When hiring new team members for your farm or ag business, your process provides candidates with a glimpse into the company and how it operates. Is your agribusiness efficient and professional, or too casual and unorganized with its processes? Your methods can positively or negatively impact your company and its ability to hire the right talent.
Making the hiring process an overall positive experience helps contribute to candidates viewing your company in a positive light, whether they get hired or not. Plus, a strong candidate will be unsatisfied with a sloppy process, potentially even causing them to withdraw their application. A positive candidate experience allows you to attract more applicants and be more selective, gain candidate’s trust, and retain your new hires.
Use these tips to ensure your hiring process is not deterring strong candidates, but instead attracting them and further contributing to their excitement about your organization.
The Application Process
The hiring process doesn’t start at the first interview, but instead with your job posting and application. This is often a candidate’s first interaction with your company, so you want to avoid turning them off at the get-go. So, how can you ensure this stage of the hiring process is a positive one?
Use A Clear Job Description
Your job description is your chance to really engage and attract a candidate to your company. Rather than using a cookie-cutter, bland job description, take the time to craft a description that clearly and concisely outlines the job. Include the scope, where they will spend their time, the working environment, who they will interact with, and how their role impacts the company or department.
It’s crucial that your job description (and how you describe the role in interviews) accurately reflects the reality of the job. Premature turnover is often caused by the job not being what the candidate expected.
If possible, include a salary range and a list of your company benefits in your posting. AgHires’ recent Job Seeker Survey shows that when salary information is provided, 70% of individuals express a higher likelihood of applying for the job, and 74% are more inclined to apply when benefits information is included. So, don’t hold back on showcasing what your company has to offer!
Opt For a Brief, User-Friendly Application
An easy-to-use online application is a great way to begin the process on a positive note for candidates. When a candidate visits your website or application program and it is’s difficult to navigate, they may find themselves annoyed with the hoops they have to jump through to simply apply, or may not even submit their application at all.
Try to keep your application process as short as possible while still collecting the information you need. According to our Job Seeker Survey, 66% of respondents said they expect an application to take less than 10 minutes to complete. To help achieve this, avoid an application that requires candidates to upload a resume in addition to entering each of their work experience details into a text field. This is often frustrating to candidates and takes unnecessary, additional time to provide repeated information.
Be Responsive
When reviewing applicants and weeding out candidates, be sure to respond to each candidate who applies, not just those you are moving forward with. Send a kindly-worded decline email to the applicants you are not pursuing, so they are not waiting extended periods of time without knowing if they are in consideration.
Not hearing back from employers after applying or interviewing was ranked the number one job search frustration by 41% of our survey respondents. Contribute to a more positive candidate experience by responding to all candidates who apply and interview with your company.
The Interview Process
Be Prepared
Before you begin searching for a new hire, ensure your company’s hiring process is solid and that you are ready to commit the time necessary. Have a defined plan that includes your hiring team, interview structure, ideal candidate profile, salary range for the position, goal start date, etc. Ultimately, an unorganized or unprepared process will expose candidates to those parts of your organization that you may not be so proud of. Show candidates that you’re a great place to work with a smooth, organized process.
Move with Intention
While finding the right hire takes time, it’s crucial to vet candidates and move through the hiring stages in a timely manner. A slow-moving process will not only turn off and frustrate candidates who have been waiting but there’s a likely chance that your top candidates will be presented with other offers in the meantime. Don’t miss out on all-star talent by having a too-slow hiring process.
Touch Base Frequently
Keep in touch with your active candidates throughout the process. After each completed interview stage, give the candidate a timeline of when they can expect to hear from you regarding the next steps. If things change and the process is delayed, give candidates an additional update rather than keep them waiting or guessing. Communicating regularly with your candidates will give them peace of mind and provide a more positive overall experience.
Provide Feedback
If a candidate has gone through 3+ interviews, completed assessments, or met several team members, they have invested quite a bit of time being considered by your company. That said, it’s courteous to provide feedback to those candidates who made it to the final stages but were not hired. Keep it brief but provide the candidate with some general reasoning as to why they were not selected for the position. With this, compliment their skills and strong points to end on a positive note, and thank them for their time. Candidates appreciate feedback to help them improve for future job searches, and taking this extra step shows that you have their best interest in mind.
The Importance of a Positive Candidate Experience
While the hiring process may feel like just another part of business for an employer, it’s important to remember that finding and transitioning jobs is a big deal for candidates. Some may have been out of work for months, are relocating their homes for a job, or starting an entirely new career journey. It’s scary, exciting, and often exhausting for candidates.
That said, put in extra effort whenever possible to make the candidate’s experience a positive one, and try not to add to the stress or frustrations of job searching.
AgHires is always here to help you streamline your hiring process. Our expert agricultural recruiters work as an extension of your organization and take the time to understand your business to ensure we’re the right partner for you. Learn more about the AgHires Difference and how we can help you save time hiring your next top employee.
