Survey Connects Poor Candidate Experience To Limits In Future Job Applications
New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA, June 14, 2016– Future Workplace–a research firm preparing leaders for disruptions in recruiting, development, and employee engagement–and CareerArc–a global HR technology provider of social recruiting and outplacement services–today announced the results of a new study entitled, “The Candidate Experience Study.” Following a national survey of 1,200 total respondents, including 826 job seekers and 374 employers, the study revealed that nearly 60% of job seekers have had a poor candidate experience. Of those job seekers, 72% report having shared that experience online on an employer review site, such as Glassdoor, on a social networking site, or directly with a colleague or friend. Furthermore, while only 61% of employers say they notify declined candidates about their decision, 65% of job seekers say they never or rarely receive notice from employers.
As a result of a poor candidate experience, employers are missing out on an important talent pool. 80% of job seekers say they would be discouraged to consider other relevant job openings at a company that failed to notify them of their application status. Yet, they would be 3.5 times more likely to re-apply to a company if they were notified. Fewer than half of employers re-engage declined candidates yet nearly all (99%) believe re-engaging will help them build their talent community and protect their employer brand.
Additional highlights from the report include:
Employers underestimate the amount of time it takes candidates to submit one job application. While the typical job seeker spends about 3 to 4 hours preparing and submitting one job application, the typical employer spends less than 15 minutes reviewing that application. About 70% of employers believe job seekers spend only 1 hour or less in researching, preparing for, and submitting their job application. On the other hand, nearly 60% of job seekers already spend at least 1 hour on researching the opportunity and preparing their resume before even starting the online application process.
Job seekers don’t believe their resumes are being reviewed. Nearly 40% of employers rely on technology that pre-screens or pre-selects candidates based on the data they’ve submitted (i.e uploaded resume, cover letter, etc.). 62% of employers admit that it’s likely that this tool may have overlooked a qualified candidate. When they don’t hear back from employers, 85% of job seekers doubt that a human being has even reviewed their application.
Employers plan to invest more in their candidate experience. 70% of employers have invested, or plan to invest, more resources to improving the candidate experience in the next year. 60% of job seekers say that the one area that would improve their experience the most is better employer communication with candidates throughout and after the applicant process. Moreover, candidates rated “Timely Follow Up on Application Status” more important to their experience than a “Well-Designed Career Site” or a “Mobile-Supported Online Experience.”
Job seekers are leaving negative feedback online about their experience but employers are ignoring it. Nearly 60% of Employers have read at least one piece of online negative feedback about their applicant process. However, 70% of the employers who have yet to see negative reviews from candidates admit to never searching online to check if any exist. Only 25% of employers regularly request feedback directly from candidates on their experience and 78% of job seekers report never having been asked to give feedback on their candidate experience.
Quotes
“Companies need to start humanizing their candidate experience because job seekers can easily share their negative experiences online and decide never to apply to that company again. Treat your candidates like you would your employees or customers because they have the power to refer strong candidates even if they don’t get hired.”
– Dan Schawbel, Research Director at Future Workplace and New York Times bestselling author of Promote Yourself
“This survey reveals a critical blind spot employers have when it comes to candidate experience, and that is the experience of the declined candidate. In this tightening labor market, companies can no longer afford to overlook this vocal majority of applicants who didn’t get the job, but simply expect to be acknowledged. This presents a tremendous opportunity for employers who recognize the need to reframe the rejection process, improve on candidate care, and prioritize the needs of all applicants today so they return to reapply tomorrow.”
– Robin D. Richards, CEO, CareerArc
About Future Workplace
Future Workplace is an HR executive network and research firm on the future of learning and working. The firm operates the Future Workplace Network, a consortium of Fortune 1000 global member organizations who use Future Workplace research and insights to future proof their learning and talent strategies.” Visit http://www.futureworkplace.com
About CareerArc
CareerArc is the leading HR technology company helping business leaders recruit and transition the modern workforce. Our social recruiting and modern outplacement solutions help thousands of organizations, including many of the Fortune 500, maximize their return on employer branding. By leveraging the cloud, running on world-class infrastructure, and combining web, mobile and social media applications, we help companies gain a competitive edge in recruitment, employment branding, and benefits. Learn more about CareerArc’s enterprise solutions at http://www.careerarc.com/.