Episode 7: The Follow Up
Now that you’ve completed the necessary interviews and have the feedback you need, let’s move to The Follow-up phase.
The expectation generally is for a candidate to follow up by a sending thank you email following the interview. If you are truly interested in a candidate or want to differentiate your company, why not take the lead instead and send a thank you to the candidate for their time, and let them know when to expect a follow-up from you?
If you choose not to move forward with a candidate you must have an empathic way to give feedback or let them know that you are not moving forward with them–especially to your runner-up candidates. Remember that they have invested time and effort (and heart) in applying and interviewing with you. Your follow-up here is a way to continue to validate your employer brand and continue to build trust—even if that relationship is not progressing further.
However, you want to build emotional equity to quickly reconnect with your 2nd place, or 3rd place finishers at a future time. This way when similar roles open up in the future, and your runner-ups are still on the job market, you can quickly reconnect and hire and reduce your recruitment efforts considerably.
Once your ideal candidate moves to the final stage, your process should include conducting reference checks and background checks. If you are working with a recruitment agency, they will take care of this, however, if you are handling the full cycle of hiring internally, ensure that you are connecting with previous supervisors and colleagues about your candidate’s technical and interpersonal skills.
When all the processes are done, and your offer has been extended and accepted, it’s time to celebrate and set the plans in motion for welcoming your new hire to the team.
Let’s do a Pulse Check
What is your process for rejecting a candidate empathetically?
How do you stay in touch with your runner-up candidates?
Watch the previous episodes in this series:
Episode 1: Transforming Your Hiring Mindset
Episode 2: Writing Impactful Job Descriptions
Episode 3: Recruitment & Sourcing Strategy
Episode 4: The Candidate Experience
Episode 5: The Interview Mindset