Last month I spoke with a candidate who hasn’t applied for a job in over 14 years. He’s been with the same company that whole time, and is only on the job market now because of a re-organization within his company. As we were getting to know each other, he mentioned that the application process has changed so much. Fourteen years ago applicant tracking systems and online applications weren’t quite as prevalent as they are today. He told me that back then you could still walk into a business or call them directly to discuss a job opening. There was much more of a human to human element when candidates were applying to jobs and recruiters were actually reaching out to them to discuss their background and the job opening. So, when I called him personally to discuss the opening he applied to, he told me it was a fresh change of pace from what he has been experiencing with his current job search. He said most of his applications never got responses, and if he did get them it was either in the form of a digital screening template or an automated notification that he wasn’t selected.
Playing the Telephone Game
It didn’t seem like a big deal to me. Every recruiter worth their salt realizes that the phone is your best friend for accurate and efficient screening. It’s the quickest way to gather intel, vet your candidates and build a relationship with them…not to mention locking them down on the role and setting expectations. As we wrapped up our conversation, I found myself thinking that not only has applying for jobs has changed, but recruiting itself has changed over the past decade and a half as well.
There is a fascinating new world of social media recruiting, and using apps on your phone to tap into talent pools we may not have previously had access to. One aspect of phone recruiting that doesn’t get as much discussion as social media recruiting is recruiting via SMS text messages.
Part of the struggle recruiters have when first getting into text recruiting is figuring out three out of the five W’s: Who? What? And When? (Hopefully you have the Where and the Why figured out, as well as the H: How). When I first dabbled with text recruiting I had all of those questions.
In an effort not to sound old, I’ll resist the urge to use the phrase “back in my day”, however, when I first entered the world of recruiting I had very structured recruiter training which included templates for in-person interviews, phone conversations and even emails. There was no formalized template for recruiting via text. I had to navigate the world of text recruiting and figure out my answers on the fly. I learned a few lessons the hard way, and from personal experiences I came up with best practices and a general “system” for how I personally use text recruiting. Let’s explore my answers to Who, What and When…
Who can I send a text to?
This answer is easy: everyone! While it’s true millennials are more likely to respond to you via text than a phone call, that doesn’t mean more experienced folks don’t know what a text message is. I’ve had a ton of success texting candidates when I’m out on campus recruiting, however I’ve also found it to be the fastest mode of conversation with my candidates who may or may not use the phrase “back in my day”. It’s simply a matter of personal preference for each candidate, and texting won’t work for all of your candidates. Whenever I start a new relationship with a candidate or a hiring manager- I ask them how they’d like to interact and communicate. A lot of candidates who work in secure areas do not have access to their phones during the day- so email is the best way to contact them. Other candidates are on the move all day and aren’t sitting down to read their emails- so a phone conversation or a text message works best for them. When in doubt- ask.
What type of information can I include in the text?
This question gets a bit trickier. My answer to this hinges a bit on my answer for the final question- however I will try to separate them out for you. I would avoid sending any sensitive or confidential information via text. Your candidate could have their phone laying on the table and someone other than them may accidentally see the information pop up (I am picturing a Dilbert cartoon where the pointy-haired boss is in a meeting with one of his employees and they receive a text congratulating them on a job offer with their new salary information). So keep the information you communicate via text at a high level. As a best practice, I also believe that you shouldn’t give interview feedback via text. If a candidate is not selected after the interview it’s much more professional to debrief them via a phone call, and if they are selected it’s much more gratifying as the recruiter to hear their excitement over the phone vs. inferring it from their confetti emoji. I typically only use a text to send quick status updates to candidates, schedule and confirm appointments, and other tasks that don’t involve a more intimate form of communication.
When in the recruiting process is it appropriate to send a text?
This is where I think I’ll get some disagreement. For me personally, I use text messages as a bridge between the formal and the informal stages within the recruiting lifecycle. I rarely send an introductory text message to pulse a candidate’s interest level. Typically I try to refrain from my first contact being a text message. It’s important to note that a lot of great recruiters use texts as their introductory touch point, however for my system I don’t find that it is as successful as I would like. Speaking from experience, if I receive an unsolicited text message from a business or a recruiter- I typically delete it.
It’s a brave new world out there at the intersection of recruiting and technology. In order to stay competitive as a business, you must adapt to the latest forms of communication so that you can fish where the fish are. However, don’t lose sight of the personalization of recruiting. Remember that you’re helping someone navigate a process and a decision that has the potential to have life-changing implications for them.
