4 Ways to Incorporate Thanks Into the Candidate Experience

One of my clients is in hyper-growth mode. Super hyper-growth mode. 10 million competing priorities, fires everywhere, and hiring just as fast.

And sometimes candidate experience suffers.

For example, we had an open role for an Executive Assistant for the heads of the company. A position that would REALLY help put out the fires. We had the perfect candidate scheduled. And canceled on. And scheduled. And canceled on. And then, after we were trying to re-schedule her again, they put the position on hold.

As the recruiter who was using all of my tricks to keep her warm, what was I to do? I didn’t want her telling others that my client was a disorganized mess. I actually still believe she would be a great candidate if they just had time to meet her (and onboard her….).  She was incredibly understanding and joked that she could really help with all of their mishaps and snafus, but she wanted to meet them first. Understandable and the sign of a great hire.

As the person who was always flaking on her, I felt awful. Luckily, I found out about a great new service called Evabot, and with a few clicks, I was able to send this awesome candidate a gift she wanted and thank her for being so understanding. With Evabot, I put in her email address and my price point, and they did the rest. I didn’t need to know her address or anything, because that was all on the backend. She was so grateful, that I know when my client gets their act together, she will not only take my call, but give them another chance.

As recruiters, we are in the service industry, and while we touch so many people, we’d go bankrupt gifting everyone, it’s important to remember the value of kindness and gratitude throughout the recruiting process. My rules of thumb for easy candidate thanks are:

1. At the end of the initial phone screen, thank them for their time, candor and detail.

2. When I turn them down, thank them and offer assistance in any way I can.

3. If my client is being slow, thank them for their patience and understanding.

4. As part of onboarding, I encourage my clients to send/give some company swag to thank them for joining and welcome them to the team.

So, these are the simple ways to express gratitude in your recruitment. And, if the candidate experiences some sort of negative interaction, verbal, or even gifted thanks goes a long way. This is the human business, and expressing human kindness, understanding, and appreciation really helps us build rapport and relationships with our candidates and clients.

As a company who hires, tokens of appreciation, swag to make people feel like a part of the team, and acknowledgment of people’s time and commitment to interviewing with you builds your company’s reputation and brand, while also showing candidates your commitment to doing the right thing.