Employers are often looking to make changes to their hiring process and candidate experience. Companies often believe that the candidate experience purely begins with a job application on your website, and frankly, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In today’s market, the candidate holds the power, maybe now more than ever.

The first step in creating a better candidate experience to attract top talent is owning every single second of your hiring process. From the minute a candidate even knows that your company exists and is hiring, an organization has to get creative and stand out. Your brand will define you and your hiring experience. The days of candidates applying for a job showing up to an interview and accepting your job offer without seeing out all their other options are over. Be timely with your responses and how quickly you move your candidates through the process. Don’t be afraid to portray your company and culture and give candidates a complete picture of what things will look like when they are working with you, and don’t be afraid to own your mistakes from the past. Whether you are the CEO of your company or a recruiter in your first role out of school, you must own your hiring process and treat it as your own. You are all vital in the growth of your organization.

OWN The Experience (All the time)

Seems pretty simple right? As simple as this seems, this is where the vast majority of organizations are missing the boat. We, as employers, don’t have the luxury of completely managing your company’s reputation. One little “1 star” Google review can ruin everyone’s day and, even worse, damage your hiring experience immensely. It is important to know that technology has made it simple for any party involved with your company to affect how you and your company are perceived. The only way to ensure that you are in control of your brand is by ensuring that you make your hiring experience so good during every little step that a complete stranger will interview at your company and, at the very least, be willing to give you a good review. A prospective candidate is far more likely to write you a bad review for a bad experience than that of a good one. Don’t take any chances, own every step and ensure that you keep a clean slate!

OWN The Calendar (Move quickly!)

If you think you are the only employer talking to a prospective candidate, you’re not. From the time a candidate applies to your company or has been notified about the role from your other sources, you have about two weeks to get them through the process and in their seat. It is important to remember that today’s market heavily favors the candidate. In most cases, you are not the only employer speaking to them about potential employment. Good candidates, the ones you want, know their worth and are being sought after by all your competitors. Every second you wait to make a call, schedule an interview, make an offer, etc., you are increasing your chances of losing the perfect candidate.

So don’t wait! Hiring and attracting new talent fixes every possible problem your organization may have. Nothing is more important than attracting new talent into your company. Own the calendar and ensure that your perfect candidate gets through your hiring process before your competitors beat you to it.

OWN Your Message (Paint a clear picture)

Don’t sweat the small stuff; your organization isn’t perfect. There’s no sense in trying to paint a perfect picture to your candidates. In today’s age, everything is living and breathing on the internet, and anyone can research just about anything they want with one little Google search.

You’re not perfect, and your candidates know that. There is nothing worse than an employer that portrays the wrong picture to get a candidate on board. It’s OK to let someone walk away if the situation isn’t for them. Have confidence in your robust recruiting team  and trust they will find the right person in no time. Keep your indifference through the interview process and faith that the right candidate is no more than a day away.

OWN Your Mistakes (It’s life)

If a candidate has a concern about something, then own it. Show them how you and your team have resolved issues in the past and how you work to prevent them from happening again in the future. Mistakes are learning opportunities mold us into the people and organizations we are today, and a growing organization has more to come – that’s ok too!

Paint a clear picture for your people. This doesn’t end in the interview process either. Be vocal about where you are as a company and where you are headed. You’re people appreciate honesty and can sense when you are being genuine.

It can be tricky juggling a heavy workload while trying to meet your hiring needs and implement new practices to make yourself more competitive in the marketplace. Owning it takes time, energy, and lots of focus to get the results you want. Reaching out to specialists in the field for help could be an easy guarantee for better results. If you’re looking to own your hiring experience but need some help along the way, connect with us! We can help get you organized and going in the right direction.