in personalization, genuine engagement, and relationship-building. And as Kelly White aptly shared, “It’s all about building long-term relationships in our industry.” As recruiters and hiring managers, adopting such an approach might just be the key to counter the ghosting phenomenon and reshape the talent landscape.
