We’re talking about professional courtesy and how that creates better engagement, and believe it or not, loyalty from people who don’t even work for you yet.

As I mentioned in the previous post, candidates get emotionally invested in this recruiting process. They are already visualizing meeting you, visiting you, the difficult conversation resigning their current position, maybe even moving across the country for your job. It’s not just another day at work for them, it’s a big deal. So show them some love. A little professional courtesy at the least.

Phase 1 – Engagement – You just contacted a prospective candidate out of the blue. You contacted them. They did not contact you. Let me stress that. You contacted them. That said, you are the one that is responsible for this communication. Whichever way it goes, it’s your responsibility to handle this person in a respectful and courteous way. You’ll request some time to talk, maybe even request a resume to review before hand. You are now establishing a relationship and your either building or losing trust from this point forward. Your top priority at this point is to follow through and do what you say you will do. If you have a scheduled call with the candidate at 9:00 am. Make the call. Don’t reschedule, Don’t “no show”, don’t make excuses. Make the call. Trust is built through a series of opportunities to do what you say. Be aware that your actions are always speaking louder than your words. Here is a simple test to make sure you are handling a candidate appropriately…… Reverse the roles. Place yourself in their shoes. Would you be impressed by how its going so far? There is your answer!

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