What is the candidate journey?
Here in we are bringing you the information about Candidate journey stages its importance andTips for achieving success.
When a company opens a vacancy to be filled, the process does not happen immediately.
It is necessary to find who best fits the characteristics and responsibilities of the role, in order to maximize results.
Therefore, the business runs a recruitment and selection process , which aims to attract, engage and hire the ideal professional.
This entire process is known as the candidate journey. It corresponds to all the steps taken by professionals, before and during the selection process towards hiring.
Therefore, it all starts when the company advertises its vacancy and people are interested and continues until after hiring the most suitable or suitable professional.
It is common to see this phase as a funnel, in which the number of candidates is reduced through the evaluation phases, until there is a choice for each position.
This process must be well-planned so that the HR department can execute it strategically.
Key stages of the candidate journey
Mapping the candidate journey is one of the most important issues when talking about this process.
It is only by understanding which steps must be put into practice that it is possible to ensure that everything goes as expected.
Mainly, mapping serves to ensure standardization and even make the process scalable. Mainly, it is a means of maintaining the quality level for all selections.
With that in mind, see what are the main phases that require attention in this process!
1-vacancy discovery
Before starting the hiring process, it is important that the candidate is able to locate the open position in your company.
It can be in communication channels, such as social networks, specialized websites and even “word of mouth”.
This is a step that can occur through the active search for the person who intends to obtain a placement in the job market or through the disclosure of the opening of the selection process by your company. A well-done disclosure can reach the desired professional for the position in an agile way.
2-Interest to apply
Upon discovering the vacancy, the professional needs to show interest in it. The description must be attractive, but also contain clear information.
It is essential to expose the activities to be carried out and the responsibilities required by the position, as well as the minimum requirements. Likewise, it is worth mentioning the benefits and advantages offered.
Another important point is to present the company’s values in the ad so that the candidate can judge if they fit theirs.
A brief text about the company’s performance and its point of view in relation to employees is something that brings the candidate closer. So he can decide if it’s compatible with his interest.
3-Application time
When the candidate finds the job and the description meets their expectations, it’s time to apply.
The professional can confirm this by sending a resume via e-mail or filling in steps on a website, with software specialized in screening candidates.
For this stage, the company must have defined everything its recruiting team needs for the selection of people and what the candidate for the vacancy must present.
An email confirming receipt of the curriculum vitae or an automatic message registering the information on the opportunities website confirms to the candidate that the contact with the company was successful.
4-screening process
After receiving information from the candidates for the vacancy, HR will adopt strategies to get to know each one more in depth.
In this stage, interviews with managers, group dynamics, competency tests and other actions are usually carried out.
Each phase of this journey must be detailed and made clear to the candidate so that he can complete everything efficiently and give his best.
Feedback from the company is very important at this point, so that everyone knows whether the process will continue or not.
It is at this point that the candidate is closest to the company. With that, a good experience will make him want to stand out for the vacancy.
5-time of hiring
At the end of the screening process, there are great chances of finding a prominent competitor and aligned with what the company wants.
It is time for the Human Resources sector to count on legal support and professionals in the area to carry out the hiring.
This stage ends the candidate’s journey and promotes him to another level in the company: that of an employee.
Why is Candidate journey important to improve the process?
As necessary as understanding the structure of this stage is knowing how to improve the candidate journey.
It is through planning and optimization that it is possible to transform the steps so that they are really useful for hiring the right employees.
In addition, a positive candidate journey serves to save resources, such as time and money, on the part of the company.
Instead of having lengthy processes that culminate in inappropriate hiring, it is possible to increase efficiency in terms of human resources.
It is also a way to improve team building and even increase talent retention.
It all starts with the selection and these precautions can reduce the turnover rate of the business.
Not least, taking care of this phase allows the company to position itself in a more attractive way. As a result, it will be easier to find talent in future selections.
Improving the selection process through relevant technical tests, behavioral analyzes and professional profiles are a great way to avoid lows and extreme turnover.
In addition, the chances of getting an employee who combines technical qualities and a profile that matches the company’s cultural values are great, thus forming a team of quality and high performance.
The importance of candidate experience
Mainly, working to have a more efficient journey is essential to create a positive experience for all candidates.
This is not only relevant for who will be hired, but for everyone who has contact with the company.
The idea is to create a process that stands out in a positive way, considering the needs of those looking for a replacement or career development.
With good planning and continuous improvement, professionals will be in the focus of the process and this will even be reflected in the reputation of the business.
So, there are two possible scenarios. The first is that the chosen candidate will already enter the company satisfied, having a positive perspective on the business and its processes.
The others who are not selected will also leave with good impressions. At a future time, when a new vacancy opens, it means that good candidates will return.
Also, they are likely to help attract other qualified people through referrals because of their good experience.
Therefore, paying attention to candidate experience today can make future selections simpler and more efficient.
Tips for achieving success in the process
You can always improve steps in a standard candidate journey. With some adjustments, there is a way to make this path more satisfying, which is beneficial for both the professional and the company.
With reference to the phases presented above, there are some tips to further enhance your recruitment and selection processes. Check out!
1-Publish in the right places
Before opening the vacancy, it is necessary to define important details such as the requirements for the position, the functions to be performed, the company’s budget and the benefits offered.
Efficiency in publicizing the vacancy is a strong point of the company. Be objective and practical for the profile you need and publicize the opportunity in specific groups in a certain area.
Use social networks such as Linkedin. This virtual space is on the rise and brings more and more companies and professionals together.
Currently, such actions give positive results and guide the search for the right candidates with success.
2-Simplify the application
It is also important to facilitate the application by professionals. If the process is too long or truncated from the start, good candidates are likely to lose interest or motivation. This will reduce the chances of finding the right person for the job.
It is possible to carry out initial tests or already define some eliminatory steps at the beginning. However, care must be taken not to bottleneck this talent acquisition too much at the beginning.
Instead, it makes more sense to think about a broader uptake and define processes that help you find the right candidate. Thus, the company has more talents that can fit with the vacancy.
3-Count on the help of technology
In cases where the application process is too complex to “just” send a resume, invest in a recruitment platform or use all the tools that HR already has.
Software aimed at screening resumes usually does a good job, which facilitates the funneling of your selection process.
However, be aware if the company already has a platform for registering opportunities.
It should be intuitive, without unnecessary fields and without making the candidate waste time filling out the information.
It is worth considering a restructuring of this platform, otherwise it could harm the registration of ideal competitors.
Technology can also help with the initial selection to define who goes through the process towards the vacancy.
After all, depending on the volume, analyzing resume by resume takes time and a lot of effort.
This can be impractical, particularly if the industry is in a rush to hire. For this, it is necessary to use technology to speed up this process, as seen above.
The use of screening software makes it possible for the candidate to produce or attach the resume.
The filters allowed by the platform through the fields filled in by the person interested in the vacancy, help to separate who is suitable for the next step.
4-Create a process that matches the role
One of the mistakes that many companies make is to make a selection process that does not match the function. Examples of what not to do include:
- dull group dynamics ;
- generalized psychological and reasoning tests;
- unnecessary trips to the company and more.
This all makes the candidate’s journey exhausting. In this case, it is always best to use agility.
Instead, customize the selection, streamline phases, apply psychological and social profiling tests on the same day, and give feedback once you’ve promised.
This will ensure that the candidate does not give up on the selection before the end.
5-win the candidate
When HR has a list of promising candidates, the mission is to keep their attention so they want to continue in the selection process.
For this, you must present what interests them, according to the objectives of each one: career plans and clarification on the financial side, such as salary and benefit conditions, for example.
This is an excellent time for dialogue that will show whether the candidate and the company have common interests.
6-Highlight the employee experience
The term employee experience refers to the experience lived by each professional in the work environment.
The better it is, the greater the retention of talent, for example.
To increase talent attractiveness and adherence to the candidate journey, you can highlight this issue and demonstrate how people enjoy the work environment.
The employee experience has the function of generating engagement. In this way, he is the one who shows the world how privileged he is to be offering his labor to a place that cares about him as a human being, and not as a number.
Companies that apply the employee experience draw the attention of those who are looking for a job, for whatever reason, and those who are not.
Therefore, the possibility of summoning the best professionals is great. In addition to attracting talent, it creates a culture of permanence.
Offering a good experience for the employee helps the company to have a good performance of the employee in the face of his tasks and also ends up attracting the best professionals.
This is a differential to beat the competition in relation to “disputing” a good candidate.
7-Enhance the candidate’s digital experience
With this, a tip is to choose the system very well, as some may not be intuitive, causing headaches and withdrawal from the application.
After all, we can’t waste potential talent because of a tool that doesn’t work properly.
A relevant feature is the functioning of the application or website on mobile devices. It is increasing — and common — the use of cell phones for many activities.
So, a bad experience while applying on a platform not adapted for mobile can restrict your company to only certain professionals.
Another way to streamline the candidate’s journey is to use technology in testing.
Curriculum registration platforms have such mechanisms, but it is also possible to use other software for the evaluation activity.
In this way, it will not be necessary to print sheets, nor require the candidate to travel to the company.
The registration and sharing of such information will also be facilitated using the virtual resources.
Typically, the HR professional takes time to meet with each candidate who will take the test.
So, with an electronic test he can trigger the task at the same time, making his day and this step more productive.
8-Secure feedback at every step
One of the main complaints of applicants for vacancies in the job market is the lack of response from the company, even if it is negative.
In order not to compromise employer branding and ensure that the candidate’s journey is efficient from start to finish, it is essential to provide feedback at every stage.
In addition, it is interesting to increase the return, according to the positioning of each one in the journey. The further the professional goes, the more detailed this step should be.
The software used to register CVs usually has an automatic sending of these feedbacks to the participants in the selection process, but it is essential that, in the final stages, the recruiter says the reason why the person was not chosen.
In this way, she can pay attention to the soft skills that are lacking and invest in improving her skills and abilities, so that the results are more satisfactory in the next selections.
As an expert in analyzing profiles and candidates, it is possible that the HR or recruiter assigned to such a journey will show the way in future searches, in addition to just pointing out the defect or giving the negative.
