Four Things That Do Not Change for Recruiting and Hiring During A Crisis By Jeremy Eskenazi
W
hether it’s a health concern, a business concern with vendors, customers and/or employees, or an economic concern, unfortunately it looks like we will always need to deal with crises. While companies spend time in their “war rooms” making important decision about customer, vendor and employee interactions, there is an important audience that requires your focus and planning as well: job candidates. The candidate experience has likely been mapped out and refined by your human resources or hiring manager team and is both an art and a science. Representing your brand from the very first interaction, through interviews and onboarding, is all about the relationship. In the turbulent times you have ahead of you, it becomes even more important to bring your candidate experience to life, even if it’s done from afar. As you think about your strategy to keep the hiring engines on and bring in the talent your organization needs for the future, here are four key elements of the experience that should not change during any crisis.
46 / SPRINGS / Fall 2020
1.
Communication
You will need to communicate in new ways and through different channels, but do not let your touchpoints or interaction with candidates go quiet! It’s even more important now to stay connected through phone, video, text, chat or carrier pigeon – whatever you use as your remote tool. Consider doubling your efforts to reassure candidates your hiring engine is not going to be turned off during this period.
Set Clear Expectations
2.
In your communication, one area to be clear, consistent and sure about is expectations. If your company has suspended all travel and banned visitors to your office, that is a reasonable business move at this moment. Not telling candidates that you’ve made this move is not! If you had shared with a candidate that they will eventually be invited for an in-person interview and that can’t happen anymore, be clear about the contingency plan, if the hiring will be paused based on the nature of the role, and when you will take a next step.
