You are not in ‘recruitment’. You are in ‘rejection’.

Which industry disappoints a higher percentage of customers than ours?

We think of ourselves as ‘recruiters’ but what is the ratio of candidates we actually do recruit into roles, compared to the number we screen, interview, or even submit?

Our industry is obsessed with the number of placements we make (Of course. I have run recruitment business all my life. I am most guilty)

Surely, we need to apply equal attention to the number of people we do not place, and more crucially the treatment they get during that process?

What is your ‘rejection’ process? I have trained a million recruiters on how to manage the recruitment process, influence the critical moments of truth, how to make an offer, and how to bed that offer down.

I don’t recall ever running a training session on empathetic candidate ‘rejection’. The let-down. The follow-up. The next steps.

Also, what documented automation process do we have to ensure no-one falls through the cracks?

The successful candidate gets showered with love and attention, including flowers and a bottle of wine sometimes.

What about the also-ran shortlisted ones?

What about the ones who did not make the shortlist but still believe they might (because, you know, we kept them warm, on the bench so to speak, in case our real shortlist fell through, right?)

What about the ones you dismissed at first resume read, but who are home waiting for your call, because we never got around to communicating that to them (Terrible job, explaining to a keen candidate why they are not going forward. Right?)

Even if you ignore the basic manners and  human kindness aspect to this, the commercial reality of pissing off a high percentage of customers is a disaster.

Remember, even no news IS news to a candidate who is waiting…

And in tight talent times, this is key.

You need to be a great recruiter, yes.

However, you also need to be an empathetic, consistent and morale-building ‘rejecter.’

Because truth be told, we are in the rejection business. And classy rejection is a skill worth refining.

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