Recruiting would be fun if it weren’t for the people. Okay, this is a joke; however, we’ve all dealt with difficult candidates, troublesome clients, job reqs that come and go, and even candidates that ghost us. Recruiting is very hard work, particularly in the kinds of markets we’re experiencing today. Candidates have a lot of job choices. That makes them harder to attract and retain long enough to get an offer in their hands. One type of candidate is those passive job seekers that throw their hat in the ring but back out before you even get to the offer. This blog will give you some ways to find better and more serious job candidates, so you don’t end up wasting your time.
What Are the Signs of a Great Job Candidate?
Look for candidates with a positive mindset. Positive thinkers are the problem solvers of the world. These determined people have the mindset of “just one more.” One more lead before they shut down for the night. One more deal closed. One more line of code was written. Their positivity is infectious and helps build a strong culture in your business. It’s a soft skill, but the reality is positivity is almost more valuable than a hard skill that can be learned.
You should also look for candidates that ask really good questions during the interview process. Generally, avoid those that lack the intellectual curiosity to ask questions during the interview. This could signal that the candidate isn’t interested enough to be curious about the job. They just may not be enthusiastic enough to even pursue the role. This should tell you something; they either have another offer pending or they may be using your offer to get more money from their employer. Either way, failing to ask questions during an interview is a red flag.
If you’re worried, the candidate isn’t as serious as you’d like, consider addressing the issue of an employer counteroffer right upfront. These days you can pretty much count on employers countering to try to retain their best workers. It pays for you to ask the candidate what they’ll do if their employer counters. Watch them closely to determine if you believe they’re so serious about your offer that they’ll accept it even if their current employer counters.
Try to use as many behavioral questions as possible to nail the candidate down. Ask about difficult situations the candidate has been in and how they solved them. Ask them about the worst mistake they ever made in their last job and what they learned. All of these questions will begin to establish patterns of behaviors that will help you figure out if this is a serious, hire-worthy candidate.
Now, how can you track all this candidate activity?
If you’re using an outdated applicant tracking system, you are not working as intelligently as you should. We want to invite you to get serious at Exelare. We designed this platform for you. It exists as the next generation of intelligent recruiting software tools. You deserve to see it in action. Click here to see a demo and get serious about Exelare.
