At Core Search Group we've long taken the stance that we are a customer service organization, not a search firm. We think our client companies are customers and our candidates are customers. Even if we elect not to help them. We talk to clients and candidates all day who give us orders to fill. Clients want certain types of talent. Talent wants certain types of jobs. We accept a small percentage of the orders and go to work trying to fill them. While our focus is on filling these orders we also think it makes good business sense to treat our customers the way we like to be treated. This is saying a lot as I may be the most difficult customer known to humankind. I want to be served what I am buying with a smile, as fast as humanly possible, and without wasting any of my time. Most organizations in my experience don't deliver. Evidently job seekers think so too.
Weddle's latest newsletter has some interesting survey results. When asked about negative experiences in their recent job search, only 32.4% of candidates reported not having any. So 2/3 of all the candidates surveyed had negative experiences. What would happen to a Starbucks or other service business that had this record?
We've been talking in this blog and in our offices about the ways we can strive to make every person's interaction with Core Search Group positive. I think we can give a candidate a positive experience even if we elect not to work with them. I even want the candidates who go interview with our client but do not get selected to have a positive experience. How can we do that?
First, we think every person who sends in their resume/application to our company should get a response. Not some boilerplate like "thank you for sending your resume. We will be in touch if there is a match." The majority of those who apply are not people we can help at the moment so most often the response is going to be, "thanks for sending your resume. We do not have a matching position for you now because (fill in the reason.) We are entering your resume in our system so we can contact you about positions that we have in the future that match your desire for (what the candidate wants.)" We've found the truth tends to make people satisfied even if they don't necessarily get what they want. If I went into Starbucks and ordered a Gaelic Ale I expect they would not be able to serve it to me. If I got a smile and a reason why and directions to the brewpub down the street I probably wouldn't be mad about it. And I'd come back when I needed a coffee.
Second, every candidate should be notified about what is happening at every stage in the interview process. They should know how the process works at the given company, how long each step should take, and how long it will take to get them a yes or no.
Third, candidates should be educated as part of the process about how the selection process works, which I have found most candidates are not clear on. As far as I know there is no manual to read on how great companies select employees but candidates seem to forget the Core Search Group theory of relativity: "it is not about if you and your skills match the job, it is about how you and your skills match the job compared to the other people interviewing." Companies are looking for rockstars. You shouldn't be upset if you interview for a job and someone else gets it. You should figure out what you didn't have that they did and go to work developing that trait in yourself. If the recruiter you are working with can't help you by getting feedback they or the company just don't get it.
As always I am interested in feedback from anyone with thoughts on how Core Search Group can better serve you today.
