Initial impressions count – don’t we advise all salespeople of that?
So then why don’t candidates always get a good experience during the interview process?
As a sales leader you can have the best strategy for growth (on paper), but without the right people, in the right positions, it can be challenging to achieve.
I was taught many years ago “Recruitment is the most important thing you do”. Hiring and retaining top talent that fits within your company’s and teams’ culture is the key to any businesses’ success.
What’s the first step to recruitment?
But the recruitment process starts before the first interview. Creating a powerful job spec is the first step on a long journey. Ensuring you are clearly outlining what the company does, the responsibilities and duties expected in the role and benefits on offer will help to attract the top candidates and ensure the right people apply.
After you have created your shortlist of candidates, the next stage is the interview.
The right way to interview!
Many hirers go into these interviews believing it is all about how well the candidate impresses them. It is important to remember you are interviewing the candidate as much as they are interviewing you. Every interview should be providing the candidates with the best experience of your company, so even if they didn’t get the role, they will still talk about the good experience they had.
Have you ever experienced having an interview you thought went well, but you get a short email or 2-minute conversation advising you didn’t get the job with no feedback?
Providing feedback to the candidate, either directly or through a recruiter, I believe, is imperative. It helps the candidate to learn and develop and it continues the positive experience they have with your company. You never know when your paths will cross again!
If the recruitment experience is positive throughout the process from the initial step, to offer, the retention of the new hire will be far longer than those that experience a bad process.
And recruitment can be quite an expensive process if it’s not done right.
A strong recruitment process is going to lower the chances of employees leaving your organisation and going somewhere else.
If they can see you putting time and effort into creating a strong team and looking after your existing staff they will feel much more motivated.
Having a high staff turnover rate has an extremely negative impact on your business which is why it is important to always work on improving your recruitment strategies.
