At first thought, it might seem like providing feedback to a job candidate is unnecessary. You’ve made your hiring decision and it’s time to move on, right?  However, candidate experience is an important piece of your employer brand. Providing feedback shows you are willing to go the extra mile as an employer, and candidates will appreciate the fact you spent time offering advice that could help them in the future.

Tips for Sharing Feedback

If you’re ready to start offering feedback to candidates, keep these do’s and don’ts in mind:

• Be honest, but relevant: Stick to feedback that is tied to job requirements. It’s important to provide candor, but there is no need to make it personal.
• Avoid generalizations: It’s easy to say, “we wanted someone with more relevant experience,” but this isn’t true feedback. Cite specifics from the interview and offer advice for improvement.
• Be helpful: Feedback should be meaningful. Offer tips or advice they can actually use in the future.
• Include positives: Remember, you’re trying to build goodwill for your employer brand, so always include something positive. Candidates need to know what they did well, so they can repeat it on their next interview.
• Don’t condescend: Even if you were “shocked” they didn’t know what the company does, stick to neutral language.
• Don’t give false hope: It’s ok to say a resume will be kept on file, but don’t imply they could be considered in the future if that’s not true.
• Don’t open yourself to legal issues: Always be careful when offering feedback to avoid inadvertently coming off as discriminatory. Stick to job-related feedback and always have someone in HR sit in on a call or review any written feedback you provide.

The Simple Way to Provide Feedback

Offering candidate feedback can be vital to your employer brand, but it requires time and effort – luxuries many hiring managers do not have. Furthermore, poorly worded feedback could open your company up to claims of discrimination.

If you want to boost your brand through candidate feedback, partner with a strategic staffing firm. A recruiter will connect you with well-matched talent for your unique needs, and after every interview they will debrief with you to discuss fit, interest and gather your feedback. They will use that feedback to then debrief with the candidate, so they know what they did well and where they need to improve.

Ready to Improve Your Candidate Experience?

If you are looking for talented sales and marketing project managers and want to improve your candidate experience, contact the expert recruiters at Magnify Resources today. We can connect you with the talent that will help you achieve your goals.