Dive Brief:
- For recruiters who are looking for the candidates they almost hired, Google claims to have a solution. The tech pioneer's Hire platform will soon introduce "candidate discovery" to reconnect recruiters with candidates they previously interviewed for current job openings.
- According to Google, companies interact with 250 candidates before finding the right one to hire. Of the 249 remaining applicants, some might be a good fit for current openings — but sorting through those past candidates could be a rough experience without some help.
- Google claims that candidate discovery's search capability immediately finds qualified candidates right after a job is open from past pools, understands what most job titles would require as far as skills, and uses employers' previous interactions with former candidates to suss out potential candidates.
Dive Insight:
Google Hire garnered quite a bit of attention when it was announced, as it is Google's foray into the increasingly popular recruiting tech space. The platform integrates with the already existing G-suite, Google's enterprise platform; prices were released last summer.
This functionality capitalizes on a potentially strong source of talent. Former candidates tend to be qualified, and they've already been vetted, which is how they rose to the top of the list of candidates. This group of candidates who didn't quite make it is among the overlooked talent pools that employers should look into to fix up their talent pipelines.
An employer might be hesitant about reconnecting with people it didn't hire, thinking they might not be interested in returning for another interview just to face another rejection. But in a tight labor market, employers are wise to create a pipeline of former candidates from which to select new hires — and if a candidate had a good experience during the interview process, it's more likely that they will return to another go-round.
Employers can smooth the way for a talent recall by reiterating to candidates who didn't make it for a position why they were among the top people chosen to be interviewed, thanking them for their time and interest in the position, and letting them know they'll be considered for future openings.
