Are Your Candidates “Ghosting” You?

Although the concept of “ghosting” originally applied to dating, it’s now something many recruiters experience. If left unchecked, it can throw a wrench in your hiring process and hurt your workplace as a whole. Here are the details and what you can do to prevent it.

What is “Ghosting”?

Dictionary.com defines ghosting as, “the practice of suddenly ending all contact with a person without explanation.” This can manifest in a few different ways with job candidates. Here some examples:

  • A candidate is given an interview, but they blow it off, and you never hear from them again.
  • A candidate is given a formal job offer, but they don’t respond.
  • A candidate is officially hired and given a start date. However, they never show up and won’t return your email or calls.

Why Do Candidates Go Ghost?

In strong labor markets, candidates may have several options. In turn, they may go ghost on an employer they were originally interested in if a better, more lucrative offer comes along. That’s one of the more common reasons for this phenomenon.

Another is because many candidates don’t feel guilty for blowing off an employer because they’re so used to being ignored in their job search. It’s common for companies to go silent during the hiring process, where candidates have no clue whether they’ll be hired or not. And this resentment can spill over where they choose to ignore recruiters who are interested in them.

How to Avoid It

Often, a candidate will go ghost if what they hear about in the job interview doesn’t match the expectations they had from the job description. For instance, it may sound great on paper and like a position where they can advance their career. But if they’re let down by the reality of the job after interviewing, you may never hear from them again. So the lesson here is to be honest and transparent right from the start.

Once they’ve been hired, try to have a quick start date. If you wait an extended period of time (like two weeks or more), they may find another position, which can result in them ghosting. Also, make the training/onboarding process as painless as possible. Give candidates all the materials they need and point them to relevant resources to quickly get them up to speed. This should make your workplace seem more inviting and reduce the chances of candidates flaking out.

Although it’s highly unprofessional, ghosting has become quite common in recent times and can create some real issues for employers. Understanding the reasons for this behavior and taking preventative strategies should decrease the odds of it happening to you.

Need help with your recruiting? Contact the experts at Encadria Staffing Solutions.

Are you looking to build a staffing strategy that provides flexibility in an uncertain economy?

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