In my entry earlier this week, I spoke about how to turn down an employer politely. Today, let’s look at the flip side; how to turn down candidates who you aren’t going to select or have continue on in the recruiting process.
I’ve seen some good practices over the years. Some companies will get the process right in the beginning; others neglect to have any dialogue and leave people hanging.
APPLICATION
Starting with the initial contact from an employee, effective companies will have a process in place to indicate in some form something like this-
“Thank you for your application to XXXX. We will be reviewing resumes for XXXX period, and if we are going to consider you for an interview, we will followup with you by…”
INTERVIEW #1
In the first interview with a candidate, giving the candidate a realistic guideline of when they can expect to hear from you. Some ways to politely turn down a candidate at this stage may be
1. Postcard/letter/email to the candidate to indicate you are going in another direction
2. Phone call thanking the candidate for considering, but that the position has gone to another candidate
FINALIST CANDIDATES
This level of contact with candidates should reflect an extreme level of professionalism. When you have invited someone to your place of business, introduced them to members of your staff, and given them a great deal of your time, a bit more diplomacy may be in order.
A phone call that includes suggestions for further opportunities with the company, and taking the time to make suggestions to the candidate on how to improve their chances in the future are nice touches that can create an opportunity to consider a candidate in the future.
BEST AND WORST PRACTICES
What are some best practices you have seen in hiring communication? The worst? I’ll feature some of these (anonymously) in a future article.
Email me @ robert@galaconcierge.com