Is Your Candidate No Longer Interested? 6 Tell-Tale Signs
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
Monday 9.30am: Hi Stuart, it's Hari here. I hope you're well. Just checking in to see if you've had an opportunity to think about the job offer? When you get a moment, give me a quick call today. I'll be around the office all day. Thanks, bye."
Monday 5.00pm: Hi Stuart, it's Hari again. If you can't chat at work, I'll be happy to take a quick five minute call anytime tonight or you can leave me a message about any questions or concerns you have. Chat soon…"
Wednesday 1.00pm: Straight to voicemail...
Don't worry, this article isn't going to be 6 voicemail transcripts where the tone of my voice gets a little more direct each time. But I have a funny feeling that Stuart is trying to avoid me or has since lost interest in the role. Perhaps he feels too uncomfortable to explain the real reason behind his decision? As a recruiter, it's not uncommon to see applicants lose interest in your vacancies. I wanted to share some of the tell-tale signs that you should watch out for when this starts to happen.
1. The candidate avoids your calls and messages
Even if the candidate sounded very keen on the last phone call, it is not uncommon for them to unexpectedly lose interest. Perhaps they're contemplating another more lucrative job offer or have suddenly got cold feet about leaving their current position. Filling a candidate's voicemail box and not hearing anything back from them is a pretty tell-tale sign they're no longer interested. Rather than wasting your time chasing them up, it's time to move on and look for new candidates.
2. Your candidate is struggling to find time off for the second interview
This is quite a common one. Your candidate was very keen to attend the first interview and immediately found a way to get some time off for it. The first one went extremely well and your client is happy to meet them for a second interview. However, when it's time to arrange the follow up interview, the candidate suddenly seems disinterested, has a full schedule or will 'try' to meet the client again in a few weeks. When you try to call them back, it's the same old excuse.
3. They start demanding more money
The dreaded counter-offer. During the first interview, the candidate is happy with the advertised salary and no amount of money from their current role will influence their decision. However, when you make the candidate a job offer, they are suddenly met with a lucrative counter offer from their current boss. The candidate gets showered with praise and their current managers are now throwing another £20,000 at them to sign a new deal. Therefore, the candidate is only willing to move if you can match the counter offer. Even if this were true, just remember that around 75% of candidates who accept a counter-offer from their current position end up leaving their job within 2-3 months anyway.
4. Lack of enthusiasm at the interview
They seemed like the perfect candidate but at some point during the interview, they lost enthusiasm or gave careless answers. Perhaps they displayed negative body language or were not asking enough interesting questions about the company. If their answers are short or they suddenly seem disengaged by the job, you need to work out why and then make a decision as to whether you want to carry on with their application.
5. They ask for some extra days to think about the offer
It's always advised to make a verbal offer to any potential candidate before drafting together a formal contract. This is a better way to gauge their initial reaction. Of course when you present a formal offer, it's still pretty normal for a candidate to ask for some time think it over and this usually means overnight. They may even need a whole weekend to look over every piece of detail. But in the event you make an offer (either verbally or in writing) to a candidate and they ask you for one whole week to decide, this can only mean that they have lost interest or are not the only one involved in making the decision. Therefore, remember to ask them up front who else will be involved in making the decision - perhaps a partner, another colleague or family member.
6. Your candidate misses an interview.
Similar to the voicemail scenario, if a candidate fails to show up for a meeting that you've arranged and confirmed - and does not have the courtesy to at least make a lame excuse about it, then that is another tell-tale sign that they're no longer interested in what you have to offer. If your candidate is excited to attend an interview, they will seldom be late unless their train has been hijacked by terrorists.
When it comes to recruitment, some suggest that you haven't found the ideal candidate until they sign on the dotted line. Others add that you haven't made a successful hire until they actually turn up on the first day of work. However, seasoned recruiters know that you've only filled a vacancy when candidates do all of the above and make a positive impact at the company in the first couple of months.
Hari Singh, Recruitment Consultant
