Recruiter’s Playbook: Be in the candidate’s shoes
Speaking with a head of school recently, we were asked the question: how would we design our hiring process to attract more of the best candidates?
We all want the hiring process to be efficient, timely, and engaging for all of the right internal stakeholders. It’s a big time commitment for all involved. But the first thing to remember is that the candidates are interviewing you, as much as you are interviewing them.
“The candidates are interviewing you, as much as you are interviewing them.”
And if success depends on remembering that you are being evaluated by candidates, what would the right design choice be for the first step after an introductory screening call?
set up a virtual interview where 8 senior administrators each ask 1 question of the candidate in the course of an hour. Or,
set up a virtual interview where the admin assistant interviews the candidate solo, recording their responses to standard pre-shared questions so that the hour-long recording can be viewed and evaluated by the 8 senior administrators afterwards. Or,
set up a virtual interview where 2-3 senior administrators ask 2 questions each, leaving time in the hour for dialogue and for the candidate to ask their questions, recording the meeting so others who are not available can watch and evaluate.
We don’t know the right answer for you, but candidates report that throughout a hiring process they are trying to answer the question for themselves: “What will it feel like to work here?” You have the chance to tell them - by how you choose to spend their time and how you share access to people and information with them.
Which leads to the second thing to remember about attracting more of the best candidates: There is a group of prospective candidates you don’t normally have a chance to talk to.
Why is that group hard to reach?
The assumption we hear most often is that visibility translates into success. “Where do you post the job?” is the common refrain here. Did the opening get published on the right job board?
Broadcasting your opening with the right audiences is a minimum requirement. But it is not at all sufficient to guarantee the type of interest you are looking for. If posting on more job boards worked by itself, why would anyone consider hiring a recruiter?
The real reason is that people you’d prefer to talk with don’t yet consider themselves to be a candidate. They may be content in their current position. Things might not be perfect, but at least they know the players and the situation. You are working against the sentiment that “I have things set up the way I like them.”
But you are also working against the unknown. Prospective candidates are managing their risk. The most talented and experienced candidates will appreciate that there are unseen barriers to being effective in the role you are trying to fill. The lack of clear signal about the conditions and expectations represents a barrier for top prospects to engage in a search.
Will prospective candidates have enough information to make an informed decision about whether your opportunity is worth exploring further?
You can address this information asymmetry in at least 3 ways:
Ensure that what you are asking someone to do is fully aligned with how you talk about the responsibilities for the role. Look at the job description, the size of the office, the goals, and the prerequisites for candidates. Talk through with a peer what you are actually looking for. If you need leadership from someone in this role, be sure you say that on paper, and be specific about what success looks like in that dimension.
Ask, and respond in the moment, to what is important to each candidate. Eliciting candidate priorities is standard for many. Systematically shaping the interview conversation and experience around expressed priorities as a way to strengthen the relationship? That is rare.
Be prepared to woo someone; to sell the opportunity. Many of the most desirable professionals are thinking of themselves, even in a 2nd round, as prospective candidates. Drawing out their motivation and passion offers you an entry point for sharing what it might feel like to join the community, and builds the mutual commitment that will allow a key leader to be successful.
Finally, be appropriately transparent. For example: If you are asking a candidate to complete a performance task of some kind, make sure you are revealing information relevant to their own assessment of whether this is a situation they can be successful entering. Give them details of your performance and strategy, and allow them to critique it, rather than offering them some background and vision and ask them to formulate a strategy out of context.
Knowing what candidates see as most important is a huge advantage. Don’t wait until after an offer is extended to start discovering what will make a difference to them.