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Why didn’t I get the job?

Being rejected when you have applied for a job can be tough.

When we as recruiters act for our employer clients, it is our job to find the best candidates based on the requirements they give to us. Inevitably this will mean that some people who apply won’t be suitable to be put forward or won’t succeed at interview.

We love finding the right job for people because we know how much finding the right job can change a person’s life. A better job, increased pay, a better location or job satisfaction are just some of the life changing reasons people come to us. There can be many reasons we decide not to put a particular candidate forward or an interview is not successful – and none of them mean that those individuals should lose their enthusiasm for finding the right job.

If you treat rejection as a learning experience, speak to your recruitment consultant for advice on future applications, you can bounce back quickly from disappointment.

Three main reasons you might not receive a job offer

Your experience

No employer wants to place you in a role that you find too easy or too difficult. Either way they might end up losing you and needing to recruit again within a few weeks.

Industry and job experience has a big part to play because employers want to reduce risk. If two people apply and one has more industry or job experience the interviewer is likely to lean towards the person with most experience.  Make sure you highlight transferable skills in you CV if you want to take on new roles. Spell out to your recruitment consultant and potential employer how your past experience and current skills can add value and reduce the risk of taking you on. Have you worked in a similar industry, used similar equipment, worked to similar deadlines or worked with similar software applications?

Your availability and enthusiasm

Your availability and enthusiasm to start could be the deal breaker for the manager who is recruiting, even if you are first choice.  If you have a long notice period, decide you need to build that house extension or take a long holiday between jobs that might just not fit with the hiring managers need to get someone into the business when they need them.

Availability is a bigger problem if the role is temporary and the employer needs staff now.  None of this is your fault of course and you may not be able to do anything about it, it’s just an issue of logistics and timing for the employer.

 ‘Fit’

Whenever a recruitment consultant is given a role they will always ask the employer about the organisations culture. When interviewing people for jobs the interviewer is assessing more than experience and skills. They will be considering whether you would fit with the culture of the organisation and with the other people on the team. They want to know that you will get on with the other staff in the company and they want to reduce the risk of future conflict.

Not being the right fit for one organistion just means that your personality is suited to a company where you would be more comfortable working. Both you and your employer want to know that you are working with people you can get along with.

If you didn’t get the job offer this time, make sure you get feedback from the employer and your recruitment consultant. Don’t take it personally, try to learn from the experience, change what you can and move on. Your ideal job and employer is out there!

Tricia Hay

MD First Base Employment

 

 

 

 

 

Another brilliant result – relationships matter!

I recently wrote about the importance of building a good relationship with your recruitment consultant when seeking a new role or career. Here’s another example of how well it works for candidates who are proactive and willing to learn!

The candidate who wrote the testimonial below didn’t just send off her CV, as soon as she had done some research into First Base she came along to our offices to seek career advice on how to improve her chances of getting the type of job she was hoping for. By taking responsibility to build a relationship early she was able to help a member our talent resourcing team to get to know her and find the right type of opportunity. The kind comments made after receiving a job offer proves the point!

“Having just finished a contract, I dutifully sent my CV off to a few agencies for work having perused their websites and what vacancies they represented.  A good gut feeling made me call First Base, not just for work but for some career guidance and advice.  From the first point of contact with the member of staff who answered the phone they positively directed me to the right person I needed to talk to … a Talent Resourcer; Flo Bond. The next working day I was in for an interview and within a few days out to a major client of theirs for an interview as Flo had the foresight of seeing me fit in well within the organisation.  I proudly have a job offer with this company which I have accepted.

There are a lot of Employment Agencies presented on social media but nothing replaces the chance of a face to face meeting with a professional.  I absolutely recommend First Base Employment.”

Don’t just send off your CV with fingers crossed – be proactive, speak to your recruitment consultant, demonstrate your enthusiasm to learn and you too could soon be finding the job you are looking for!

Be proactive – Contact First Base today on 01453 755330!

Tricia Hay – MD First Base Employment

Help your recruitment consultant to help you.

Understanding how your recruitment consultant works with employers can really help you to find the job opportunities you are looking for.

On a day to day basis, most recruitment consultants are working to find candidates for their clients – potentially your future employer. Recruiters are paid by the client to find the right person for the jobs available. The more you can do to help them identify you as the right person, the easier you make it for them to deliver a great service to their clients.

Consultants need to know about you and your skills but they also need to know they can trust you to attend interviews and that you will make a conscientious and committed employee. Building a great relationship with your recruitment consultant will make sure you are top of mind when it comes to filling vacancies.

Top tips

By helping your recruitment consultant to understand more about you and your motivation for find work you help them to do the work they are paid to do – find the right person for their clients.

 

Trica Hay

 

Listen to me – it’s not about the pay

A business contact (let’s call him Matt) recently shared a recruitment experience with us that speaks volumes about the chasm that sometimes exists between candidates and employers. Matt received a call from a Head of HR after turning down a job offer. The call went like this:

HR: I’m calling as we are surprised you turned down our job offer.

Matt: Thanks you for the offer but I felt I couldn’t accept.

HR: But the job paid £10,000pa more than you currently earn, did you get a counter offer to stay where you are?

Matt: No I didn’t, I’m staying with the company at the same salary. It’s not about money, as I explained during my interviews.

HR: Then I don’t understand. After we invested in a written assessment, two telephone interviews, two face to face interviews and call with the CEO, I would have thought an offer of a position paying £10,000 more was an easy decision.

Matt: As I’ve said a few times, it’s not about the money.

HR: I don’t understand.

Matt: The recruitment process you invested in took over six weeks. One of the telephone interviews was put back twice and when I turned up on time for the second interview I was kept waiting for over 30 minutes. I was told to expect to find out about an offer within 5 days but heard nothing for another two weeks when I got the call to speak with your CEO. The job offer came another week later.

Apparently the head of HR went on to explain that the CEO was very busy and they had to take time to be ‘sure’ Matt was the right person. From Matt’s point of view the head of HR was just digging bigger holes.

Some employers still fail to understand that candidates have choices and that the way they are treated throughout the recruitment process says lots about what a company might be like to work for. Lack of respect, a drawn out time consuming process and slow decision making are cited over and over again as reasons why a good candidate turns down a job offer.

It seems that often it’s the employer who is hung up about pay, when the potential employee is looking at the whole employment package.

Tricia Hay and David Tovey

 

 

Your interview checklist!

It still surprises me how often candidates turn up for an interview having done too little preparation. We hear time and time again from employers that a key reason one candidate has been selected over another is the amount of preparation the successful person did before interview.

Candidates who do their research are like a breath of fresh air to an interviewer. It can help you prepare for the inevitable part of the process when the interviewer says “Have you got any questions for me”. It also helps to reduce nerves when you do your homework!

It doesn’t take long to do research and you can take any note you make into the interview with you to use as a crib sheet. You can use the checklist below to guide you.

 Interview checklist:

• Check the employers web site and history

• Visit their social media platforms

• Check their location online and make sure you know how to get there

• Look up the people you are meeting on LinkedIn

• Read their profiles and study their picture to help you recognise them

• Take extra copies of your CV

• Make sure you have a note pad and pen

• Take the research notes with you!

• Have some cash for parking if you are going by car

• Make sure your phone is on silent

• Check the weather and take an umbrella if you might need it

• Take your best and most positive attitude!

Notes to make pre interview:

Why you are excited about the job? Write down specific things you like about the company and the job you appiled for.

Why you believe you would be great for this job? What are the key skills and knowledge that you could bring to the ‘must have’ requirements of the role?

Specific achievements to talk about. Measurable personal achievements and projects that demonstrate the value you can bring to the company.

Concerns to be handled. Anything that the interviewer might ask about your background and experience that might be a bit difficult to answer.

After the interview make a note of:

What you like most about the company and role

Why you think you would be good in the role

Any clarification needed?

Preparation reduces nerves and will impress the interviewer. What’s not to like about that?

Tricia Hay. MD First Base

Five tips that will help you find the best talent

It’s a buyers market

A client recently described the current recruiting environment  as a ‘buyers’ market. We understand the sentiment – candiates are no longer desperate for a job, they are discerning about which jobs they will apply for.

It’s not easy finding the right candidates at times of high employment and the cost of taking on the wrong person can be high – potentially many thousands of pounds invested in recruitment, on boarding, training plus the hidden consequential costs of unhappy colleagues and customers (not to mention the cost of re-recruitment).

Here are our five tips for staying ahead of the curve at a time when employment rates are high and candidates are in the driving seat.

1. Be creative

More and more of the best employers are telling us that they will find or adapt roles for the best talent. When they recognise that a candidate has the qualities they need, they are prepared to invest in ‘technical’ training to ensure they don’t miss out on the opportunity to bring in people that can make a long term contribution to the goals of the business.

2. Be decisive

In a ‘buyers’ market, more than ever you have to be prepared to take action and avoid losing candidates because of slow follow up. Good candidates have choices and lack of timely follow up can suggest indifference and discourtesy. It is the number one frustration candidates have with employers that is shared on social media. Don’t become a bad news story!

3. Communicate your employer brand

Use attractive language that highlights the benefits and rewards of working in your organisation. Instead of just listing 15 things that candidates must have in order to apply, take the opportunity to hook candidates and convince them that they ‘have’ to work for you. Communicate positive messages on social media and make sure the ‘work for us’ pages on your web site a kept up to date and inspire potential employees.

4. It’s not always about ‘fit’

If you always do what you always did you will always get what you always got. Sometimes you need to bring in people who will challenge the existing culture and bring new ideas. Don’t automatically dismiss good people because they might not ‘fit in’ – they might just bring the energy you need to move your business to the next level.

5. Apply some TLC

Make your recruitment process candidate friendly by using some TLC – Thinking Like a Candidate. Put yourself in the shoes of a potential employee and ask yourself if your recruitment process is candidate friendly or if it there just to make your life easier. Remember that every person that goes through your recruitment process, whether you take them on or not, has the potential to share their experience far and wide. Treat candidates as, hopefully, you treat your best customers.

Recruiting the right people has never been easy and it’s even more difficult right now. Investing more effort in these five tips should help.

Tricia Hay and David Tovey

Want help with how to attract the best candidates? Contact tricia.hay@first-base.co.uk

Why should I work for you?

Establishing your Employer Brand

By Tricia Hay and David Tovey

The ability to attract and retain the best talent in the market is key for any organisation, but never more so than in highly competitive sectors where niche skill sets are in high demand.

Right now there is fierce competition for the best ‘talent’, employment levels are high and candidates are ever more discerning about which employers they will consider joining.

What is an employer brand?

“Employer brand is what people say about your reputation as employer when you are not in the room”

Employer brand refers to the perceptions that key stakeholders, and specifically current and potential employees, have of your company, business or organisation. It is about how they view the company; from how you conduct yourselves in the market, through to what they think it would be like to work for you. An effective employer brand presents your organisation as a good employer and a great place to work and can, as a result, help with recruitment, retention and generally affect market perception of your company.

A clear employer brand offers significant benefits to an organisation. It can significantly improve job application rates and put your company and provide a wide pool of top candidates to choose from. In tight recruitment markets, where competition for the best talent is fierce, it can also help keep an organisation top of mind, make your company stand out in a crowded market and provide compelling reasons to join your company rather than going elsewhere.

It’s about retention too

In organisations where values, culture and desired behaviours have been deeply embedded across the organisation, employers are more likely to benefit from an increased level of engagement from employees. Improved employee engagement and motivation has a well-established link shown to greater productivity and higher retention rates; all of which contribute to retaining skills and knowledge, and ultimately improving bottom line results.

Increased engagement with a brand also helps to build employee loyalty, thus reducing the risk of losing your best people to competitors, and avoiding the financial implications of recruiting and on-boarding their replacements.

With such significant benefits it isn’t surprising that employers across all sectors and of all sizes are investing in developing and more effectively communicating their employer brand.

Establishing your brand

Questions to consider when establishing your employer brand include:

When you have a clear understanding of the above you can start to build a picture of what reputation you want to communicate as an employer and, even more importantly, ensure that this is fully embedded into the culture of the business.

 If you would like to know more about how First-Base can help you develop your employer brand contact tricia.hay@first-base.co.uk

Employer Brand in the Social Media Age

Finding the most skilled and talented individuals with the right attitude to help grow our businesses has never been easy. At a time of high employment and high candidate expectations – whether recruiting permanent or temporary staff; it has never been more important to focus on your reputation as an employer.

Just as a company has a ‘brand’ designed to reflect what customers can expect of its products or services; a company has an employer brand that reflects what employees can expect of its employment practices. The best and most profitable customers are attracted by a brand that can be trusted to deliver on its marketing promises and the best talent is attracted by an employer that can be trusted to fulfill the promises made in a recruitment campaign or at interview.

In any economy there are people ‘desperate’ for a job who might accept any role that comes their way. But these candidates are too often not the ideal people to fill the roles that businesses have available. The best candidates at all levels have choices, they are discerning, not desperate.

Put simply, the businesses with the best employer brands attract more applications from the best candidates. Companies that appear in The Times Top 100 Best Companies for instance, enter the competition because they know that being recognized as a good employer has a direct effect on recruitment and ultimately bottom line results.

Instant reputations

It used to be that an employer’s reputation was disseminated just by word of mouth. Today, with the availability of multiple social media channels, experiences and reputation, good or bad can be shared instantly with many thousands of connections. One of those connections could be just the person you are looking for.

The first place a candidate checks out when you run a recruitment campaign will be your company web site, where your ‘brand’ is exhibited for all to see. That web site has probably been carefully crafted by marketers to tell the story of your business as well as its products and services. It may have a recruitment section that potential candidates will view to get a feel for your attitudes as an employer.

The next place candidates go to are their social media contacts (evidence shows that people trust what their social networks say more than they trust what a business says) to find out if anyone has experience of working for you or even being interviewed by you. Just like people might use Trip Advisor – they will also check out on line sites such as ‘Glass Doors’ to see if you have been mentioned by past and present employees.

There is a new breed of candidates who are part of Generation C (Generation Connected) and it is generation that has no age limits. They know how to access information and there is plenty of information out there for them to find – whether you have an employer brand strategy or not.

Of course people also still use word of mouth ‘off line’ as well. In the Students Union if they have been on a graduate placement or in the pub after a day’s work, people with experience of working for you (or just being interviewed by you) will share their experiences. And have you ever wondered what reputation as an employer you have with recruitment consultancies?

The great news is that you can decide whether the experiences shared are positive or negative. Businesses often invest heavily in branding their business in order to attract customers. Today, the most successful businesses, invest in their employee brand to ensure they attract the best candidates.

David Tovey
International Speaker, Consultant and Coach
Non Exec Director – First Base Employment

Forget initiatives, live the philosophy

Does your business suffer from initiative fatigue?

I’m really fortunate. I get to work with some great people in great organisations. I frequently get to facilitate off site strategy meetings with senior managers at fabulous locations in the UK and internationally.

Strategic planning meetings are really important. They give the senior team time away from the business to focus on the future away from the pressures and detail of day to day issues. As we consultants are fond of saying, “it gives senior managers and business owners time to work on the business instead of in the business”.

It’s usually not long before the senior team is talking about the need to be a more customer or client focused business and being a great place to work. Senior managers are right to spend time on this – Customer Experience is fast becoming recognized as THE way to differentiate a business.

After ‘away days’ it’s usually not long before members of the senior team volunteer or are allocated responsibility for an ‘Employee Engagement’ or ‘CX’ project. Anticipation about what can be achieved is often high at board level, budgets are allocated and the top down communication about the initiative begins.

Initiatives, initiatives
It sometimes seems that as soon as a great concept is given a label it is in danger of being misunderstood, misinterpreted and then executed badly. It is then too often dismissed by those it was intended to ‘engage’ as just another management fad – destined to wither on the vine.

I can testify to the high number of positive nods and groans I hear when I ask audiences if they have ever suffered from initiative fatigue anytime during their careers!

As a change initiative starts to gain momentum, many organisations underestimate the challenges and complexities. Senior managers often want to see lots of activity and rapid progress. From team bonding sessions, project teams, ‘back to the floor’ projects for CEO’s to newsletters, social media strategies, employee and customers surveys – all kinds of activities are implemented. Sadly many of these activities are more likely to result in cynicism than aligning people with the aims of the business and gaining commitment, particularity with people have ‘heard it all before’.

No silver bullets
Lots of companies want to be recognized as organisations that deliver exceptional customer experience and identified as great places to work – but too many want to find short cuts to getting there. They look for silver bullets or boxes to tick. But there are no short cuts when you need to address the fundamental employer/employee relationship and link it to delivering a great customer experience. People have to be properly aligned with the business strategy and values in a focused, congruent and mutually supportive way.

It’s not engagement or CX ‘initiatives’ that are needed – what works is the embedding of an engagement and customer experience philosophy that is lived by everyone from the bottom to the top of the organisation.

Great places to work with engaged employees who deliver excellent customer experience:

Are clear what they mean by engagement
Are clear what they mean about customer experience
Have a senior management team fully committed to it
Ensure that everything they do supports the core purpose and values of the organisation
Are clear about how they measure engagement and CX
Acknowledge that where action is required no single intervention is likely to succeed
Keep lines of communication with senior managers open
Actively encourage collaboration at all levels
Continually recognise, reward, celebrate and reinforce what is being done well
Look for and measure the impact of engagement and CX on business results
Recognise that employee engagement isn’t a destination – it’s a journey.
Many organisations are just not up to the challenge. They want rapid results based on short term investment and when things get a bit tough another initiative goes on the back burner – yet again proving the cynics right. Every one goes back to business as usual – until the next away day and the next management initiative.

You have to believe in and live the philosophy if you want to avoid initiative fatigue.

David Tovey

David Tovey is author of ‘Principled Selling’ published by Kogan Page
and Non Executive Director of First Base.

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So you’ve got that job interview coming up — how prepared are you? You might know that you’re the best person for the job, but will you be giving the best interview?

One major hurdle between you and the job of your dreams is that first interview and the other people you’ll be up against. What’s the best way to get an edge over the other candidates? (more…)