Remember the Big Man on Campus (BMOC), the guy every girl wanted to date and every guy wanted to be? He was cool. Calm. Collected. (He often was the football team’s quarterback.) He was hot. Happening. Hip.
Girls would apologize to him if he stood them up on a date accepting whatever he gave as an excuse, saying it was wrong of them to be upset.
Boys would secretly thrill if he gave them even a throw away compliment on their athletic prowess, “Hey, good job, you caught it!”
Everyone just wanted to experience the grace of being noticed by him, even if it was only for a moment. Everyone wanted to be in his orbit as if somehow they could gather up whatever crumbs of awesomeness would fall from him if they were just nearby.
When it Comes to Keeping Candidates’ Interest, You Want to be the BMOC, Too
You want job prospects to feel their lives will be so much BETTER if they become your employee. You want them to become giddy with excitement if you just look in their direction (“We’d like to hold a preliminary phone interview with you”).
You want them to wait patiently for you as you make a hiring decision: they won’t go anywhere and will wait for your text or email (today’s equivalent of “waiting by phone”) before they a) consider someone else’s offer and/or b) start looking for another opportunity.
So how do you become this type of company, one where everyone wants to work and will wait patiently for whatever hiring decision you give them, will even renege on another offer already accepted because you finally got around to saying yes?
Read below.
- You may be a BMOC, but you never ACT like a BMOC.
Big Men on Campus traditionally are arrogant. When they finally do get a comeuppance (and they always eventually do), not a few people are glad. Schadenfreude is rampant when the BMOC goes down!
Your company, however, is not arrogant. It doesn’t treat job prospects poorly and instead makes candidates feel important, respected and wanted.
- Your company is growing/expanding and you provide highly competitive wages/salaries, benefits and perks.
The BMOC often is a handsome physical specimen. Glowing with good health and vitality. The equivalent for you is a healthy bottom line. You’re growing, or at least keeping ahead of the pack when it comes to technology and your facilities’ physical condition.
You also offer great wages (higher than competitors’), fantastic benefits (a good amount of PTO, you match employees’ retirement account deposits, education stipends/repayments, etc.), and perks such as free lunches on Fridays, bring-your-dog-to-work policies, pick-up/drop-off car maintenance services, and so on.
- You keep all commitments and exceed candidates’ expectations during the hiring process.
The sincere and caring BMOC does what he says when he says he will. He wants to make sure his date is having a great time and thinks of her needs before his. That’s you.
You reply to all applicants within 24 or 48 hours and you graciously thank them for applying. Once you interview candidates, you call or e-mail them regularly to let them know where you are in the hiring process. If a decision is delayed, you let candidates know as soon as possible.
Choose one candidate over the others and you let those not chosen know of your decision immediately. With a phone call.
- Keep showing them “you’re the one.”
The true BMOC isn’t afraid to talk about his accomplishments. He doesn’t brag; he just states the facts, as warranted: “I got the football scholarship again, but I wouldn’t have done it without the help of my teammates!”) So as you’re making your way through the hiring process, let your top choices know why you’re truly awesome.
Share your company’s blogs, news stories, etc. with your candidates. Send a short post on how one employee was finally able to get her bachelor’s degree through your educational reimbursement program. Mention how one-quarter of your employees volunteered with Habitat for Humanity over the weekend. No need to brag, simply show candidates the true good work you do.
The way to becoming seen as the place to work is by a) being awesome but also b) creating a sincere relationship with your candidates around shared values. Doing so will have them be eager to work for you and willing to wait it out if the hiring process takes longer than either of you would like.
You’re extremely busy. Your hiring managers are extremely busy. Let Helpmates help you keep your hiring process moving along quickly. Contact the branch nearest your company today.
