Businesses losing customers due to poor recruitment practices
- Findings show employer brand is increasingly linked to customer brand
- Candidates let down by lack of communication from employers
- Overstretched recruiters letting standards slip
London, 8 June 2010
Almost half (49%) of UK adults have been left with a negative view of an organisation following an unsuccessful job application, according to research by SHL, global leaders in talent assessment solutions in the workplace. The research, which questioned 1,600 UK adults, found that poor recruitment experiences are commonplace, with almost a quarter (24%) of respondents admitting to having had two or three in the past and 6% with as many as four or five.
The impact on businesses could be severe, with almost one in five (18%) respondents who had been through a bad recruitment experience saying they have actually stopped doing business with a company as a direct result. The 25 to 34 year age group were most likely to take action with over a quarter (28%) saying they would take their custom elsewhere, indicating that businesses run a real risk of losing potential lifelong customers.
When asked about their top recruitment bugbears, respondents said not being told they had been unsuccessful had the most negative impact (46%). Next on the list was lack of feedback on an application (39%), followed by not acknowledging receipt of an application (39%) and most surprisingly, 37% did not receive any feedback even after completing an interview.
The drop in recruitment standards is likely to have increased due to the recession as further research by SHL amongst 500 UK recruitment professionals shows. A quarter (25%) of recruiters say they are overstretched as a result of increased job applications and of these, 19% say they are now unable to let candidates know when they have received their application, 17% don’t provide detailed feedback to interviewed candidates and 15% can’t let candidates know if they have not been successful after the initial application.
The findings also highlight the power of word of mouth and social media and their potential to damage employer and customer brands. Over a third of job seekers (36%) say they complained to friends and family following a negative application process and almost one in ten (9%) had used social media sites and blogs to voice their discontent. Over three quarters (77%) also agreed that if a friend or family member had a poor recruitment experience it would put them off being a customer of that company.
However, companies that manage recruitment effectively could reap the benefits and create ‘brand fans’, with a third of respondents saying they have been left with a positive impression of an organisation even when they haven’t got the job. Over half (57%) said acknowledgement of an unsuccessful application would be the most crucial to making a positive impression.
David Leigh, CEO at SHL Group said, “Many businesses are simply not equipped to deal with the current surge in applications and unfortunately this means that processes which may once have been standard are now being neglected. This is having a direct impact on employer brand and it appears that candidates are voting with their feet. With younger applicants being most likely to move their custom elsewhere, businesses could be losing significant sums over the lifetime of a disgruntled candidate.
“For a relatively small investment, companies can retain their customers and positive employer brand while minimising impact on the bottom line. But most importantly, they must remember that candidates are customers too.”
