Struggling with No-Shows in Recruitment Drives: How Can I Improve Candidate Turnout?

Hi all, I am Saravanan, working as an HR recruiter in a leading software firm after completing my MBA in HR. Every Saturday, I conduct a drive in my company for placements. Each time, candidates promise that they will arrive for the interview, but on the scheduled date, only a few show up. Last Saturday, I lined up 70 candidates for interviews, but only 10 turned up. Since I am new to recruitment, I am unable to predict candidates' behavior. I find it unsatisfactory that I am not getting enough candidates for selection despite working hard. Kindly suggest improvements I can make to the recruitment process to achieve better results.

Regards, Saravanan A

Respected Sir, as it has been found that many candidates go missing on the date of the interview, there are many reasons behind this. They are as follows:

1. The candidates lined up in the first session, many of them don't know how to face an interview. So, such candidates should be given some brief instructions such as do's and don'ts.

2. A short training session on presentation skills, body language, and other relevant information should be provided.

3. Motivational proverbs and quotes should be provided, which will increase their confidence level.

I believe these are some points that might lead you to success.

Regards, Ajinkya G

Strategies for Effective Candidate Engagement

While you contact people, do the following:

1. Ask them which is their weekly off. Try to hold interviews on the day most of the candidates are available, being the weekly off day.

2. If your placement day is something different, then ask them which time will suit them well. For example, if such people are on shift, then keep interviews for most of them during a particular time slot.

3. On the day of the interview, you must contact each and every person telephonically to ensure how many of them are really coming for the interview. In fact, it is not the behavioral part of the candidates. It is the convenience part. So try to adjust our time with theirs. Because at least at this time, you are at the priority end and not they.

I do agree with Sunil Sadar's suggestions. Please follow his tips for your recruitment process. Also, try methods like sending reminder SMS messages to the deserving candidates. Send greeting emails to their email IDs. Make the job description more attractive and appealing to the candidates and email them. Remember, only through your mistakes will you learn a lot of things that no one can teach you. Prepare a list of errors you make while calling them. As soon as you finish calling them, try to overcome those in the next call.

Practice many times what you want to say before calling the candidates. Have a Word document in front of you filled with all the details you want to tell the candidate so that you do not miss anything.

Try these. Let's hope for the best. And don't give up (also don't work hard, work smart).

Regards,
Shreekanth.P.R

That's a good topic to discuss. Thanks for putting across the question. Initially, I faced this problem. I believe we miss out on candidates because we spend less time in conversation with them. Try to follow up as much as possible—sending regular emails and SMS to let them acknowledge the mail, so that if there is any change, you will be aware before they surprise you.

Hope this would help you.

Cheers,
Manju

Follow up! Please call, SMS, and email them a day before. An interview is basically an appointment/meeting, so please call and remind them.

Thank you!

It is important to first be clear about the purpose and format of interviews. Collect all the necessary information on the candidate, and when you make the call, be clear about the job details. Check with them if this is what they have been looking for. If not, suggest an alternative position. Better still, ask them what exactly they are looking for and see if you could place them suitably.

If yes, describe to them about the company, job details, and what is expected of them at the job. Suggest a date and time and check if it suits them. If it doesn't, let them suggest an alternative, and if agreed upon, confirm it with a call, email, or SMS a day before.

Shravan, it's important that you put the candidate at ease because it's only your voice he hears. Smile while you talk, be genuinely interested, and look through their CV at least twice so that you can state their qualifications and experience while you speak. We all need to feel belonged and special. Why not treat them so? I am sure they would appreciate it. Try it and let me know if it works!

Good Luck...

Regards,
Priyanka

Selecting the Right Employees

It is your responsibility to select a loyal and expert employee for your organization, so be precise in your selection process.

• You can prepare an attractive and fascinating speech about your organization.
• Try to understand the candidates you want and those you don't want.
• Your words to the candidate need not necessarily be in terms of professionalism, but it's good when they are friendly.
• Give them a sense of ease about the working environment and provide the right compensation for the right candidates.

"Emphasis on Quality rather than Quantity," so don't worry about the number of candidates.

Since you are new, have no worries... you will get the hang of the process very soon, meeting more candidates and learning how to handle them! (experience)

Regards

Re:

Follow-up by phone, email, or SMS is the best option through which you can reach the maximum number of candidates available for the interview. It is recommended to do this on the evening before the interview day to analyze how many candidates will be attending.

Regards,
Neha

Follow up on a daily basis. Mail them and ask for an acknowledgment email. As I have conducted many walk-ins, candidates who seem uncertain at that point in time are often neglected, and they definitely do not show up for the interview. This has happened many times, so it's better to thoroughly assess the candidate during the telephonic call itself.

Regards,
Yogita

As you mentioned that only 10 out of 70 candidates showed up for the interview, there is nothing to worry about. Generally, candidates confirm their availability when they receive interview calls on Saturdays or holidays, but on the day of the interview, they sometimes change their plans. They may become lazy, thinking there might be a walk-in event with many candidates and hence decide not to attend the scheduled interview. The way interviews are scheduled also plays a significant role. It is essential to clearly and effectively communicate the job opening and company profile to impress the candidates. Please follow the guidelines provided by other members and do not worry. The usual attendance rate for interviews ranges from 20% to 25%.

Regards,
Prashant Pandey

I completely agree with Prashant Pandey. I would like to add a few points based on my personal experience. Only those candidates will show up for an interview if the offered role, compensation, and company profile are much better than their current one. Even with rigorous follow-ups, a candidate will never turn up unless they are truly interested in seizing this opportunity.

Therefore, I suggest that while screening profiles, consider candidates at a level lower than the current role and compensation. This way, they are more likely to be genuinely interested in taking up the opportunity, leading to a higher turnout rate.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
Sasmita

I hope sending an assessment form to all shortlisted candidates with your required information to answer about the job profile and benefits would be a good idea. Mostly, only interested candidates will respond with a filled form. In the form, add a question - preference date/day and time for the interview, where you can easily make a decision on the interview schedule. Also, make a plan for the time for candidates' appointments with 15 minutes for each.

Good day!

Regards,
Roji Thomas

What I understood from your requirement is that you might be recruiting 'freshers' or individuals with 0 to 2 years of experience. Please understand that this section of employees may lack vision or focus on life. They might have dual thoughts, feeling scared to attend an interview directly with the employer. Even if they attend, they may hesitate to join, anticipating a better opportunity or due to wrong advice from friends.

It is always better to hire through a consultancy for these types of positions. Consultancies will take the responsibility, and you can simply visit their place to finalize the candidates. Since consultancies are professionals and handle such processes regularly, they can manage it more effectively. Moreover, consultancies typically offer a replacement if the candidate leaves within 3 months.

Unlike middle and senior positions, which incur costs of 8.33% to 15% of the candidate's gross annual CTC, you can negotiate a fixed amount with consultancies for the entire requirement.

I hope this answers your questions. If you have any further doubts, please reach us at [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons]. You can also visit our website: <link no longer exists - removed> - Team Foyer.

Dear Saravanan,

This is a typical problem all HR professionals face. Though there is no single method to entice candidates to attend interviews, the following tips may be useful:

1. You have to impress the prospective candidate sufficiently about your company and job opportunity. For this, you need to have a detailed job description in place. Many candidates tend to ask about the expected CTC offered to them.

2. To answer candidates' queries, you need to prepare a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) and be ready to respond. This will save the candidates a lot of time.

3. Even before speaking to the candidate, find out if it is the right time to engage with them. Otherwise, they may become passive listeners.

4. After gauging their interest, inquire about their convenient date (or propose a date and confirm its suitability with them). If the candidate shows no interest, ask if any of their friends might be interested and request a referral.

5. Many candidates prefer attending interviews on their days off and rarely take leave unless they are in urgent need of a change.

6. Once dates are agreed upon, send an interview call letter via email and request confirmation of attendance.

7. Provide candidates with at least one week's advance notice for interviews.

8. Follow up until confirmation is received (as emails may not always reach the intended recipients or candidates may not regularly check their personal emails).

9. If the candidate confirms, follow up at least two days before the interview and on the interview day. Some candidates may request a reschedule, so it's crucial to maintain communication.

10. If a candidate misses the interview, refrain from showing frustration; instead, inquire about their availability for an alternate date.

Monitor your success rate (Candidates invited: Candidates attended).

Lastly, even if a candidate doesn't qualify in the interview, ensure they leave with a positive experience and treat them courteously. They could potentially refer others and positively represent your organization.

ALL THE VERY BEST

Regards,
M.V.KANNAN

I don't know your company's image, market growth, and share in suspects' minds. I suggest two ways of handling such issues:

1. Provide them with pick-up and drop-off services so that absenteeism among your candidates can be controlled.
2. Schedule all the interviews either before or after the lunch hour. Inform them that they are also invited for lunch.

Note: We have to invest to control such behavior, so it is not an expense; it is about how to control irrespective behavior through investments. May you succeed in your aims. Amen!

Dear Sharavan,

I feel that committing small mistakes repeatedly leads to disappointments. Hence, correct usage of English and a strong vocabulary could be your plus point in the future.