Dive Brief:

• Respect is a key driver of job satisfaction, according to newly revealed data from Monster's State of the Candidate Report. About 14% of job seekers surveyed said they didn't feel respected throughout their most recent job search. They said recruiters could have been more respectful by, among other things, telling candidates why they weren't advanced to the next stage in the recruiting process (32%); following up with candidates soon after an interview (31%); acknowledging receipt of applications (28%); and sending out timely rejection notices (23%).
• Of the 1,000 respondents interviewed, 77% thought there were threats to their current job, such as new management (20%), toxic boss or working environment (19%), layoffs (17%), recession (16%) and younger coworkers (15%).
• The survey showed that while most respondents (72%) thought job seekers have the advantage in having job options and negotiating employment terms, younger respondents, ages 18 to 34, were more likely to think job seekers have the upper hand than 35- to 65-year-olds. A third of respondents found the job search to be harder now than when they started their careers.

Dive Insight:

A poor candidate experience does a disservice to job applicants and can damage an employer's reputation and brand, research has confirmed. A study by Phenom People, a talent relationship marketing firm, found that a negative candidate experience can undo even the best recruiting plans. According to the study, a bad experience can set back candidates in three categories: attraction, conversion and engagement.

As for an employer's brand, gaining a poor reputation for disrespecting applicants and candidates can show up in online rating sites, like Glassdoor. According to a 2017 CareerArc study, 1 in 5 job applicants will pass over employers with poor online ratings.

Communication and personalization are key factors in creating a positive candidate experience. Applicants tend to prefer using smartphone apps, virtual job fairs and webchats during the hiring process, but their most-favored portion of the hiring process is the in-person interview, a ManpowerGroup Solutions study revealed. To achieve this high-tech but personalized approach, employers can use the tools like predictive algorithms and contextual retargeting, ManpowerGroup Solutions SVP and Global RPO President Kate Donovan said in a statement.

Respondents in the Monster report cited not telling non-hired candidates about future opportunities at an organization as one form of disrespect. Hiring managers should try to update candidates, and maybe give them bad news, within three days of the last point of contact, wrote Wibbitz VP of People Operations Liron Panaczuk in an opinion for HR Dive. Employers might need to reconnect with candidates they didn't hire if the chosen candidate takes another job offer or turns out to be the wrong fit, or if another job opens up for which the non-hired candidate could qualify. Keeping the candidate experience positive can make reconnecting with the non-hire more congenial.

Finally, a positive candidate experience doesn't stop with a person's hiring; it should continue through the onboarding process and throughout an employee's tenure as part of engagement efforts.