In a tight employment market, it is necessary to pull out all the stops to ensure you have a leg up on your competition. One area that can be critical – and is often overlooked – is the candidate experience.  The candidate experience matters for several reasons. The hiring process is a person’s first introduction to what it will be like to work for you. A streamlined, responsive approach sets quite a different tone than a disorganized or complex process. The experience also matters because job seekers can rate your hiring process online on sites like Glassdoor. Word of mouth spreads quickly online, whether positive or negative. What is your candidate experience like?

Evaluate Your Application

Online job applications are supposed to make the process easier for candidates. However, according to CareerBuilder, three out of five job seekers abandon online job applications because they are too complex. If your application is too long, confusing or requires too much personal information, you could be creating a poor introductory experience.

Walk through your company’s application process as if you were a candidate and ask these questions:

• How long does the process take?
• Can you save your application and come back later?
• Can you upload your resume, or must you retype it manually?
• Do you ask for personal information like a social security number?

If you feel frustrated, candidates probably feel ten times more frustrated. Simplifying the application process is the first step towards success.

Create a Positive Interview Experience

The interview experience is where a candidate’s opinion of your company is solidified, yet many organizations still engage in a disorganized, complex or drawn-out experience. If you want to create a more positive experience, keep these critical tips in mind.

• Respect candidates’ time: You judge whether a candidate shows up on time; however, that is a two-way street. If you make a candidate wait for their interview – especially if they took time off work – they will feel their time is not respected, and they won’t have a favorable opinion of your company.
• Don’t make them come back: Another frustration for candidates is the unexpected call-back when one decision maker doesn’t prioritize attending interviews. Make interviews non-negotiable for all decision-makers.
• Stick to your timeline: Let candidates know what your timeline is, and then stick to it. If the process goes off track, reach out and let them know your new schedule.
• Keep in touch: If a candidate doesn’t hear from you after the deadline, they will assume they did not get the job and they will move on. Keep in touch with your top choices to keep them interested, even if you don’t have any new information to share.

Are You Ready to Improve Your Candidate Experience?

If you are looking for more ways to improve the hiring experience at your ag business, contact the agricultural industry staffing experts at Morris Bixby Group. Our proven strategies for success can help you achieve your goals quickly and efficiently.