Dive Brief:
- The recently released 2018 Yello Recruiting Study reveals almost half of the respondents — soon-to-be and recent college graduates — had multiple job offers from which to choose. More than 700 students and recent grads were surveyed, the majority of whom accepted a full-time job offer, an internship or recently entered the workforce.
- Their reasons for declining offers? Their experience working with a recruiter dissuaded 20% from accepting an offer, while the time it took to get an offer was cited by another 20%. On the other hand, 70% of those surveyed said a recruiter also played a role in why they accepted one offer over another.
- For those who were concerned about time-to-hire, 75% report the process typically took 4 weeks or less, with 80% agreeing that time frame was “just right.”
Dive Insight:
With a negative reaction to working with a recruiter cited by 1 in 5 respondents, it’s clear that candidate experience is a priority for new grads entering the workforce. As employers more heavily depend on technology to screen applicants, personalizing the experience for job seekers is critical. Even something as simple as personal messages during the process can go a long way in keeping applicants interested.
Reducing time-to-hire is top of mind for both recruiters and candidates. With the pressure on HR to fill vacancies, many companies are looking to streamline their processes to reduce that metric to a few weeks or less to keep applicants engaged and avoid losing them to the competition.
That pressure, currently magnified by the tight labor market, has extended to those responsible for sourcing and recruiting, with good reason: companies who don't keep up not only risk losing top candidates, but also risk drops in productivity.